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08/13/2007: Tell Us A Little About Yourself


A spec script is a lot like an audition. Actors and writers both don't get hired until they've showed off what they can do. But it can also be more than that. It can also be a lot like an interview, a chance to say a little bit about your background. If there's something about yourself that you think makes you an interesting addition to a writers' room, you can use your spec script, especially a spec pilot, to tell your future employer about it.

Now, normally, I'm a bit skeptical about the "write what you know" advice, since, taken too literally, it means that no one gets to write about spaceships. I always point out that it should be taken to mean "write emotional truth as you've experienced it." However, in this specific case, where you're using a script to sell yourself and your point of view, there is something to be said for drawing on your own personal specialness.

Did you grow up on a farm? Train as a nurse? Witness a crime? Overcome dyslexia? Were you raised by your Filipino grandmother? Are you a twin? Does your family practice an unusual religion? Is your mother a cop? Is your sister a soldier? Did you win the national spelling bee?

If you've got something like that, a little hook, the kind of thing you'd drop into an interview situation to generate interest, then it might be worth putting your special knowledge into a script. There's certainly no reason your lawyer hero couldn't have a Filipino grandmother, and their scenes, written with authenticity, will probably end up stealing the show.

Now, if you've just surveyed your life and decided you're boring and have never had any experiences, then it might be worth having some. I know a very good smart young drama writer who went out and took a "be a private detective" class. Just like that, he had something to talk about in interviews, something that made him valuable to a show runner, as well as something that could be used to give real authenticity to a spec script.

Remember, a spec might be art, but mostly, it's a sales document. It's selling you. Push the product!

Lunch: the "famous tofu reuben sandwich" from Factor's Deli. Greasy and good. It tastes exactly like a real reuben, only it's soft. No, seriously, it's good.