SPEC SCRIPTACULAR

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What's Happening in the
SPEC SCRIPTACULAR COMPETITION?

May 14, 2009

SCRIPTPIMP.COM HAS RETURNED TO THE FOLD

Starting with the 15th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR, ScriptPimp.Com will once again be awarding 1 year membership in the ScriptPimp.Com Writers Database to the Grand Prize and Category Winners. Welcome back, Pimpsters - and thanks!

May 1, 2009

15th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR NOW OPEN FOR ENTRIES

Yes indeed, we're rockin' on. The closing date is August 1st. Be there - or don't be there. (But if you miss it you're going to feel very, very bad.)

Definitely more to come.

April 30, 2009

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR WINNERS

The cream of the crop. Feast your eyes on the awesome 14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR WINNERS:

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR WINNERS

GRAND PRIZE

MONK: MR. MONK AND THE MURDER MONOPOLY by Christiana Miller

SITCOM

1st Place: IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA: THE GANG GOES FOR THE GOLD by Andy Sweat

2nd Place: 30 ROCK: FOREIGN RELATIONS" by Lou Stone Borenstein

3rd Place: THE OFFICE: MOTHER NATURE by Richard James Remick

ACTION/DRAMA/DRAMEDY

1st Place: MONK: MR. MONK AND THE MURDER MONOPOLY by Christiana Miller

2nd Place: N.C.I.S.: ABSCENTIA by David Lee Simmons

3rd Place: MAD MEN: POT PIE by David Saint

MOW/SPECIAL

1st Place: PIPPA'S SONG: THE JOURNEY OF ALICE LLOYD by Diana Mitchell

2nd Place: THE LAST MASTER by Clint Morey

3rd Place: THE LIE DETECTOR by Karen Rouse

Congratulations! Each and every one of you did a terrific job!

COMING TOMORROW: The NEXT SPEC SCRIPTACULAR.

April 27, 2009

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR FINALISTS

They're here, and they're awesome. Be prepared to laugh, cry, and cheer for the 14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAE FINALISTS:

SITCOM

30 ROCK: FOREIGN RELATIONS by Lou Stone Borenstein

IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA: MAC GETS HIS ASS KICKED BY A BUM by Ian M. Flaster

IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA: THE GANG GOES FOR THE GOLD by Andy Sweat

NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE: I LOVE YOU NOT--AGAIN by Margaret Lepera

THE OFFICE: MOTHER NATURE by Richard James Remick

ACTION/DRAMA/DRAMEDY

CSI:NY: SHOCK VALUE by Luke Kalteux

MAD MEN: POT PIE by David Saint

MONK: MR. MONK AND THE MURDER MONOPOLY by Christiana Miller

N.C.I.S.: ABSCENTIA by David Lee Simmons

PUSHING DAISIES: LAND OF MILK AND HONEY by Curtis McConnell

THE TUDORS: EPISODE X by Anthony G Alfieri

MOW/SPECIAL

PIPPA'S SONG: THE JOURNEY OF ALICE LLOYD by Diana Mitchell

SCREENING DEVICE by Elizabeth Appell

THE LAST MASTER by Clint Morey

THE LIE DETECTOR by Karen Rouse

Congratulations to the above writers for doing what some said was impossible: You made the judges feel.

April 24, 2009

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR SEMI-FINALISTS

The judges have made their decisions, and here's the moment we've been waiting for. The 13th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR SEMI-FINALISTS are:

SITCOM

30 ROCK: FLIP THE SCRIPT by Jason Pangilinan

30 ROCK: FOREIGN RELATIONS" by Lou Stone Borenstein

CALIFORNICATION: PAST IMPERFECT/FUTURE CONDITIONAL by Simeon Goulden

IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA: MAC GETS HIS ASS KICKED BY A BUM by Ian M. Flaster

IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA: THE GANG GOES FOR THE GOLD by Andy Sweat

NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE: I LOVE YOU NOT--AGAIN by Margaret Lepera

THE OFFICE: MOTHER NATURE by Richard James Remick

ACTION/DRAMA/DRAMEDY

CSI:NY: SHOCK VALUE by Luke Kalteux

MAD MEN: DAMAGE CONTROL by Lee A. Carlisle

MAD MEN: POT PIE by David Saint

MONK: MR. MONK AND THE MURDER MONOPOLY by Christiana Miller

MONK: MR. MONK AND THE UTOPIAN SOCIETY by John Adcox

N.C.I.S.: ABSCENTIA by David Lee Simmons

PUSHING DAISIES: LAND OF MILK AND HONEY by Curtis McConnell

PUSHING DAISIES: MISSUNDERSTOOD by T-Bob Bodin

THE TUDORS: EPISODE X by Anthony G Alfieri

MOW/SPECIAL

HEADHUNTER by Melissa Goetz

PIPPA'S SONG: THE JOURNEY OF ALICE LLOYD by Diana Mitchell

SCREENING DEVICE by Elizabeth Appell

THE LAST MASTER by Clint Morey

THE LIE DETECTOR by Karen Rouse

Our congratulations to everyone who faced the blank page and wrote a script for this contest. Come back soon: We'll be announcing the Finalists early next week!

April 14, 2009

SEMI-FINALIST ANNOUNCEMENT COMING SOON

Semi-Finalists in the most recent running of the SPEC SCRIPTACULAR will be announced next week, with Finalists and Winners following closely. Because - you know - the suspense is killing us here at TVWriter.Com too. So COME BACK SOON!

March 17, 2009

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR STATISTICS

SPEC SCRIPTACULAR 14, which closed March 1 ("only" a month after its original closing date thanks to the Big Southern Ice Storm of '09), received 72 entries. This is 10% more than #13 in spite of the fact that last time around this contest accepted pilot teleplays, a category which has been eliminated. (By transferring it to our sister contest, THE PEOPLE'S PILOT.) Only 5 entries were snail-mailed. Should we close that venue down for good?

Although we're now a month behind our usual schedule, we hope is to get back on track by announcing Semi-Finalists, Finalists, and Winners in both contests in April so we can start the next runnings May 1st, unencumbered by old business.

Will hope become a reality? Will we succeed? You know what they say on TV:

"Stay tuned."

March 1, 2009

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR IS CLOSED

The good news is that TVWriter.Com's world is returning to normal. The not-so-good news (for some) is that we've run out of need for extensions of the entry period. This means that THE SPEC SCRIPTACULAR is now closed to entries but will re-open with a whole new running on May 1st.

February 9, 2009

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR DEADLINE EXTENDED AGAIN TO MARCH 1st

It's Emergency Extension Time, gang. Our emergency. The Big Ice Storm That Immobilized the South the last week in January caught TVWRITER.COM tightly in its grip. The result is that our headquarters, Cloud Creek Ranch, went without electricity, power, internet, et al for 10 full days, and the power situation still is unsteady because although the storm is long over its effects remain: Not a day goes by without new trees, power lines, and/or power posts falling.

As a result, we're embarrassingly behind on checking in both online and snail-mailed entries. Don't worry. All online material is safely located on servers in sunny California, and snail-mail entries are piled up nicely in the entryway. But our crisis is your gain. To give us time to dig out both physically and electronically, the new deadling (and, man, do we hope it's the last one) for THE SPEC SCRIPTACULAR is March 1st.

What's that you said? Why, you're absolutely right. You don't have any excuses now for not entering. So don't just sit there - WRITE!

January 26, 2009

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR DEADLINE EXTENDED

By popular demand (a flood of requests!), the deadline for the current SPEC SCRIPTACULAR has been extended to February 7, 2009.

Well, why're you sitting there reading this? WRITE!!!

November 3, 2008

YOUR FEEDBACK IS COMING

That's right. Our fearless leader, LARRY BRODY, is hard at it, working on the Feedback for those who ordered it for SS 13. E-mails chock full of constructive criticism should start arriving in about 10 days so watch your inboxes closely!

November 1, 2008

14th SPEC SCRIPTACULAR IS OPEN

...And we've made some changes you need to know. So, in no particular order:

1. New Prize!

   Manner Movie Ltd. of Hong Kong has come aboard with a new Grand Prize: A 3 day trip to the Chinese island of Macao from L.A. International Airport. Or, if the winner prefers, $1000 in his or her pocket. Thanks, Manner Movie, and welcome to the SPEC SCRIPTACULAR!

2. New Category!

   We've made two changes in entry categories, for the sake of entrant simplicity. The category previously known as MOW/Pilot/Special is now called Screenplay/MOW because - well, because it just didn't seem fair to have Pilots competing against screenplays, and the "Special" tag actually was almost meaningless.

   This means that as of now the SS is open to specs of existing sitcoms and drama or action shows and spec screenplays. The screenplays can be for television (MOWs) or original feature films. After all, TV movies are often as adventurous and mature - if not more so - than theatricals anyway.

   What's that? You've written an original spec pilot and want to enter that in a contest? Don't worry. We haven't abandoned you. From now on, our sister contest, the PEOPLE'S PILOT, will truly be for pilots and not just series concepts. That's right. The PEOPLE'S PILOT is now the contest for new series pilot scripts, and you can enter right HERE.

September 6, 2004

SPEC SCRIPTACULAR TIPS

Some things to keep in mind when preparing your entries:

When writing an episode for an existing sitcom, action, or drama show, stay within the parameters established by the series. The best way to attract the attention of producers, agents and judges is to follow the conventions of a series while writing what is simply the best-written version possible.

This means focusing on the series leads and giving them the best lines and putting them into the most interesting situations. One of the basic signals that a writer is not ready for primetime is the insertion of a guest character who overwhelms the leads. Save that for fan fiction.

When writing an episode for an existing series make sure you are using the proper format for that series. Check the web for samples. Our sponsor, WriteSafe.Com has many accurate spec samples in the TV section of its "New Gallery."

This means that the length of your script should be the same as the usual length of the teleplays for the series for which you are writing. No 75 page drama scripts please! (Unless it's a spec for THE WEST WING.)

The best way to attract the kind of attention that gets your own pilot or screenplay or "special" sold or represented awarded is to write as freely and openly and spiritedly as possible. The trick to successfully breaking new ground in your work is to write so that the reader knows that you understand the "rules" and have deliberately chosen to break them. Sending this message is vital, and it can be done via any number of indirect and more direct techniques.

When producers, agents and judges read screenplays and teleplays they are always looking for work that satisfies their definition of "good writing." Within the entertainment industry this usually boils down to interesting characters who involve the reader in their problems; clever, original and yet seemingly realistic dialog; and a fast-paced story that keeps the reader on the edge of his or her seat.

For all practical purposes, the most important of the three elements described above is "clever, original and yet seemingly realistic dialog." Because of their busy schedules, most show business professionals - and too many judges - often just skim down a page, reading only the dialog. If they encounter cliched speech, dull speech, overly-expository speech, or speeches that are too long and "stagey" that's the end of your chances. Dialog that is witty and conversational rules. No film or television writer ever went wrong by concentrating on banter. It works for Nora Ephron and Alvin Sargeant and Larry David and Linda Bloodworth-Thomason and David E. Kelly and Shane Black and Aaron Sorkin, and it will work for you.