If you're looking to get your film or television career off the ground, you need to familiarize yourself with the "trades."

The trades are the daily newspapers that cover the business of television and film. From executive shuffles to dealmaking and overall entertainment news, these two publications are must reads.

It used to be that you had to have these mailed to you especially if you didn't live in either New York or LA (where they're available at just about any newsstand). But now, both companies have put together some of the most impressive and easy to use websites I've ever seen. They not only publish the daily events, but you can look up past issues and get information on job openings, special events and production offices.

If you're interested in subscribing, or just reading their articles, then visit them at either Variety.com or HollywoodReporter.com. And no, I don't get a percentage of the sale. :)

As you'll see over the course of your entertainment career, there are two distinct paths that you can take. You can go down the road to becoming a high powered Hollywood executive, or you can parlay your creative talents (acting, writing, etc.) into high paying studio contracts.

Determining which road you desire to take is something you might want to consider before jumping in. Because although the paths have many similarities, to achieve your goals in the most expeditious manner possible, you'll want to focus your efforts.

That said, there are many out there (including myself) who have gone down both paths over the course of their careers. In fact one often leads to the other. There are a number of cases of executives becoming creatives and even a few creatives deciding to become executives. So don't feel that if you start going down one path, you can't ever "cross over" to the other.

But to help you choose now, start by listing those job attributes that are "must haves." Then as you explore your career options, weigh that list against what you know about each job. This will help you narrow down your choices and hopefully make your initial decision that much easier.

There are rumblings in Hollywood of a potential strike by the Screen Actors Guild occurring as early as this summer.

Both television and film production are way down currently as the town holds its collective breath to see where the negotiations land between the AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) and SAG.

Even though there has been some recovery since the six month writer's guild strike came to an end, many production companies are still wary of starting any new projects until this issue comes to a close.

I'll be keeping a close eye on this as things progress. Stay tuned.

Are you a struggling writer? Can't get that first page off the ground? You might want to consider either joining an existing writer's group, or starting up your own.

A typical writer's group has anywhere from 3-6 people -- all of whom are writers and all of whom take the craft of writing very seriously.

The point of the group is to have people that can give you honest feedback on your work. Most writers have that "trained eye" that laypeople do not.

Usually the group meets about once a week and each person brings in the pages that they've managed to complete. You'll often be required to bring copies of your pages for the entire group, because over the course of the meeting each person's material is read and then critiqued.

Most writers find these groups to be extremely valuable. Hopefully, you will, too!

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If it's your dream to be in front of the camera then you may want to check out How to Become a Film & Television Actor. It's ten tips to help you go from a "wannabe" to "working actor."

Acting is not an easy career by any stretch. It can be a lot of fun and of course extremely lucrative, but to have any sort of longevity, you must respect acting as a craft that must be mastered.

One of the best books on acting is Respect For Acting by Uta Hagen. If you're serious about a career as an actor, this is just one of many such books that can greatly aid you in the development of your craft.

One of the better set of classes available in the Los Angeles area are those offered up by UCLA Extension. There are a wide variety of classes available from screenwriting and acting classes, to management and accounting courses.

With regard to their entertainment related offerings, the thing that makes them extremely valuable is that they are taught by industry professionals. These are the "veterans of the war" if you will, who come in with decades of experience and teach you usable "insider" skills that you can apply immediately.

UCLA Extension classes tend to be much more current and engaging than say those offered up by The Learning Annex. Instructors are chosen for their specific skill sets, industry knowledge or status level.

They offer both in person and online courses, so if you're working full time, there are numerous ways to fit them in. I highly recommend their classes, so if you've got the time and the inclination, be sure to check them out.

If you're a writer, or planning on becoming a writer, I can tell you from firsthand experience that one of the best classes I ever took was the Story Structure class from story-guru Robert McKee.

It was like a semester's worth of training crammed into three days of intense study.

Now, that said, there are definitely elements to his methodology that I'm not 100% in agreement with, but he is by far one of the most efficient and proficient instructors on story structure I've ever met.

I don't receive any type of commission for recommending him, just so you know.

If you're interested in finding out when his lecture series might be headed to a city near you, keep on tabs with his web-based lecture schedule at www.McKeeStory.com.

If you do take the class, let me know what you thought!

Starting a career in film or television is no easy task. It can be extremely difficult to "break in" to the biz, especially if you don't have any important contacts, experience or specific skill set.

That said, it's far from impossible.

There are really just a few things you need to be willing to do to jumpstart your entertainment career. And no, none of the tips I recommend involve a "casting couch."

Here are 10 entertainment career tips that will help you get to where you want to go.

Internships may not have a lot of prestige, but one thing's for sure -- they can be extremely valuable.

Internships allow you to literally, "learn on the job." You are often encouraged to ask questions and speak with your superiors so that you can learn as much as possible about the job you're doing as well as the jobs of others.

It's your chance to meet future contacts, future co-workers and even a future employer. And remember, internships can be extremely valuable in not only helping you advance your career, but also in helping you decide which career path to go down in the first place!

Here are a few great internship resources for your perusal:

• How to Get a Production Internship
• The Disney Paid Internship Program
• Finding Internship Programs
• About Internship Programs (to clarify -- this is not About.com internships, but more "about" internship programs in general)
• Great List of Internship Websites

If you're in the process of writing a script or planning on writing one in the near future, it's strongly recommended that you read as many scripts in your particular genre as you can. Both so you can get a feeling for the structure as well as to see how other writers turned their story ideas into a finished screenplay.

One great resource for finding sample scripts is the Internet Movie Script Database. I was literally blown away with the selection they had. These aren't reprints or transcriptions, but actual drafts of thousands of movie scripts. Be sure you add these guys to your favorites.