Your script. My notes.

If you have a draft and you want to know why it isn't working yet, this is the page.

Tell me about your script

Who this is for

You've finished a draft. You know something is off and you can't name it. You've had notes before that told you it was "really strong" and left you exactly where you started.

You want someone to read the whole thing, tell you what's broken, tell you why, and show you what to do about it. Then get out of your way.

Features and pilots. Any genre. If you write monsters, machines, or myth, we'll get along.

Three ways to work together

Pick the one that matches where your script is. Not sure? Start with the call.

One problem, one hour

Story Call

$300

Sixty minutes on Zoom. Bring one thing that's stuck: a scene, an act break, a villain with no pulse, a logline that dies in the room.

  • Send up to 10 pages ahead of time
  • You leave with a fix and a next step
  • Recording is yours to keep
Book a call
Most writers start here

Script Assessment

$1,200

I read the whole script. You get written notes on structure, character, stakes, and pages, then an hour on Zoom to work through them.

  • Feature or pilot, up to 120 pages
  • Written notes: what works, what doesn't, why, and what to do
  • 60-minute follow-up call
  • Notes back within two weeks
Request an assessment
You have a room to walk into

Pitch Prep

$3,600

For writers who are about to pitch. I read the script, then we build the pitch together and rehearse it until it holds.

  • Full script read and notes
  • Logline, one-sheet, and verbal pitch
  • Four working sessions over six weeks
  • Did the assessment first? The $1,200 comes off
Ask about pitch prep

Payment is due before I start reading. Slots are limited because I'm also writing. If I can't take your script in the next month, I'll tell you when I can.

What this is not

  • Not coverage from a reader you'll never meet.
  • Not a cheerleading session. If it's not working, you'll hear it, and you'll hear why.
  • Not a promise about representation, sales, or contests. I can't get you a manager. I can get you a better script.
  • Not a rewrite service. The pages stay yours.

How it works

  1. Send the basics. Use the contact form. Title, format, page count, one paragraph on what you think is wrong, and which option you want.
  2. I reply within two business days. If it's a fit, you get a start date and an invoice. If it's not, I'll say so and point you somewhere useful.
  3. You send the script. I read it. Notes land on the date we agreed. Then we talk.

Why my notes

Two decades of paid story work. I've directed and produced for brands and organizations across the country, produced audiobooks for Steven Pressfield, and spent years learning what makes an audience lean in and what makes them check their phone.

I'm also in the chair. Right now that means I'm pursuing pilots and features to be made too. I know what it costs to hear a draft isn't there yet. I also know it's the only note that helps.

I write about power and consequence: stories where getting what you want costs you something real. If your script has a price in it, I'll find it.

Free first

Not ready to spend money on notes? Start here. It's most of what I know.

Free PDF

The Character Underbelly Worksheet

Seven questions that turn a trope into a person. With a worked example and a printable worksheet.

The essays

One a week on craft. Why some stories cost you something and most don't.

Story diagnostics

Short fill-in-the-blank tests for your villain, your scene, your ending. On Instagram.

The podcast

Long conversations with people who make things for a living.

Questions

What do you read?
Features and TV pilots, in English, in standard screenplay format. Novels and short film scripts: ask. I'll tell you honestly whether I'm the right reader.
What if I'm not finished?
The Story Call works at any stage. The assessment needs a complete draft. A rough one is fine. A half one isn't.
Do I need to sign anything?
Yes. A short submission release, standard for anyone in the industry who reads unsolicited material. It protects both of us.
Can we do more than one round?
Yes. Second reads on a revised draft are offered at a reduced rate to anyone who's done the assessment.
Do you work with organizations too?
That's a different company. Creative strategy for mission-driven organizations lives at Portnoy Media.

Send me the problem.

Title, format, page count, and one paragraph on what you think is wrong. That's enough to start.

Tell me about your script