David Trottier

Dave Trottier has sold, optioned, or developed numerous screenplays and stories for The Walt Disney Company, Jim Henson Pictures, York Entertainment, On the Bus Productions, Hill Fields (for ABC television) and New Century Pictures. Titles include Igor's Revenge(produced), Zorro the Gay Blade (produced, but not credited), The Muppet's Hockey Movie-The Comeback Kids (not completed due to Jim Henson's death), Ratman From Saturn, Kumquat, The New Musketeers, and A Window in Time. He co-wrote and co-produced the cult comedy, Hercules Recycled. He also wrote A Penny Promise (produced; winner of awards at two film festivals) and sold Hemingway's Twin, an inspiring story about the Hemingway women.

As a teacher and script consultant, he has helped hundreds of writers sell their work, break into the biz, and win contests (including two Nicholl Fellowship winners and a National Play Award winner). Dave rated in the top 6% of the "Cream of the Crop" category of Creative Screenwriting's report "The Best Movie and TV Script Analysts and Consultants as Rated by Screenwriters."

He has taught at the major screenwriting expos and conferences, has lectured or led seminars at over 30 American universities, and teaches occasional writing classes at the University of Phoenix (where he was honored with a Distinguished Teaching Award in 2005). He also conducts his own online courses, workshops, and retreats, including his popular Sundance Retreat.

His major work, The Screenwriter's Bible, is a perennial top seller. He also wrote Dr. Format Tells All and The Freelance Writer's Bible, based on his popular national seminar 17 Ways to Make a Living as a Writer. He was a senior writer and columnist for the national print edition of Script Magazine during its entire existence (1989-2012), and has published hundreds of articles in national publications, including Writer's Digest, Hollywood Scriptwriter, Road & Track, USA Today, Vision, Disney Channel Magazine, COINage, Gift & Stationery, Single Parent, Creative Screenwriting, and American Writer. His short story collection, Dexter's First Date and Other Titillating Tales, was published many years ago. He writes for Script Magazine online edition, Screenplay Scoop, and other periodicals.

Dave is also known as Dr. Format because he has been the go-to guy for screenplay formatting. His book The Screenwriter's Bible was the basis for the software Script Thing, which later became Movie Magic Screenwriter. He was a content advisor for Screenwriting Pro, the Writer's Store web-based formatter.

With his B.A. in business administration (from Cal-State, Fullerton), Dave has a strong business and marketing background. He served for five years as the marketing manager and then executive vice president for a distributor of memorabilia and precious metals (about 100 employees). Prior to that, he was in middle management for a large corporation. As a marketing consultant and business writer, his past clients include The Walt Disney Company, Honda Acura, American Premiere, Lucasfilm, Nutrex, Mitsubishi Materials, Ivy Communications, and Citizen America. He edited the quarterly newsletter Precious Metals Today for four years.

Dave has an M.A. from Goddard College and is a graduate of both the Hollywood Scriptwriting Institute and the Hollywood Film Institute. He served on the board of the Arts & Humanities Department of Cal-State, Long Beach, before moving to his present home near Sundance, Utah, where he married Virginia artist and educator Marsha Sawyer.