Tarantino quote

Saharanturtle

Saharanturtle

Active member
I read while back that Quentin tarantino said the best advice he was ever given was to write in cursive so if he happens to leave or drop his notebook with his script somewhere, someone can't just take it and steal it


what do you guys think of that? Is it better to get a laptop or something to write in and promptly upload your material somewhere online that's safe?(without saving it on the hard drive in case the laptop gets stolen)
 
Saharanturtle said:
upload your material somewhere online that's safe?(without saving it on the hard drive in case the laptop gets stolen)
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Why not just save it to a memory stick that you keep in your car's glove compartment (or somewhere else that is off site in case of fire etc).
 
Hm... The common wisdom is that only amateur writers worry about others stealing their ideas. I have trouble buying that Tarantino actually believes that's good advice for a writer.
 
Great Ideas and Scripts are a dime a dozen.
You can find award worthy stories on world of warcraft forums if you look nicely....
Heck, swing by a pre-school and interview a toddler for EPIC mini synopsis...

The hard part is turning that story or script into something entertaining and bankable...
 
Yeah, only amateurs fear their ideas will be stolen; professionals fear their work will be stolen. That sounds more the case here. And if you feel that fear is unfounded, don't bother to register or copyright anything before sending it out. Feel free to tell me how that works out for you in the long run.
 
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Drew Ott said:
Hm... The common wisdom is that only amateur writers worry about others stealing their ideas.
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Not quite; amateur writers worry about others stealing their SCRIPTS. Nobody would steal a script.

Your idea, however, yes they'll steal that all day long. If it's any good at all, it'll be vacuumed up the minute you speak it aloud. Nobody has a problem with appropriating IDEAS, because those aren't copyrightable anyway.

But scripts are just too traceable, so even the nefarious wouldn't steal a script, unless they really and truly thought they'd get away with it (meaning they thought you were clueless enough that they could really get away with it.) Write it, register it, and keep track of everyone you pitched it to.

And don't just pitch ideas, because if an idea is any good they will just take it and run with it with their own, proven writers.
 
I don't see how a notebook is protection, unless QT is writing in code. If someone was desperate enough to steal it, they'd just transcribe it from the notebook. Just write a first draft quick, WGA register it, and if you're extra paranoid, file a copyright. That's the best you can do. But the chances that the person who finds your laptop and/or script, is also going to have the desire to steal that script and then have the capability to sell it and turn it into a feature film are pretty remote, especially if you don't live and/or work near Wilshire Blvd in Los Angeles.
 
Agreed.

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