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Story Notes Plus Proofreading: The Proofreading Plus* Service -- Only $1.79 Per Page   Eliminate Mistakes And Improve Your Screenplay Before You Submit  "So why do I need these script notes and professional proofreading?" To give yourself the competitive edge over those who don't. Producers, agents, and screenplay contest executives all say that proofreading mistakes (grammatical errors, typos, spelling mistakes, and basic formatting errors) are the worst mistakes you can make in a screenplay -- and the most common:   Worst Mistakes:     “1.  Spelling and/or grammatical errors.   If you can't be bothered to proofread your script properly, why should I (or anyone else) be bothered to read it?  Also, if you can't spell or understand grammar, then perhaps writing isn't for you.”  – Hollywood Production Executive       “Not proofreading ... a manuscript full of typos will end up in the trash.  It's difficult to recognize a good story hidden underneath a bunch of typos and misspelled words.” – Producer     “It's CRITICAL that all work be proofread several times as mistakes are often missed.”  – Screenplay Contest Judge     “Too many of the scripts I read are poorly formatted and seem to have been submitted to me with minimal proofreading. Without making these simple fixes, I have a hard time really looking at the actual content.”  – Producer Need more convincing?  Click here to read more industry comments on typos, spelling and grammar mistakes, and basic formatting errors.

The comments above are typical.  They illustrate this ironclad, non-negotiable Rule #1 about submitting screenplays to production companies or contests: To them, you're an amateur and your screenplay is unworthy of their time if it is full of spelling, grammar, and basic formatting errors. Yes, that is harsh.   I am sorry to have to say it.  But it’s the way the industry is. I’m not trying to offend you.  Just the opposite: With 100,000+ spec screenplays hitting Hollywood and the British film and TV industry every year, I’m here to help you beat the odds.     Let Me Help You Submit The Perfect Screenplay I can fix your grammar, spelling, clarity, and basic formatting mistakes for you.   I will proofread your screenplay for grammar, spelling, and clarity for some of the lowest rates in the industry through March 31...   ● Feature screenplay: $1.79/page with notes   ● Teleplay: same $1.79/page with notes   ● Rewrite your synopsis: $50 per 300-word page.   ● Rewrite your query letter/email: $30   ● Write a query letter and query email from scratch: $49 with screenplay proofread, otherwise $65.   ● Evaluate your logline: FREE with screenplay proofread, otherwise $25.   ● Write three suggested loglines for you from scratch: $29 with screenplay proofread, otherwise $49.       Rush Work:   ● 50% surcharge for a 48-hour turnaround.     ● Next-day delivery (“Drop everything and read my screenplay ahead of your rush work!”) – 100% surcharge. But do plan ahead and save money: order at least several days in advance.     What You Will Receive For $1.79 Per Page: A thorough and professional proofreading job.  I will find and correct (or give you notes to correct, such as “saying vs. showing” errors):     -- Typographical errors     -- Spelling errors     -- Grammatical errors     -- Punctuation errors     -- Capitalization errors     -- Verb tense errors     -- Sentence structure and clarity problems     -- Basic formatting mistakes     -- Cramming in too many words**     -- “Saying” when you need to show, and...     The "Plus" Part: Several Pages Of Notes For only $1.79 per page, you will also receive several pages of story notes and notes on proofreading issues.  These notes will include: A brief overall view of the quality of your story. A gentle list of any story problems and issues I see. How well your script performs on eight vital story and script elements. How well your story matches the classic screenplay structure of a famous screenwriting guru. How well your screenplay “romances the reader,” using a 14-point checklist, distilled from more than 5,000 feedback comments by screenwriting contest judges I hired back when I ran screenplay contests. A few pages of Proofreading Notes as needed... In the Proofreading Notes, I comment on proofreading issues which arise more than once in your screenplay.  These notes may include, but are not limited to, issues of grammar, spelling, sentence structure or lack thereof, formatting, and basic screenwriting how-to.  For example, if your scene descriptions include significant instances of failing to tell the story visually (often called violations of the “show, don’t say” or “show, don’t tell” rule), these will be mentioned and discussed. This service -- both proofreading and notes -- will cost you only $1.79 per correctly formatted page.

A Few Of My Many Client Testimonials See more client testimonials and praise on this page  "When I wrote this script, I never intended to do anything with it. I just thought it was a funny original idea. But my friend Howard, who is a retired producer for Paramount, convinced me to post it on on InkTip. Within the week of posting, I was contacted by a producer from Rumayan Pictures based in N. Carolina who wanted to read it. Before sending it to them, I figured I would have a professional script doctor (you) go though it and pick up the flaws and fix other problems. "So I fixed up most of the problems you pointed out as well as some re-writes, and sent the script to the producer. "They bought it!! My attorney brokered a low six-figure deal that gives them full rights to the script and all sequels and re-writes. "So feel free to use me as testimonial for your service. "Thanks." Jeff Madsen  “As a seasoned writer, I never thought I’d need a professional edit, but Donovan uncovered more than a hundred errors  in presentation and substance, and now, I wouldn’t submit a draft to an editor, agent or producer without his finishing touches." Peter Steinberg, author of 7 books, and screenwriter “Searching for a proofreader on the net is relatively easy.  However, putting your faith in one is altogether a different kind of headache.  I‘m a screenwriter, and it never ceases to amaze me, the number of errors I find in my scripts after they have undergone professional proofreading.  It doesn’t matter, the errors seem to mystically grow back overnight.  I thought the answer was to just pay a few proofreaders to do the job and pray it gets done thoroughly.  And then, I received, probably, one of the most valuable emails I have ever gotten.  It was from Bill Donovan, a professional proofreader, whose advertisement just said everything I ever wanted to hear about cleaning up a screenplay.  “So I sent him one, then two, then three and received, not only, the most meticulous proofreads imaginable, eradicating all misspellings, punctuation mistakes and grammatical blunders, but his generous notes regarding problems with plot, structure and research, turned out to be more valuable than a three-day seminar I took by one of the most revered screenwriting teachers in the world.  Since then, with Bill’s service, my scripts are excelling in the same contests that I couldn’t make the first rounds in before.  “It’s hard to take constructive feedback when you think you know what you’re doing.  But until you’re writing for a living, the fastest way to kill your chances with decision makers taking your work seriously is your own stubbornness to improve your writing ability by listening to another unbiased, perceptive voice, other than your own.  For me, that’s Bill!” Howard Fridkin

My Credentials And Experience...   ● Screenplay contest judge (three contests)   ● Screenplay contest executive (11 screenplay contests, 5 scene-writing contests, two logline contests)   ● Two of my own screenplays won three first prizes equaling $30,104 in prize money in today’s dollars.   ● Former Editor of Creative Screenwriting Magazine   ● Author of three e-books for screenwriters to date; a fourth is upcoming   ● USC Master of Fine Arts, Screenwriting and Filmmaking   ● Copy desk chief at a daily newspaper, the Morristown, N.J., Daily Record   ● Copy editor at the Associated Press   ● Copy editor at another daily newspaper, The Record, Hackensack, N.J.   ● Copy editor for several business-to-business trade publications   ● 11,200+ published pages and screenplays edited/proofread over the years   ● News stories I wrote and/or edited won five national journalism awards.     How To Use My Services ... Contact me by email, bill@screenwritingcommunity.net or call me at 805-212-0652, or use this contact form.  Tell me what the job is.  We’ll go from there.   Formats I Can Work With:     ● Final Draft 5, 6, 7, or 8 (FD 9 and 10 convert quickly to 8)     ● Movie Magic Screenwriter 6 or older     ● Celtx (you would create a collaborator account for me)     ● Other online screenwriting software programs which allow for a collaborator. Not accepted: Microsoft Word, Other Word Processors, or PDF.  I cannot edit your screenplay in PDF format.  All I can do with a PDF is read it. Regarding scripts written in a word processor, virtually no one in the industry will work with an amateur who writes scripts in a word processor these days.  Also, proofreading can cause a line to wrap to the next line, which can set the formatting off.  So it seems pointless to go through the extra labor to proofread one.   If you're serious about screenwriting, please invest in screenwriting software or use one of the free or inexpensive online systems. I’m ready to help you make your screenplay a contest winner and ready to be optioned or purchased!  Contact me today or at any time. Best wishes, Bill Donovan Contact me at bill@screenwritingcommunity.net or by phone at (805) 212-0652 or using this form