“Little White Corvette”  — Action/comedy screenplay by Michael Diliberti reportedly sold in a deal worth a cool million bucks to GK Films. It’s about money-strapped siblings who set out to peddle a load of cocaine discovered in the trunk of their late father’s white corvette. Diliberti wrote the story with David Branson Smith. Script is on the Black List 2011, a collection of unproduced screenplays favored by Hollywood executives. Emma Stone is attached to star and will executive produce along with Diliberti. Both Stone and Diliberti are repped by WME. Stone is managed by Anonymous. Diliberti managed by New School Media.

“Cult”   — A mystery crime drama from sci-fi writer/producer, Rockne S. O’Bannon, has been greenlighted by the CW Network. TV series revolves around an inquisitive female production assistant on a popular TV show called “Cult,” who teams up with a journalist blogger to investigate copycat crimes which appear to be perpetrated by zealous fans of the show. In a strange twist in the deal, the CW ordered the pilot after rejecting it six years ago. O’Bannon is the creator and executive producer of the sci-fi series “Farscape.”

The Writers Guild of America has put out the rest of its list of nominees for 2012 awards. Yesterday, the WGA West and East, revealed the nominations for outstanding achievement in writing for the big screen during 2011.

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

50/50, Written by Will Reiser; Summit Entertainment

Bridesmaids, Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig; Universal Pictures

Midnight in Paris, Written by Woody Allen; Sony Pictures Classics

Win Win, Screenplay by Tom McCarthy; Story by Tom McCarthy & Joe Tiboni; Fox Searchlight

Young Adult, Written by Diablo Cody; Paramount Pictures

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Descendants, Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash; Based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemming; Fox Searchlight

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Screenplay by Steven Zaillian; Based on the novel by Stieg Larsson, originally published by Norstedts; Columbia Pictures

The Help, Screenplay by Tate Taylor; Based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett; DreamWorks Pictures

Hugo, Screenplay by John Logan; Based on the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick; Paramount Pictures

Moneyball, Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin; Story by Stan Chervin; Based on the book by Michael Lewis; Columbia Pictures

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY

Better This World, Written by Katie Galloway & Kelly Duane de la Vega; Loteria Films

If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front, Written by Marshall Curry and Matthew Hamachek; Oscilloscope Pictures

Nostalgia for the Light, Written by Patricio Guzmán; Icarus Films

Pina, Screenplay by Wim Wenders; Sundance Selects

Position Among the Stars, Script by Hetty Naaijkens-Retel Helmrich, Leonard Retel Helmrich; HBO Documentary Films

Senna, Written by Manish Pandey; Producers Distribution Agency

The winners will be honored on Sunday, February 19, 2012, during simultaneous ceremonies in Hollywood and New York.

One of the most debated and scrutinized lists in the entertainment industry came out today.  The Black List is a collection of unproduced screenplays that for whatever reason rated as a “like” or “favorite” by a number of film executives. This year, 300 of them reportedly sent in suggestions to film executive, Franklin Leonard ,who started compiling The Black List back in 2004. Since then, scripts have been plucked from this list and whizzed into production, turning the lucky screenwriters into hot scribes. To many, that’s better than any award or trophy.

Over on deadline.com, there’s the full Black List followed by some interesting comments, as well as breakdowns by agencies and management firms.

To make the list, a script had to receive six votes. Here are the top three screenplays on The Black List for 2011.

THE IMITATION GAME by Graham Moore  (133 votes)

The story of British WWII cryptographer Alan Turing, who cracked the German Enigma code and later poisoned himself after being criminally prosecuted for being a homosexual.

AGENCY:  CAA
AGENT: JP Evans, Jacqueline Sacerio
MANAGEMENT:  The Safran Company
MANAGER:  Tom Drumm
FINANCIER:  Warner Brothers
PRODUCER: Ido Ostrowsky, Nora Grossman

WHEN THE STREET LIGHTS GO ON by Chris Hutton, Eddie O’Keefe (84 votes)

In the early 1980s, a town suffers through the aftermath of a brutal murder of a high school girl and a teacher.

AGENCY: WME
AGENT: Simon Faber, Sarah Self
MANAGEMENT: Tariq Merhab Management
MANAGER: Tariq Merhab
PRODUCER: Imagine Entertainment

CHEWIEby Evan Susser, Van Robichaux (59 votes)

A satirical behind the scenes look at the making of Star Wars through the eyes of Peter Mayhew who played Chewbacca.

AGENCY:  WME
AGENT: Mike Esola
MANAGEMENT: Industry Entertainment
MANAGER: Jess Rosenthal

The rest of The Black List here.

Evan Spiliotopoulos to rewrite “Asteroids” for Universal Pictures— This busy screenwriter picks up another big assignment. Universal has hired Spiliotopoulos to rework “Asteroids” based on the 1970′s Atari video game. Original script by Matt Lopez.

Spiliotopoulos is repped by UTA. More here on Variety.

Chris Shafer and Paul Vicknair’ hired to write “The Girl Who Conned the Ivy League” — Shafer and Vicknair are two hot screenwriters on the fast track. This project is based on a Rolling Stone magazine article about the true story of a woman who conned her way into Columbia University using a fake identity. Amanda Seyfried may star.

Shafer and Vicknair are repped by UTA.  More on deadline.com

“Dreamt” by Andrew Alexander— Safady Entertainment announced the purchase of this spec script on Monday, November 8. In a PR Newswire release company co-founder/producer, Gary Safady, talked about the acquisition: “We’re excited to tell a thrilling, exciting story with an amazing twist to it,” said Safady, adding: “The script has all the elements for intrigue and fascination to capture the audience from the opening frame of the film. Andrew has crafted an amazing story in the vain of Memento and Fight Club.”

“Dreamt” is about two men who have a supernatural connection through their dreams, but when they discover each others existence, one will stop at nothing to take over the life of the other. “The Hills Have Eyes II ” director, Martin Weisz, is attached to the project. Principal shooting  on this psychological thriller is set to get underway next April.

Weisz is represented by Anonymous Content. Screenwriter Andrew Alexander’s rep is Original Artists.

A New York congressman is calling for an investigation into what kind of “cooperation” the Obama administration provided for a movie about the take down of 9-11 terrorist mastermind, Osama bin Laden. Director Kathryn Bigelow is partnering with screenwriter Mark Boal on this bin Laden film.

Apparently, the filmmakers are being accused of getting “special access” and classified information –  allegedly including data on the Navy Seal Team 6 raid which resulted in the death of bin Laden.

Today Deadline.com posted reaction from Bigelow and Boal, declaring they have received help from officials in three administrations: Clinton and Bush are the other two.  Also on the site, a letter from Congressman Peter King detailing the allegations, which started with a recent column in the New York Times.

Last year, Bigelow won best director for “The Hurt Locker.” Boal took home best original screenplay for that Iraq drama.  More on the controversy swirling  around their latest film here.

Photo courtesy Southland writer and USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Forster

Am I An Author Idiot?  Working with a freelance editor

I face each new project with a combination of angst and self pity, positive I will never write a decent book again much less publish one. After 23 published novels, one indie and two scripts (one in development) you’d think I’d be over all that. I’m not. Enter, my freelance editor Jenny Jensen*. I work with her because she is in my corner and because I sell more often when I do.

Still, I have to wonder, why can’t I edit myself? Haven’t I learned anything from her? Am I an author idiot?

Thankfully, the answer is no and Jenny gave me a couple of good reasons why I’m not:

• Writing is a fast and furious process when it is going well. Grammar and spelling are not top of mind when an author is ‘in the zone’; words and ideas must flow freely.
• Self-editing is prone to ‘blindness’. The author often sees no difference between her intent and the typed words. A good editor understands and respects the author’s words and voice while cleaning up the grammatical flaws that set the signals – signals that allow the reader to effortlessly navigate the story.
• Some writers see punctuation as a bother. A well-punctuated manuscript will catch the eye of a publisher and so will one that is not punctuated well. Only one will sell.
• Finally, some people are writers and others are editors. Like a writer with an instinct for story, an editor has an instinct for a pause, a rolling stop and when to quit. She knows when creativity and inspiration becomes awkward and interferes with story.

Knowing why I use a freelance editor usually leads to the question…

Can Only Rich Writers Afford a Freelance Editor?

Prices for freelance help ranges from ridiculously cheap to the astronomically expensive. Some projects only need grammatical assistance and others continuity or story editing. Story editing is more expensive but, in my case, it is critical. I write thrillers that rely on a trail of clues and red herrings and I cannot assess the effectiveness the webs I weave on my own.

In this roiling market, those who offer the cleanest, most professional product will be noticed. In the e-book market, those who present a flawed product will be called on the carpet instantly and very publicly. That is the worst kind of publicity and hard to recover from.

How Do I Work with a Freelance Editor?

The same way you work with a New York editor attached to a publisher. You respect one another’s expertise and perspective. You have discussions, not confrontations. You recognize your weakness and her strengths. You pay on time and she turns the project around on time.

Oh, don’t forget to say thank you to your freelance editor when that publishing house cuts you your advance check.

###
*Jenny resides at http://www.e-bookeditor.com. Note the wonderful example on her home page of what a difference punctuation can make.

Visit Rebecca at http://www.rebeccaforster.com for writing tips, lots of pictures and a sneak peek at her latest book.

Rebecca Forster's "Beyond Malice," is a bestselling digital release.

Columbia Pictures Vice-President, DeVon Franklin, leads a double life and he’s proud of it. Franklin is a devote Christian and a minister as well as studio executive.  Franklin has incorporated his faith into a business model, which he talks about in his new book “Produced by Faith: Enjoy Real Success without Compromising Your True Self.”

Franklin is the executive who brought the low-budget, but very successful script project, “Jumping the Broom,” to Columbia. Produced for less than $7 million, the romantic comedy has made over $30 million at the box office in about three weeks. Franklin is convinced you don’t have to have great connections or live in Tinseltown to sell your screenplay: “… we need good scripts in Hollywood. So, if you write a good script, even if you’re in Nebraska, Ohio –  you could be in the most remote part of the world — if you write a good script, I promise you, somehow we’ll find it.”

Franklin sees his faith and movie career as a perfect match: “My whole big idea for my life is to inspire and encourage, and God has called me to use film as part of a way to do that.” Franklin’s comments are from a post over on the publishing site, Galleycat.

By the way, his book “Produced by Faith, “ written with Tim Vandehey, was released from Simon & Schuster earlier this month on May 3.

Chick flicks are packing them in at movie theaters. Two in the last couple of weeks have beaten projections and grabbed a lot of attention away from the front runner, “Thor”.

While the superhero actioner held onto first place over the weekend, the debut of the raunchy female comedy, “Bridesmaid” is the talk of Tinseltown. The comedy about a down-on-her luck woman whose experiences as a maid of honor are hilarious, painful, and finally life changing.

“Saturday Night Live” cast member Kristen Wiig, co-wrote the screenplay with Annie Mumolo, and stars in the film along with Maya Rudolph, and Rose Byrne. In the actual box office numbers released today, “Bridesmaids’ scored an impressive $26.2 million — good enough for second place.

On the previous weekend, the low-budget but audience pleasing wedding comedy, “Jumping the Broom,” out paced expectations as well. This film cost around $7 million and in two weeks it has made around $26 million. Clearly, there is plenty of life left in the wedding comedy genre.

Box Office final numbers for May 13-15, 2011

1.”Thor” —–  $34.7 million

2. “Bridesmaids” —– $26.2 million

3. “Fast Five” —– $20.4 million

4. ”Priest” —– $14.9 million

5. “Rio” —– $8.2 million

6. “Jumping the Broom” —– $7 million

Another spec script sale to report, the 34th this year, according to Scott Myers over on the Go Into The Story blog. Twentieth Century Fox picked up, “From Mia With Love,” a comedy about three dudes who are eager to part with their virginity. So they send-off for a Russian mail order bride, but as you can probably imagine, things do not work out the way the guys plan.

The screenwriters are Seth Grahame-Smith, Bryan Shukoff, Kevin Chesley, and David Katzenberg who will direct. Katzenberg’s father is DreamWorks big shot, Jeffrey Katzenberg.

Myers is tracking the script sales over on his screenwriting site. He says the spec script market is doing a whole lot better than in 2010. It wasn’t until August 17 that the 34th spec script sold last year. More on this script sale here.

At a time when the sale of spec scripts usually slows down – this year– those sales are still going strong.  Scott Myers over on the screenwriting blog Go Into The Story is tracking 2011 spec script buys.

Myers says the 29th sale was for a spec script written by the grandsons of the actor, Dick Van Dyke. Carey and Shane Van Dyke’s “The Watching Hour” is a horror screenplay.

Spec script sales in Hollywood are way ahead of  2010. Last year, the 29th spec script did not get bought until June 25! For more on this sale click here.