Congratulations to the new members of the Board of Directors of the Writers Guild of America, West:
Tag: online TV writing workshop
LB’s Poetry: Two People Who Died By Their Own Hand
by Larry Brody
NOTE FROM LB:
The following poem has nothing to do with showbiz…except that it owes its existence to the fact that it tells, as compactly as possible, the kind of story I always wanted to tell on TV but never could.
There were rules back in the day, about what topics you could touch and how you had to stroke them. Life and and the danger of losing one’s life were beloved by network execs. But there sure as hell weren’t any I ever met who wanted to read a script or watch a show about suicide. (Not even if it was action-packed.) Poetry, however, knows how to welcome:
TVWriter™ Don’t-Miss Posts of the Week – Sept. 19, 2016
In case you’ve missed what’s happening at TVWriter™, the most popular blog posts during the week ending yesterday were:
Peggy Bechko’s World: Writers, Get Out of Your Creative Rut!
3 Script Development Truths Nobody Ever Reveals
by munchman
Gleaned by your fave munchamaniac from the mouths of experienced writer friends who actually pay attention to what works for them when trying to make a deal (and what doesn’t):
- Execs say they don’t care about our writing style but just want to read a “good” script. They’re lying – to themselves as well as to you and your agent
- True Hollywood definition of a “good script” – “One my boss will like”
- Alternate but equally true Hollywood definition of a “good script” – One that has a concept or storyline that will fill a gap in our development schedule and get me promoted”
Any other old pros out there with more to add? Yer friendly neighborhood munchman is eager to know!
John Ostrander Gets Trumped!
by John Ostrander
I’m almost ready to give up. Throw in the towel.
I’m a writer of fantastic fiction. That’s been my bread and butter for over 30 years. Folks that fly. Folks that travel through time. Folks that live in multi-dimensional cities. Bad folks doing bad things for ostensibly good causes. And so on and so on.
For all that the stories and characters have been fantastic, I have to keep them in some ways real. I don’t want to have the readers say, “Oh, that could never happen.” I don’t want to have an editor say, “Oh, that could never happen.” Or “That’s ridiculous.” Or “Who do you think you’re kidding?” The stories need to be at least plausible in some way.