John Ostrander’s Christmas Gift to Television

And it’s definitely a winner with us:

1x1.trans John Ostrander Sweet Jesus!John Ostrander: Sweet Jesus! (ComicMix.Com)

The thing about a great story is that it can be told so many different ways. That includes the Greatest Story Ever Told and, at this festive time of year, my mind turns to the Christmas Story. I recently had a flash of (possibly divine) inspiration: how would it work as a sitcom? read article

Peer Production: Christmas Joy from the Doctor Puppet’s Charming Video Special

doctorpuppet.tumblr

The Doctor Puppet has had a special place in our hearts since we first discovered him. Now, his creator, Alisa, has confirmed her brilliance with this Christmas gift to all of the Puppet’s fans:

read article

Being Drunk and Sleepy Can Do Wonders for Your Creativity

Um, we already knew this. Yeppers. But it’s still fun to have our drinking knowledge confirmed:

drinking genius

by Adam Pash (Lifehacker.Com)

Common sense (and your irrational compulsion to, you know, keep your job) says drinking at work—or working when you’re groggy—are bad news. But as Wired’s Jonah Lehrer points out, recent studies reveal that being sleeping and/or drunk is great for creativity. Here’s why: read article

Peer Production: WALKING DEAD CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

We’re big WALKING DEAD fans here at TVWriter™ (well, except maybe for LB, whose jury is still out), but we kinda think this is even better than the show:

For those who don’t know, there’s a whole lotta scandal going on about WALKING DEAD today. Turns out that Glen Mazzara, the showrunner, has been booted off the show even though it’s a hit that has just been renewed again. read article

Love & Money Dept – TV Writing Deals for 12/24/12

Latest News About Writers Doing Better Than We Are

  • Gary Anthony Williams (WEEDS) & Sindy McKay (various animated TV shows) are writing THE FOSTERS, a comedy about foster children, for NBC. (No, this isn’t the same project that Jennifer Lopez is producing at ABC Family. But what’s a little confusion between friends?)
  • Whit Brayton & Zack Rice (Sorry but we haven’t been able to learn much about them) are writing the USA pilot ZORRO, set in modern day L.A. (Yes, this isn’t your grandfather’s Zorro, but what did we say about confusion?)
  • Michelle McGrath (another writer we can’t find out anything about, oy!) has written the pilot for GALLERINA, E!’s series about a young woman trying to make a name for herself in the art world. (Does this sound as totally boring to you guys as it does to us? Now we really want to find out more about the writer and how she got this thing going.)
  • Lydia Diamond is adapting her play STICK FLY into a drama about prejudice, hypocrisy, and adultery for HBO. (Which sounds incredibly interesting to us…except for the prejudice, hypocrisy and adultery stuff cuz we’ve definitely seen, felt, and maybe even eaten that stuff before.)