The Magic Pen

Jim Mitchell has always had a gift for words, but was never as bright as his archrival, the wildly successful screenwriter, Harvey Blankenberg. While Harvey ends up winning two Academy Awards, Jim is stuck in a dead-end job as an office assistant. But he still comes up with great ideas, and realizes he must choose between his day job and making it as a writer in Hollywood. Jim goes to Hollywood, tries to sell his script, but meets resistance at every turn, and is envious of Harvey’s success. Jim finds a magic pen in a bookstore that writes masterpieces. But there is also a warning attached to the pen, to beware of what the pen can do. Fed up with being at the bottom of the totem pole, Jim disobeys his conscience--and his girlfriend Claire’s and his mother’s words to keep working at his writing and not give up--and instead, secretly uses the magic pen to write a script. Everyone he shows it to loves the script. But the script contains swearing and violence, and the movie it is based on creates a controversy across America. The critics love it but some Americans don’t. Jim wins the Academy Award, over Harvey and Claire. Jim thinks he has made it to the pinnacle of success, but Claire leaves because she now wants more than fame and fortune. And Jim’s career starts to unravel when the pen falls into the hands of Harvey. Harvey uses it to teach Jim a lesson he’ll never forget about life, love, and hard work. To read this script, please email claire@clairehutchinson.net or terryporteragent@gmail.com.