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Well, it’s time to open the ol’ mailbag again. Nic from Germany has a question about the spacing between action lines and character lines in a script – is it single or double. Oh! I love an easy question. The answer is whatever the produced example scripts do. As always, the point with technical execution stuff is not so much to do things right or wrong, but to do them the way the show does them. Get those produced examples! Nic—you were looking for Gilmore Girls scripts, right? Check out scriptcity.net for these.

If you simply cannot get produced examples of the show you want to spec? Well, if you’re using Final Draft, you’ve probably noticed that it has built-in templates conforming to the styles of many existing shows. These will help you get those little technical things right. If you’re still at sea? Well, I guess you can use the format of another show – most hours have a very similar format. But if this is really the situation you’re in, you might want to consider specing another show. It’s just too hard to get it right without produced scripts – and I’m not just talking about formatting details; there are so many other elements you can only get from produced scripts. You might think recorded episodes are good enough examples, but they’re really not.

There’s also a fantastic letter from Ryan in Canada. He wants to know how a Canadian might get work in the US TV industry. Well, Tracey Forbes was a Buffy writer who moved from Canada to take the Buffy job, and the way she got in always seemed very smart to me. She worked in Canadian TV first, got established there, then had her agent, armed with produced Canadian scripts and a strong US spec script, look for work for her here. It didn’t even take that long – it’s not like you’ll have to spend ten more winters huddled over the meager warmth of your LA dream. I think getting set up there first is more likely to pan out than to try to go from zero to Hollywood. I want to be clear here, that I’m not thinking of this as a disadvantage, but rather as an option that the rest of us don’t have — an extra way in.

Also, as I tell everyone, check out the ABC Fellowship. It might be a good option for you. Good luck to you, Ryan!

(By the way, this is probably a good place to mention that I’m not an expert on stuff like this… just a humble scribe with opinions on spec writing — ask everyone you can, Ryan. Maybe someone will have a better answer.)

A big wave and thank you to the other writers, including Jen, whom I met at the Serenity premiere. Hellooo!

Lunch: boysenberry yogurt and “reverse” Pocky — chocolate cookie on the outside, chocolate goo inside.

Back from my mini-vacation! Very refreshing! But it has gotten harder and harder to be out of touch with my life. I was emailing friends, getting calls on the cell phone, and feeling guilty about the times when I was genuinely unreachable. I recently changed vacation plans when I realized I’d have no internet access at my intended hotel. I couldn’t face such a thing. Breathing is input, and increasingly, input is breathing.

When I was getting started as a writer, I sought out support, eager for the input of the other writers in the Disney fellowship. But I thought that as I moved out into genuine employment, that I would begin swimming on my own, with less and less input from friends as I learned more and more skills. But that hasn’t been what has happened at all. I’ve actually become more collaborative as I’ve gone along.

When I was starting out I would NEVER have let a friend read an outline of mine. I would’ve felt like I wasn’t ready to be judged until I had some kind of finished script — that’s the point at which the “idea” started to feel like an “entity.” But once you’re employed on a show, the outline is treated as an entity, too. Your show runner reads the outline and gives you notes. Then it is sent on to the studio and the network, and they have input too. You rewrite the outline until it’s right. This process avoids lots of horrible huge changes after you’ve already fallen in love with dialogue. Even if I’m writing a spec pilot on my own, and have no boss, I will get input at the outline stage now.

If you have friends who know the show that you’re specing, have them read your outline. Even if they’re not writers, they are viewers, and they know if something feels like the show or not. This will encourage you to write a strong, clear outline, and it will help you catch story problems at an early stage. I know an outline feels like a private thing, and this is a little like bringing friends along to help pick out underpants, but if you can stand it, it can be really helpful. Have you ever regretted an underpants purchase? Then you know the kind of discomfort you’ll be avoiding.

Okay. I think I’m finally done with story-and-outline stuff. Soon we’ll get to dialogue! The fun stuff!

Lunch: A perfectly dreadful chicken wrap thing on the plane. The ingredients were fine, but they were wrapped in a flavorless white paste. Yuk!

Hi. I have received a special request (from friend-of-the-blog Maggie) to talk about what I call “novelty specs.” What I’m referring to are specs written for shows not currently on the air. For example, a spec I Love Lucy or Mary Tyler Moore Show or Taxi or Dragnet or Hill Street Blues. The first thing to note, is that these cannot be used to apply for the ABC Writers’ Fellowship. Their rules clearly state that your spec has to be for a show currently on the air. But the fellowship isn’t the only fish in the supermarket. Specs are also used to get actual writing jobs.

I have yet to be in the position of reading spec scripts with an eye to hiring a writing staff. But a lot of people whom I know have done exactly that. So I sent out an email to a selection of show-runner types, asking for their opinion of novelty specs. Their answers were so interesting and thought-provoking that this is going to be a multi-posting discussion. It’s just so fun!

First up, (ta-da!) Joss Whedon! Joss, what’s your opinion on novelty specs?

Joss: “The problem is, no matter how good the show might have been, it’s bound to be a bit archaic in its dialogue (and possibly subject) which leads to the question: is this person just aping an era that’s over, or are they writing a postmodern reaction to their perception of what that show (and era) was like? The first is just a stunt, and the second could be interesting but requires explanation. Most show-runners don’t have time for explanations. So while it’s always fun to read something that’s not what everyone else is writing, this scenario is dangerous for anyone who’s not damn sure of themselves.”

It’s crucial to understand the two approaches that he’s talking about. Suppose you decide to write a Mary Tyler Moore Show episode. You could write a sort of “lost episode” (this is the “stunt” option). The story could be something like, “Mary and Lou temporarily change jobs, creating a hilarious shift in power in the newsroom.” Or maybe something better. That was off the top of my head. The point is, this is an episode the original staff COULD have done, but did not (unless they did and I missed it). This would demonstrate your abilities, but not in as relevant a way as if you’d just done the same thing for a contemporary show.

It’s the second option that makes things interesting. The postmodern option. It’s not for the faint of brain. It’s a risk. It’s a challenge. It is, as Joss points out, “dangerous.” And even if you pull it off, it couldn’t be your primary spec. And yet… mmm… there is allure.

Maybe you’re wondering what such an effort would even look like. You will find out in my next blog entry, which will have other show-runner insights and which will contain a description of a scene from a very dirty spec episode of “That Girl.” You know you don’t want to miss that.

Lunch: a veggie burger. Not bad. It wasn’t trying to pretend to be meat. It was doing its own thing.

Hello everyone! This is the inaugural entry in my brand new blog. Welcome!

If you’ve found this blog, you probably already know who I am. My claim to semi-fame is that I wrote for Buffy the Vampire Slayer for five of its seven seasons, leaving only when the show came to an end. The episodes I wrote included “Band Candy,” “Harsh Light of Day,” “Intervention,” “I Was Made to Love You,” “Earshot,” “Superstar,” “Storyteller,” “Same Time, Same Place,” and others. I also co-wrote “Conversations with Dead People,” which won a Hugo Award. Writing for Buffy was unusual among TV writing jobs, in that it actually results in writers — not just performers — having fans. This is, I must say, lovely. It also resulted in other work, including writing assignments on Angel and Firefly, and a lot of comic book writing, which I have enjoyed a great deal. Joss Whedon changed my life and is every inch the genius you suspect he is.

Since Buffy, I’ve done a variety of different kinds of writing: more sci-fi, on Tru Calling, hour-long comedy on Gilmore Girls, procedural writing on The Inside, and now half-hour comedy on Jake in Progress. My goal is to stick my nose into every bowl in the buffet, tasting every flavor they’ve got.

So right now, I’m on Jake in Progress. Here’s the latest. We had a table reading of a script that I wrote a couple days ago. Lori Laughlin is going to play the part of John Stamos’ love interest in this one, and OHMIGOD, she’s fantastic. It was a really tricky role and she nailed every moment of it. I hope the series stays around long enough for you guys to see this episode, because — amusingly — it’s got a bit of a Buffy flavor to it. Can you believe we’re doing an alt-universe episode? I was so delighted, you can’t imagine. Anyway, I love how it turned out, and if the show survives long enough, I’ll let you know when it’s going to air.

Our offices for Jake are at Fox studios in Century City. A few weeks ago there was a lot of noise and teamster-style shouting outside our writers’ room. Turned out, it was burly men taking down all of the Arrested Development sets. Terribly sad. Our other neighbors on the lot include Stacked, which shoots very near to our offices, and How I Met Your Mother, which shoots across the lot from us. That means Aly’s right there… I should walk over and find her. Such a good woman. One of those comedic actors who’s funny even when the camera turns off.

In other news, late last night I hit the “send” button and mailed the newest draft of my latest pilot script off to the appropriate executive. This is the funniest little project, my own personal brainchild and I’m desperately proud of it. Clap your hands if you want to see a half-hour comedy about the lives and loves of Las Vegas showgirls. I know I do. So I wrote one. If it doesn’t go, and you still want a really interesting insight into a unique job that may not be around much longer (in my opinion), take the back-stage tour at Bally’s Jubilee in Vegas. It’s cheap and fascinating. If you watched E!’s reality series “Nearly Famous,” you already know what I’m talking about. Great stuff!

In conclusion, you were promised you’d hear what I had for lunch. This is will indeed be a regular feature. My Latest Lunch was:

A hot pastrami sandwich!

Thank you. See you soon!

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