MovieBytes Interview:
Screenwriter Danny Howell

An interview with screenwriter Danny Howell regarding the Hollywood Symposium Writing Competition.

A: It's THE PAPER ROUTE, and this is the logline: To pay the rent demanded by his unemployed father, Paul, 15, must collect a very overdue paper bill from a dangerous redneck. Paul's efforts lead him to discover a way to escape his hard life - but to do so, he must face leaving his younger brother in the clutches of an abusive father.

A: This contest was one of four that this particular script took the top prize in during a twelve month period from December 2002 to December 2003 -- which was pretty amazing to me. The script had placed in about a dozen contests before that, including the quarterfinals of Nicholl and a couple of second place finishes, but had never won a top prize. Then in a single year it won a Script Magazine Open Door contest, grand prize in the first Screen Arts Foundation contest that drew over 1100 entries, grand prize in American Accolades' contest, and the top prize in Hollywood Symposium. What attracted me to this contest was the credentials of the contest coordinator, Eric Edson (see their web site and click on "director", he's got a very impressive resume) and the fact that it has been around a few years. There are so many new contests out there it's scrary, and I've entered a few that turned out to be fly-by-night'ers -- so now, after learning the hard way, I lean toward entering established competitions.

A: This is a solid contest - they do what they promise, they pay promptly, they ship your software and certificate right away, and they publicize the results.

A: Not formally, in the sense of notes. But Eric Edson, the contest coordinator, also read my winning script and called me with his own feedback, which I really appreciated.

A: I received 10 "read requests" from producers as a result of winning the contest, mostly after Inktip (which the contest uses to promote the winners) sent out publicity on the results. Together with my three other contest wins during the same year, this win helped goose PAPER ROUTE up in the rankings on Moviebytes' WinningScripts.com site, as a reuslt of which I have received a number of additional requests for the script.

A: I started writing screenplays four years ago when I joined a screenwriting workshop run by Marc Lapadula, a screenwriting instructor who runs several such workshops in the D.C. and Philadelphia areas. All three of my completed screenplays have placed in contests, although PAPER ROUTE has been far and away the most successful.

A: It's funny, one contest that I finished second in actually suggested that folks get a P.O. box and a voice mail out there so people woudl think you live in L.A. when you write or leave messages. I think I'll stick with being honest about the fact that I live in McLean, Virginia.

A: I'm working on my fourth screenplay, and am busy revising PAPER ROUTE for a marketing push later this year.

Posted Sunday, April 11, 2004