JaneEspenson.com

So… I was watching a Monkees episode on DVD just now. Because I can, that’s why.

The first line of the episode was:

DAVY
This is ridiculous, to come down here just because we read in the paper they may hold an embassy ball.

No, what’s ridiculous is to try to put that much information in the first line of a scene. You’re asking little Davy Jones to do an awful lot of heavy lifting with a line like that. Exposition is often called “pipe,” and this particular line could plumb an apartment building.

Watch out for stuff like this. There’s a temptation to try to set the scene quickly, and it’s amazing how easy it is to put everything right up at the front of an episode, or the front of a scene. If you find yourself writing lines that start with, “I can’t believe we’re…” or, even worse, “Tell me again why we’re…” then you’re in dangerous territory.

Lunch: Spicy tuna roll from Famima, one of those cute little import shops.