Month: April 2016

‘Empire’ Has Always Known What TV Is Just Figuring Out

The secret is out!

And we are sooo glad:

empire-wowBlack Culture is Mainstream Culture
by Lara Zarum

Empire co-creator Danny Strong has likened his show to Game of Thrones, remarking that the two hour-long dramas are both centered on “kingdoms at war.” The comparison feels particularly apt considering the colossal viewership of both series: Game of Thrones has famously become TV’s most pirated show, and HBO’s most-watched ever, while last year Empire knocked The Big Bang Theory off its throne to become broadcast television’s #1 rated series.
read article

Just Start, Dammit!

Sure, planning is essential to creating your new life, business, screenplay, TV series. But when push comes to shove, actually doing it is the only way you’re gonna score! Don’t just stare at the blank page – fill the damn thing up with something!

blank pageby Jane Porter

For most of us, there is nothing more daunting than coming face-to-face with a blank page. Sure, a tabula rasa means you can take a project in any direction, but that boundlessness can quickly become overwhelming.

Sitting down to start a task that requires significant mental energy can often feel like the hardest part of the endeavor. But getting started is about understanding and overcoming the obstacles—be they mental, emotional, or physical—that hold us back from diving right in. read article

BATMAN v SUPERMAN vs GOOD WRITING

Gerry Conway, TV and film writer and producer, award-winning novelist and comic book writer, raconteur extraordinaire, and, as he says about himself on his Tumblr blog, Conway’s Corner, “minor pop culture icon'”, is, as far as we at TVWriter™ are concerned a very major creator with a soaring imagination.

He’s also been the very good friend of our Beloved Leader, Larry Brody, for about half a century, which makes us even more pleased – if that’s possible – to present Gerry’s insightful analysis of a film sorely in need of his magic touch:

Yeppers, this logo is hideous. The film's even uglier.
Yeppers, this logo is hideous. The film’s even uglier.

by Gerry Conway

Rather than continue to lay fuel on the fire of whether or not “Batman vs Superman” is a good movie, I thought it might be useful to use the interest stirred up by the film to offer a few brief observations about narrative, story structure, and characterization for the would be writers among you. I’ll use the film and its characterization of Bruce Wayne/Batman to illustrate my points. read article

Web Series: FEATHERS AND TOAST

A comedy web series about food but not only for foodies. We’re really enjoying this one:

Season 2 Trailer

Season 1 Episode 1 read article

What to Expect if You Move to LA

la-hollywood-sign

by Kathryn Graham

If you’re looking to be a television writer, you’ve probably thought about moving to Los Angeles. With its sunshine and its promise of a better tomorrow, it is still the world’s major hub for television and movies. The City of Angels is home to Hollywood, but also hosts a wide range of culture and taste. Space-age glass and metal skyscrapers rise beside adobe homes and modern castles. World famous landmarks stare at graffitied storefronts. It’s like Los Angeles has a perpetual identity crisis, and maybe it should. Its primary export is dreams, after all.

Here’s a few major points about LA that you may find helpful to know. read article