Actually, I had a script very similar to Synecdoche, New York, so there's other going the same surreal route sometimes.

What a timely post, at least for me. A year ago I pitched an idea for an occupation based reality show to the Travel Channel. They passed. Yesterday I'm on the Travel Channel website and discover they're doing the exact show I pitched, but with an established production entity, with a bunch of Emmys to their name. Did they snake my idea? I don't know. But instead of getting bent out of shape, I took comfort, cold as it may be, in the fact that my instincts are on the money. Thanks for the post, Scott.

I like to call this phenomenon "preemptive plagiarism."

Yeah, it happened recently and with what I consider my strongest piece. I didn't take it well, but I've decided not to quit. The other one could get stuck in development hell, or maybe mine is still strong enough to lead somewhere.

I wrote a script called "Buddy" and finished about a month before I saw the trailer for "You, Me, and Dupree". Even had Owen Wilson in mind when writing. Turns out, it was a blessing in disguise. I never wrote another rom com again and am so much better at other genres. Don't know why I even went there in the first place.