In 2021 I submitted my only pilot script, a One Hour Drama to Script Summit in the Golden Age
category even though I didn’t want that Hollywood Ageist thing to brand me if I won. The chance of
winning was slim, but because I liked contests that gave me the best chance of getting into the
finals, I sent my 53-page entry off to be judged as a person of a certain age.
I won.
What?? Now I faced the conundrum of announcing to the world my Golden status if I wanted the
bragging rights. Dang! Back then, I was collecting writer wins to build credibility even though I’m
mostly a feature writer and not going for a spot in one of those 20-something filled writers ‘rooms. I
bit the bullet and announced my win. I have a big following on Twitter and got some lovely traction
from the tweet along with a pretty laurel from Script Summit. I knew that being a 50+ writer should
have been a feather in my cap with all my wisdom and experience but I feared I’d lose work if
Hollywood people thought I only had a few good years left.
“Script Summit elevated my script to the top position, and I used the laurel in the pitch deck and one pager when my manager took it to the CW channel.”
Cut to: It’s 2025 and I’ve had two feature movies produced, have two more in development, have
three optioned, I’m producer on several movies I didn’t write as well as writer for hire on a Lifetime
Thriller that’s set to release. I have a nice little career going here having built relationships with
producers and developmental executives who take my work to places like TUBI, Hulu, Hallmark,
Netflix, BET and streamer services. I have stuff in the pipeline, pots on the stove, horses at the gate
and anticipate 2025 as being the year I finally make a living wage from my writing. Big living, I’m
talking, not poverty level stuff.
I’ve been writing books for fifteen years as an Indie Author and am a USA Today Bestselling Author,
something you might believe garners a living wage but no. I have sixteen novels published, some of
which were Amazon bestsellers but not having a gigantic publishing house behind my books to PR
my releases, it’s different. The pilot script that won the Golden Age category was adapted from my
five-book series, Moody & The Ghost, a story that captures my heart in a way none of my other
books have with a main character that is snarky, suspicious and vulnerable. My readers also love
Bryndle Moody, the blind ghost hunter. The story has humor, diversity, inclusion, drama,
supernatural and eventually time travel which has me promoting the potential TV show as
Outlander meets Scooby Doo.
In ’21 I was thrilled that Script Summit elevated the script to the top
position, and I used the laurel in the pitch deck and one pager when my manager took it to the CW
channel. The folks over there asked me to write the MC younger for their market, which I did but
according to my former manager, even though Moody & the Ghost was seriously considered, they
eventually passed. Both the win at Script Summit and this opportunity at CW gave my project
credibility but I eventually stuck with feature writing seeing I live on an island off Seattle and have
no intention of moving to LA to be a TV writer even if the stars all aligned and I was asked. I take that
back. If the stars align and Moody gets picked up, I’ll work something out.
In 2024, I met a young hungry executive producer who takes projects to streamers. He loved my
writing, read a bunch of my scripts and started taking my projects around. His energy is infectious,
and I love his drive, which matches my own. Eventually he asked if I had a series and up popped
Moody & The Ghost with that Golden Age win under its belt. He read the pilot, asked for the One
Pager and Pitch Deck, and series Bible, which I had available from my CW pitch.
At the time of writing this, Moody & The Ghost is over at NBCU with an executive, being considered.
The One Pager and Pitch Deck garnered a read of the pilot and when we sent the pilot, we included
the series Bible. I couldn’t be more excited for Bryndle Moody and her ghost boyfriend, Caspian
Cortez, the ship captain from 1850. We’re waiting to hear that the project has gone up the food
chain to a higher up executive. If they make an offer, we’ll ink up on permission to develop it into a
series. I’ve thought a lot about how to negotiate a deal with a giant like NBCU but will wait to see if
Moody gets an offer. I just met with this powerhouse producer, and he confessed it’s in his top 3
projects he hopes to see made this year.
My instinct that contests matter was a good one. The right contests. The ones with clout and prizes.
Money is good but clout and bragging rights are better in the long run. And even if my win at Script
Summit wasn’t the tipping point for either the CW or NBCU, the win probably lent credibility to the
project at an early level to prompt the executive to delve deeper. Who knows?
What I do know is that like a ghost that doesn’t pass on, my little script continues to haunt
Hollywood and that personally owning my Golden Age and the win at Script Summit gave me a
lovely shot in the arm to take out this favorite script with confidence, and for that I’m very
appreciative.
BIO:
KIM HORNSBY is a USA Today Bestselling Author and produced Screenwriter known for adapting
her novels to screenplays. With 16 novels and as many screenplays Kim is also a movie producer –
her Family Adventure, BRAVING RAPIDS, and Lifetime Thriller, SECRET LIFE OF MY OTHER WIFE,
have release dates in ’25 with her bestselling novels, THE DREAM JUMPER’S PROMISE and
CHRISTMAS IN CRYSTAL CREEK in Development with Kim producing. As a producer, she has three
Indie movies in post-production with release dates in 2025.
Kim writes from a desk overlooking her forested acreage on an island off Seattle conjuring up gutsy
heroines among diverse and inclusive characters to represent real life.