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Article: First 10 Pages Showcase

2024 First 10 Pages Showcase - Image of retro typewriter

First 10 Pages Showcase

The First 10 Pages Showcase recognizes scripts, books, short stories & stage plays in any genre that set up an exciting and compelling story capable of "hooking" a reader within the first 10 pages.


2024 WINNER


UNDEAD PASSAGE

written by Matteo Giordano

When a dapper, but thirsty, group of vampires awaken on the Titanic, two disparate passengers must unite to save their fellow passengers on the ship's maiden voyage.


2024 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


DREAM A LITTLE by William Arendt. Desolated by a lifetime of missed opportunity and tragedy, a former prodigy learns just how much he impacted the lives of those around him.

DRY HEAT by Ryan Douglas Gore. On a road trip across the New Mexico desert, a family of three are terrorized and kidnapped by a motorcycle gang after a deadly highway incident.

FISH FAVOR by Daniel Flint. A scruffy college student finds himself grappling with the pressures of academia when his friend proposes a spontaneous party in his dorm. | Website: BeartoonStudios.com | X: @beartoonstudio | Instagram @beartoonstudios | IMDb

FOOL-COURTING PRESS (Episode 1) by Daryl Malarry Davidson, Marc Olson & Iggy Cossman. When a white pro basketball player feels unappreciated and issues a challenge - the top five white basketball players, he says, could beat the top five Black ones - the game is on.

GUN by Dana St. Amand. When a private detective goes missing, his gun comes to life with the task of finding him. | Website: DanaStAmand.com | Instagram: @danast.amand

HOW TO SELL PAINT TO LIZARDS by Cecelia Hutnick. A paint salesman's chance encounter with aliens leads him on a journey of self-discovery. 

LAST FLING by Stephanie Jayich Röst. When a woman accepts an invitation to a childhood frenemy's bachelorette weekend just to poke fun at vacuous women and old bullies, she finds herself in a far more hellish predicament than a silly party game.

NOCNITSA (The Serpent's Seed) by Richard Guimond. When a demonic spirit, known as Nocnitsa, secretly infiltrates a small-town, a woman must try to stop it - because what she has is what the evil wants and needs.

PIGSU by Mercy Malarvizhi Dasan. Due to her incapability, a clever mom-pig provides a trustful human-mom and sibling to her baby piglet.

POOR PLAYERS by Ron Kaehler. A struggling actor receives a call summoning him to an out-of-the-way theater, at a rather inconvenient time, for a rather peculiar audition - one in which there’s more at stake than just getting the part. | Website: RonKaehler.com and PoorPlayersOnstage.com

SCORCHED EARTH by Anthony Moore. In his bid for power, a would-be mafia boss sells a new biological weapon to terrorists, which sets off WWIII, but in the aftermath, he must team up with the planet's top criminals to prevent human extinction. | X: @techrat_0 | Stage32: @AnthonyMoore | IMDb

SET IN STONE by Andrea Nocchetti. A promising young artist enrolls in a cutthroat Sculpting Academy, where his dreams of greatness are nurtured by an instructor who will stop at nothing to unleash a student's potential.

THE COMPLAINT by Anita Osuigwe-Spencer. In 1918, Greensville, South Carolina, an ordinance is introduced that requires Black women to carry a labor identification card proving they are regularly and usefully employed, or they will be fined or put in jail. (Based on a true story.)

THE DEVIL'S RING (Pilot) by Sandra Hughes. When a rookie federal agent is assigned to the brutal murder of a small-town coroner, the routine investigation takes a dark turn as she uncovers a sinister child trafficking ring, and her own son is kidnapped.

THE FISHERMAN'S WIFE by Gabriella Michele Bedsworth. A depressed, suicidal fisherman kidnaps the doppelganger of his dead fiancée, but must face the agonizing decision to let her go. | Facebook: @gabriella.bedsworth

THE LOST GOSPEL by James M. Freeman. An anthropology professor discovers, loses, and battles to recover a priceless antiquity proclaiming that Jesus visited India during his lost years, as Indian terrorist-bandits, religious zealots, and a jealous professor and ex-lover chase her for the relic.

WHITE HAWK RISING by Claudia Dato. While serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole, an ex-Native American gang member attempts to overcome an abusive childhood and a violent life of crime. (Inspired by a true story.) | Website: cddato.wixsite.com/claudiadato


2024 SUBMISSIONS STATISTICS


Writer Gender
Male: 49%
Female: 43%
Other/Unknown: 8%

Genre
Drama: 25%
Crime/Thriller/Mystery: 21%
Comedy: 17%
Science Fiction/Fantasy: 15%
Horror: 14%
Action/Adventure: 5%
Sports: 4%

Submission Location
United States: 71%
Other/Unknown: 24%
Canada: 5%

Format
Feature Screenplay, Television Script or Short Script: 86%
Book, Manuscript or Short Story: 9%
Stage Play: 5%


2023 WINNER


EL PERRITO

written by Piper Shackleford

When a juvenile-delinquent teenager receives a community-service sentence at a local animal shelter for unwanted and abused dogs, she learns what's truly worth fighting for.


2023 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


23 HOURS TO KILL by C. McCloud

ANIMALAND by Charline Odiot

BLINK OF AN EYE by Karen Matthews

BROKEN BRANCH by Richard Guimond

DOWN TO THE FELT by Dino Tripodis, Jon Osbeck, and Ralph Scott

FROM THE STREETS by Zaric Reed

IF TREES HAD EYES by Denys Bastov

LABRADOR by Anna Nazzari

LIVING AMONG SHADOWS by Ty Jones (story by Ty Jones and Leilani R. Hinyard)

MARAH FROM EILAT by Leiter Daniellson.

MEL OF ASTORIA by Maggie McMeans.

MEN OF COLOR by Mike Kearby.

MISS GLORIA by Nancy Hashim (based on the nonfiction book "Miss Gloria" by Ellen Bomer)

MYSTIC CASTLE by Lori Marra

NEVER THE SAME MIRA by Michael Thomas Yahn

OUT OF TIME by Tane Uribarren

RICKY BENES by John Paul James

THE BOY WHO WOULD NOT SEE by Elisa Medhus

THE CLOSED TUNNEL by Anthony Harold

THE WITNESS by Frank Battaglia & Toby Osborne (story by Frank Battaglia)

WHACK-A-MOLE by Amanda Boyden and Tana Parry

WHITE-WASHED by Navdeep Bains


2022 WINNER


THE HIGHWAYMAN

by Carole Ann DePree

A young Englishman follows in his father's footsteps to become a notorious highwayman.


2022 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


CLOSE SHAVE by Phillip Russell (story by James Russell)

COOKE CITY by Stuart Heimdal

EGOR AND SAUL by Melissa Shevela

FAILURE TO ADAPT by Yerania Del Orbe

MICHELANGELO: A LIFE IN THE STONE by Andrea Nocchetti

NIGHT HEAT by Henry Myers

QUEEN OF HEARTS by Kathleen Welton

SECOND CHANCES by Kara M. Canton

SECRETS OF THE FARM BY Melanie Fernelius

SHADOW by Karen Matthews

TALES FROM THE SHENANDOAH by Rick Helin

THE LAST DON by Anthony Moore

UNCHAINED MELODEE by Carl Burcham


2021 WINNERS


PAUL'S PANTRY

by Connor Swatling

An aspiring celebrity chef resorts to crime to fuel his passion for cooking.


SKINNED

by Carlos Perez

The lines between filmmaking and murder are blurred when a shifty director uses his unknowing cast for a horror flick as bait to catch the serial killers who took his father's life.


THE KISS-OFF

by Gio Forlenza

A disenchanted bagman chooses to help the feisty woman who ripped him off and defy the powerful organization he was once loyal to.


UNION JACK

by Stephen Sunter

A loveless Ohioan discovers his British alter ego is a big hit in the LA dating world. Until he falls for Emily, from Yorkshire.


2021 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


'A' MY NAME IS AUDREY by Richard Levine

BORN TO DANCE by Kathleen Welton

BRUNSWICK by Tom Cavanaugh

DADDY (Pilot Episode: "Goodbye Dad, Hello Daddy") by Harry Redlich

DEUCE by Keith Leu

GIANT by Michelle Conklin

I HATE CINDY LOVELET by Paul-Anthony Surdi

JUBILEE NATION by Henry Myers

MONTEREY by Jacqueline Robotham & John Clubb

NONTRADITIONAL (Pilot Episode: "You've Got Another Thing Coming") by Keith R. Higgons

OPULENCE ("Pilot") by Hannah Dobson

SWEET POISON by Guillaume Banniard

THE DOG by Monte Silver


2020 WINNERS


BEAUTY THE CAT

by Juliette Garrigues

During World War II, Beauty, a kitten who has been separated from her mother and brothers, integrates with the Animal Resistance Network and helps humans repel enemy forces. Once the war is over, Beauty is praised for her bravery and finds her mother and brothers, whom she believed were dead.


CONTRIBUTING TO THE DELINQUENCY OF A VAMPIRE

by Michael William Hogan

A millennial vampire must choose between a patriarchal role in his homeland and the trappings of western pop culture.


PIPE DREAM

by Corey Mayne & Eric Mayne 

Grief-stricken by his grandfather's death, Ronnie MacDonald masquerades as a drummer and joins The World’s Most Dangerous Pipe Band for free passage to Scotland. Once there, he embarks on a frenetic pilgrimage to his ancestral homestead, where he confronts the demons that have cursed his family for centuries -- sheep.


TOKEN IDIOTS: FIRST BURN (Pilot)

by Matthew Lutz

At the dawn of the 2017 Bitcoin boom, an inept programming geek inadvertently joins forces with the Bulgarian mafia to launch a new cryptocurrency aimed at solving global warming. He’ll either save the planet, or die trying!


UNDEAD IN PARIS

by Terry Wright

Boston television news writer Alina Carr, scarred by a childhood dog attack, gets new beauty when she’s turned into a vampire’s daughter, but her rebellious blood-brother in Paris draws the attention of vampire hunters determined to exterminate her newfound family.


2020 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


ADRESTIA by Michael Yorke

ATASCOSA by T.W. Lawrence

FOR HELENA by Steven Scott Clayton

FREEDOM FALLS by Norma Thomas

GOD'S WAITING ROOM by E. J. Mayer

HOMELESS by Zaric Reed

KIDS STILL by Robert C. Bonfiglio

MAELSTROM by Jordan Emans

MY CHRISTMAS CARYL by Rick Eager

PROJECT OMEGA: NINA BLACKE (Pilot) by James Norris

SILENT OPPRESSORS by Joshua Goldman

SQUISH! by Vinny Smith

THE EMENDATIONS by K.C. Wilson

THE IDIOCRATIC METHOD by Keith Leu

THE MANSION by Eric Ayala

THE WALKING 5 by Annette Callahan & Lorin McCraley

VACANCY by John Shea

WITH ENEMY AT THE SAME TABLE by Yaroslav Tryniv


2019 WINNER


LIMBO

by Jan M. Maxwell

This half-hour comedy is set in Limbo, a temporary stopover for some of the recently-deceased who have unfinished business to resolve before moving on to their final reward.


2019 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


BLOODY MARY AVENGING ANGEL by Gia El Aynaoui

BOOMERANG THE GREAT by Ana R. Dominick

GLORY HILLS by Gordon Gamble

GROWING UP CRAZY by Jane Peters

HOMELESS by Zaric Reed

KICKED by James M. Freeman

SECOND IMPRESSIONS by Mike Anderson>

SLAY THE SAUTE’ by Marcus Haugen

SOUTH OF MAIN STREET by Robert Gately

SOUTHBOUND by Guillermo Navarro

THE ENCHANTED OPAL by Alan Smith

THE LEAGUE by Calan Smith

THE NEW WINE by Matt Pinard

TROUBLE WITH FRIENDS by Karen Matthews


2018 WINNER


CIRCUS BOY

by Stephen Curran

An orphan boy who runs away with the circus to become a clown is pursued by a cruel housemistress who wants to return him to the orphanage.


2018 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


ANGIE & MARIA by Stan Lieberman

BLACK JACK by Stephen Curran

DEATH ROW by Keshia Nichole

GIVE ME THAT BECKY (PILOT) by Marina Bendocchi Alves

HATEMONGERS: A LOVE STORY by Anne Hikido

HOUSE OF DRAGONS: AS YE SOW by B.A. Hendrickson

LEAVING TOWN by Stephen Curran

NYOBAYWA by 42

ON BORROWED TIME by Robert Rossi 

THE MUSIC BOX by Stephen Curran

THE SOUL DECISION by Kristen Taylor


2017 WINNERS


FLESH AND BLOOD

by Jeffrey Nieves and Emily Eslami

A teenager struggles to hide that he has developed the ability to shape-shift into any person he desires.


GALAXXON: PEACE OF THE PLANET

by Paul Mahoney

In a distant galaxy, ZEEBO and his friend BLOBBY, are drafted. They flee to a strange little blue planet called Earth. Maybe it has the answer for everlasting peace?


GRANDMA’S COMING TO STAY

by Paul Mahoney

Doug’s plans for financial security backfire when his demented mother-in-law Ruby accidentally burns her house down and is forced to live with him and his family.


MOTEL

by Jerry Jenae Sampson

A woman with a violent past tries escaping her demons by hiding out in a motel on a coastal town, but she soon faces disturbing sounds on the other side of the wall that may or may not exist only in her mind.


THE FOURTH COURIER

by Timothy Jay Smith

An FBI Agent assigned to Poland helps the new Solidarity government solve a series of grisly murders that lead him into an underworld of drugs and nuclear smuggling.


VIRGIN KILLERS

by Tannaz Hazemi

Three teenage brothers from a wealthy pharmaceutical family in LA are killing virgins to create a potent substance. Until middle brother Peter falls in love with one of their victims.


2017 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


ALICE IN OZZU by William Sikorski Jr. & William Sikorski III

AN IRRESISTIBLE DESIRE by Elizabeth Hinnant

ANGELS VS DEMONS: GATEWAY TO HELL by Slavica Bogdanov

BABYLON by Mariah Gretchen Robinson

BEST SERVED COLD by Paul Mahoney

BROKEN FRAME by Stephen Boncella

CAMP CAMDEN by Tommy McInnis

CHASING THE WIND by Corean Strong

CONTROLLING by Robert Seckler & Margaret Rogers

DISPATCH 911 by Essence Sullins

DON APPETIT! by Jay Stamatis

DOUG DUNGBEETLE IN DANGEROUS DAYS by Paul Mahoney

DR. ALICE by Steve Wagner

DRAC’S BACK by Paul Mahoney

ELVIS TOWN by Paul Mahoney

FOR SALE by Anthony Bardes

GINGERBREAD HOUSE by Bruce Lamb

HOLIDAY FROM HELL by Paul Mahoney

HOMELESS by Zaric Reed

I CAN TURN MEN by Paul Mahoney

I CAN TURN WEDDINGS by Paul Mahoney

INSURRECTION by Simon Bowler

JAMESES by Laika Lee

LAST STOP by Tommy McInnis

LIFECREDIT by Jay Stamatis

LUMINARA by S.J. Molloy

MAJOR FRANKS by Miriam Cooper

MIL-LEN-NIAL by Josh Kaplan

NEW TO THE ZOO by Paul Mahoney

OLD LADY DILEMMAS by Lora-Ellen McKinney

PROJECT 52 by Daniel Davis Jr.

PROTOTYPE by Nicol Eilers

SCROLL BACK by Jay Stamatis

SEAFIRE by Frank D’Angeli

SEEDS by Sarah Marsh

SEVENTH ANGEL by Richard Prather Perry, Jr.

SIRINGO: UNDERCOVER IN THE WEST by Nathan Ward

SOLDIERS OF GOD by Guy Quigley

STELLAR DRIFT by Anthony Moore

THE BRAZILIAN MUTATION by Stu Heimdal

THE DEMON ARMY by Max Hoven

THE ESSENCE OF EVIL by Rico Jordan

THE EXCHANGE by Juliette Garrigues

THE FOURTH WALL: A WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY by Dan Fitzgerald

THE HEARTBEATS OF LOVE by Janis Hepburn

THE HONOR KILLING by Guy Quigley

THE JOURNAL by Roi Tamkin

THE MAGIC OF BEING by Krista Fergusson

THE MASTER’S SON by Guy Quigley

THE NEW MRS. CAMPBELL by Paul Mahoney

THE OTHER MESSIAH by Marcus Herzberg

THE POSSESSION OF JESSE by William Sikorski Jr. & William Sikorski III

THE SWITCH by Paul Mahoney

THE WONDERFUL by Demitra Papadinis

TIPPY THE ELF by William Sikorski Jr. & William Sikorski III

TWILIGHT SLEEP by Alan Lambert

UBER ENCOUNTER by KT Parker

YOSEMITE by Michelle Conley


2016 WINNERS


FLYING BLIND

by Sarah Morgan Ashey & Frankie Johnson

After the Earth mysteriously explodes, two women search the universe for other human survivors in this retro, odd-couple buddy comedy.


JUST KILL ME ALREADY

by Sundae Jahant-Osborn

When a desperate, down-and-out actor crosses paths with a hitman searching for redemption, he drunkenly devises a plan to win the role of a lifetime, but hiring a hitman to eliminate the competition can have deadly consequences.


WHO’S ON TOP?

by Victoria Sampson

Men and women navigate their way through life, as secrets are revealed and major life decisions are questioned on a 40th anniversary camping trip of a multi-generational dysfunctional family.


2016 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS


DEAN THE DRUMMER by Tannaz Hazemi

DENS OF INIQUITY by Brian Raess

EARTH U by Joshua Nyberg and Kathleen Mora

EDITH by Robert Rossi

FACSIMILE by Gary Makin

FALLING INSIDE OUT by Aaron Nelson

HALLOWS POINT by Brian W. Smith

HIS CURSED LANDS by Alan Evans

MAKE LIKE RABBITS by Aaron Sala

MOTHER MAYHEM by Brian W. Smith

PROMISED LAND by KT Parker

SECOND EARTH by Christopher Locke

SUB PAR by Kevin Bowden and Jake Rush

THE TIME OF KILLING by James Freeman