ATTN JMS: Advice for budding writers???
Adnan Virk
what advice do you have?
I don't mean in terms of the actual writing of the show/project/etc, but
in terms of getting it on the air, getting the "important people" to
actually read it? I know you went through a lot to get B5 on the air
(especially wiht a premise that everybody doomed to failure as soon as
they heard it), so how did you do it? You were already known in the biz
when you pitched B5....but if someone new was trying to break through
what sort of things would he have to do?
I know this is a very broad question (I don't know if I communicated the
actual question the way I wanted it...) and probably been asked before
but....well there you are.
Advice would be greatly appreciated.
-Adnan
Jms at B5
>what advice do you have?
>
>I don't mean in terms of the actual writing of the show/project/etc, but
>in terms of getting it on the air, getting the "important people" to
>actually read it? I know you went through a lot to get B5 on the air
>(especially wiht a premise that everybody doomed to failure as soon as
>they heard it), so how did you do it? You were already known in the biz
>when you pitched B5....but if someone new was trying to break through
>what sort of things would he have to do?
I get this question all the time. There is only one reply that I can give you:
it is impossible -- let me reemphasize that, impossible -- for a newbie to sell
a TV series without a long track record working in the business. So there's
really no advice that can be given.
jms
(jms...@aol.com)
B5 Official Fan Club at:
http://www.thestation.com
Tony Naggs
>As someone who hopes to one day get into the television writing scene,
>what advice do you have?
My brother is also interested in this, the general advice seems to be:
1. Get published as a writer, e.g. write short stories in your chosen
genre. This will establish, and develop, your story telling skills.
2. Get some experience working for a tv company to understand how it all
works. Even if you start out by making the tea you'll make contact, and
hopefully friends, with actors, stage crew, directors, ...
--
"Still . . . no worries, eh?", said Rincewind, somewhere on the Discworld.
Adnan Virk
>
> >As someone who hopes to one day get into the television writing scene,
> >what advice do you have?
> >
> >in terms of getting it on the air, getting the "important people" to
> >actually read it? I know you went through a lot to get B5 on the air
> >(especially wiht a premise that everybody doomed to failure as soon as
> >they heard it), so how did you do it? You were already known in the biz
> >when you pitched B5....but if someone new was trying to break through
> >what sort of things would he have to do?
>
> I get this question all the time. There is only one reply that I can give you:
> it is impossible -- let me reemphasize that, impossible -- for a newbie to sell
> a TV series without a long track record working in the business. So there's
> really no advice that can be given.
>
hm...are you trying to say...it's impossible? :). I figured as much
already...but it seems like an endless circle. You cant get in w/o a
track record...but if you can't get in...then how do you get a track
record?
Jms at B5
>already...but it seems like an endless circle. You cant get in w/o a
>track record...but if you can't get in...then how do you get a track
>record?
Of course you're proceeding from a false assumption. New people get in every
year. Every writer started out as an unknown, and not in the WGA, without a
track record. You start trying to sell individual scripts to shows on the air
currently, then work your way up.
New members in the WGA are added every year, in substantial numbers. Those
people all sold for the first time. Happens all the time.
Not to flog my book...but go to your local library (cheaper that way) and check
out my Complete Book of Scriptwriting. It may help.
Bob Joesting
>My brother is also interested in this, the general advice seems to be:
>1. Get published as a writer, e.g. write short stories in your chosen
>genre. This will establish, and develop, your story telling skills.
>2. Get some experience working for a tv company to understand how it all
>works. Even if you start out by making the tea you'll make contact, and
>hopefully friends, with actors, stage crew, directors, ...
The choices on how to get into the business are a
bit different in the US and the UK. In either case
the most important thing is to write many scripts
until you are good and fast. It may help to write
things like short stories but in the US most of the
suits that hire people only care what scripts you
wrote. In the US most TV writers are hired based on
the sample scripts they wrote for other current TV
shows, with contacts in the industry making it much
easier to get taken seriously. In the UK you should
have written for both existing series and written an
original show as well. A pilot for an original show
is a good writing sample in the UK but not in the US.
In either case don't expect the industry to seriously
consider producing a series you have created until you
have experience working in the industry. It has happened
but it is about as likely for Ford Motors to build a new
line of cars based on a sketch you did on the back of an
envelope during math class.
The more familiar you are with the industry and the
more people you know in the industry the easier it is to
be taken seriously. In the US you normally should first
perfect your writing then move to L. A. with a stack of
sample scripts, get a job in the industry, then show your
writing to agents, producers, and anyone else who will
read it.
There are a lot of writers who want to break in. Only
a small fraction of them can write well, though most of
them think they can. There are many books on how to write
or how the industry works. Some of them are good. Some
of the most helpful are JMS' book, "How to Write for
Television" by Madeline Dimaggio, "The Screenwriter's
Bible" by David Trottier, and "Making a Good Script Great"
by Linda Seger.
Bob Joesting <valen (at) psicorps (dot) com>
John W Kennedy
> hm...are you trying to say...it's impossible? :). I figured as much
> already...but it seems like an endless circle. You cant get in w/o a
> track record...but if you can't get in...then how do you get a track
> record?
You write for other people's shows. "Star Trek" still has an
outside-submission procedure; I dare say they're not completely alone,
though they're probably the friendliest. And you write and you write
and you write and eventually you get a staff job and you write and you
write and you write and eventually you become a head writer or a story
editor and you write and you write and you write until the people with
the money know you're steady and reliable enough to be trusted to do
your own show.
Or, if you have the money, you produce (i.e., write, cast, film, edit,
foley, score....) a pilot yourself, to high professional standards, and
then try to sell it. If you can get professional actors, camera, sound,
lighting, construction and FX people to work for free (which means you'd
better have a _damned_ _good_ script to show them), you can, using video
and FilmLook, get a fairly good hour's worth of television for $50,000
or so, if you don't need too much in the way of sets. Don't try to
direct the thing yourself unless you're already a trained director with
at least some screen experience and you've got a competent producer
along for the ride, and don't try to produce yourself unless you've had
considerable experience. Don't try to do anything more yourself than
write, direct or produce (not both) and edit. Don't try to do an
end-run around the Screen Actors Guild; they'll cooperate with you if
you cooperate with them. Don't try to use anything less than
professional hardware -- it's all available for lease.
Even then, you'll have to be damned good just to have the chance of a
chance. You've got to offer something that is completely unique, but
not too unusual, and you've got to find star-quality actors with a
passionate commitment to you and your vision.
And even then, the main hope you'll have is that, if you can do all
these six impossible things before breakfast, they might be impressed
with your chutzpah.
--
-John W. Kennedy
-rri...@ibm.net
Compact is becoming contract
Man only earns and pays. -- Charles Williams