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Villains aren’t just people who run around being mean and slapping puppies (in fact sometimes they have and love their very own puppy or kitten).
So how do we as writers of for screen, stage and print write the very best villains the world will love to hate?
You make your villain a match for your hero. Pretty much that simple…and that hard. Your villain can be a who or an it.
In February 2017, I was living in Greater Philadelphia and working at a global not-for-profit organization. The pay was low, the work was hard, and I was having tension headaches. Relief came in the form of feedback on the 2016 People’s Pilot contest from a distinguished gentleman with the initials, LB. The gist of the feedback was that the script showed enough professionalism to earn a staff writing position on a TV show but moving to Los Angeles was the first step.
By late March, I was ready to take that step. I quit my job, notified the landlord and started sorting my belongings. It took me two weeks of non-stop work to donate my used furniture to various charities and pack what I could take in the car. I borrowed money from a retirement plan for the journey. Finally, my car was packed a little after 5 pm on April 5, 2017.
I set the GPS for 200 Santa Monica Pier. Pulling out of the apartment house parking lot, I felt like I was blasting off for the moon. I drove as far as I could that evening. Fearing the effects of fatigue, I pulled over for the night and stayed at a low-budget inn. I had gotten as far as Shanksville, PA, the final resting place of Flight 93. Not exactly a good omen, but I took it to mean this was a significant journey.
What the heck is “storyboarding” anyway? Is it writing? Directing? The most helpful tool in the filmmakers’ box? A waste of time?
Here’s how two of the Industries biggest of big-time filmmakers see that magical bastard child – the Storyboard:
Ooh, genuine information from a genuine TV pro. We here at TVWriter™ love being able to bring you this look into how to get more for your money when it comes to indulging in what we assume is your second favorite pastime, watching TV.
We’re assuming, of course, that your fave is actually writing TV. Anyway:
Garth Ancier is one of the few TV execs to have run three different networks, having headed up entertainment at Fox, The WB and NBC. He also spent time at Turner and BBC America, and was behind one of the biggest syndicated hits of the 1990s, “The Ricki Lake Show.” Traditional TV was once Ancier’s livelihood — but he’s not nostalgic when it comes to the changing ways we watch TV.
It’s astonishing how many distractions there are in the world these days – throw into that procrastination (a writer’s biggest nemesis) and it can be a cruel world for the writer. But we’re going to ignore that old side-kick procrastination and think about focus despite the fact the two of them do go hand in hand.
Focus can lead to great things. Lack of it can truly disrupt the creative flow. Once you’re focused and can maintain that focus the work will flow smoothly and swiftly. It’s almost intangible and yet when we’re ‘in the zone’ we all know it. I mean…
[oops, got to go open a window…on the other side of the house…it’s stuffy as I write this]