Well, the first round of Nicholl emails went out yesterday to inform everybody as to whether or not they were among the 372 (out of 7,251) who made it to the quarterfinals.
Regrettably, I wasn’t one of them. But there was a bit of a silver lining, too.
“A little bit of good news: your script scored well, placing among the top 15% of all entries. Possibly read three times, your script was appreciated by two readers. Its numerical placement was within script 728 to 1106 out of 7,251 entries.”
Not too shabby. Best of luck to those continuing on!
So things didn’t work out for me this time. It stings a little right now, but it ain’t the end of the world. I’m not about to stop trying and dive into a pint of Ben & Jerry’s to drown my sorrows.
There was a great tweet from 2003 finalist Ronson Page later in the day: “Hollywood has many, many, many doors. Only one has to open.” There are other contests, next year’s Nicholl, etc.
This script got me a manager, so I’ve got nothing to complain about.
If anything, it makes me want to work harder and write even more. Finish the first draft of the western spec. Jump into the rewrite of my mystery.
We’re writers. It’s what we do.
Don’t get me wrong. I’d love to see my work advance in the Nicholl, but it’s not the only way in.
And I definitely plan on getting in.
Still undecided about the ice cream, though.
And how did YOU do with your Nicholl script(s)?
Maximum Z 
Great attitude, Paul! And with a manager, you’re *this close* to getting in. I’m sure a lot of QFs would swap positions with you in a heartbeat.
Thanks Dan!
Have to keep reminding myself I’ve been very fortunate so far.
Second year in a row with the same results (top 20% though). I say we hit Nicholl with all we’ve got next year!
Nice going! I’m already thinking up ways to rewrite an older script for the next batch of contests.
Congrats, Paul! It shows that you have a viable script that can compete in a very crowded and competitive marketplace. And as you mentioned—it got you a manager! As we have all learned, we can use a great Nicholl placement as a way to get reads by agents and managers or producers with our script. Back in the day my Nicholl script ended up being #20 out of 3,541 scripts entered that year and they picked the top 8 for the fellowship. I didn’t worry because a year later it was optioned and a year after that was in production. Congrats again!
Thanks Mark! The pain’s significantly subsided since then, and I’ve got so much on my plate now (working on the new spec, strategizing changes to an old one, reading & giving feedback on friends’ scripts), there really isn’t time to think about, let alone get upset over it.