Hi, today I’m reviewing The Executive Chair by Kelly Edwards. This book is really excellent. If you’re interested in getting involved in the entertainment business as a writer or a producer.
It goes into her journey toward becoming a developmental executive, and it really just tells you everything you need to know. The back cover says it all. “Every storyteller’s project begins with a successful pitch to a network executive.” I think that really kind of sums up this book. It’s a very concisely written book, full of good advice about the kind of work that’s involved in being a business executive in entertainment. It also goes into the kind of selling you have to do all the time in this business. Always you’re selling, and it’s a reality that has to be dealt with, if you’re going to go into screenwriting. You always have to be thinking about the money because somewhere along the line, somebody’s going to be paying for this.
Whether you’re pitching to a network executive, or to a producer or to a financier, one way or the other, you’re going to be pitching this project you’re working on to somebody, and you have to make it so compelling that they will be dying to hear it. This isn’t a matter of going in there and acting all excited about your project, and saying, “This is the greatest. You will not believe how great this is.” No, no. This is about going in professionally and making a persuasive pitch for your project based on its inherent value. Well, that actually, I’m turning it into that <laugh> part of what’s involved in pitching. You really have to kind of create the moment for these people, to create the moment that makes them go, “Ooh! This is interesting. I want to know more.”
That’s what it’s about, and this book goes into the kind of mindset and the kind of work a person has to do to achieve that goal. So for that reason, I am highly recommending this book. Kelly Edwards, The Executive Chair. Get this book out of the library or buy it better still. Have it on hand so that you can check it out every now and then and just get some inspiration or just know that somebody else has been there and done that. And with that, I’ll just say thanks and I’ll talk to you later.
And just one more thing. I believe she makes some suggestions in the book as to how to break into the business, various ways that you can find to break into the business. And remember, it is a business of relationships. So getting in through any means that you can and establishing trust, establishing the relationship that will show people, I’m good. I can do this. I will come through for you. I will not disappoint you. I will be reliable. I will, you can count on me to do this for you. Show that you’re useful and just do it <laugh>, pretty much that, I mean, really, sometimes you just have to do a thing in order to really learn it. So that’s where some of this can get really tough. I think a lot of us get in our own way and we just say, I don’t know if I can do this. You can do it if you put your mind to it and put one foot in front of the other and keep going. That’s it, and I’ll talk to you later.
You can buy this from Amazon.
You can also get it from Apple in audio.
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You can buy it from Barnes & Noble.
You can also buy it from my online bookstore and support indie bookstores when you buy there.