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Now you know, Gentle Readers, that I much prefer to talk about writing tricks — I mean “techniques”– than to give advice about how to get into the business, since I really don’t consider myself an expert on that. However, I just found out about a writers’ program at NBC called Writers On The Verge. The official link to the program can be found
here

My understanding is that this program is specifically intended for writers who are inches away from breaking into the business. Here’s what one of the program organizers told me about what they’re offering:

Basically, it’s our crack at a fellowship. It’s more like the WB or CBS Fellowship than ABC in the sense that it’s only 10 weeks and I can’t afford to pay them for their troubles. Another difference between ours and theirs is that WOTV is two nights a week. Tuesday night is solely dedicated to a writing workshop and Thursday [to a] speaker series and personal development exercises. They [the participants] write a spec to get in, and in the program write a new spec and start an original. It’s really fast paced because we want them ready for staffing.

Though we’re the newest fellowship, we’ve had a good amount of success so far with 5 of the 8 fellows from last year staffed and all 8 represented. The other three writers have moved up the food chain in some way as well (script coordinator with a freelance, etc…). In fact, NBC just bought a comedy pilot from a team that was in the program last year — so that’s our most exciting news to date.

Wow. I’ll say — that’s a pretty amazing track record for a fairly new program. And it’s also another good place to use those specs for existing shows, which are otherwise increasingly devalued.

May might seem like it’s a long way off, but this program clearly sets a high standard and you’re going to want all of that time to get a spec into the kind of shape it’s going to require. If I were you, I’d start working. So let’s hear some typing noises! Good luck!

Lunch: BBQ chicken and those amazing spicy fries at Ribs USA.

Friend-of-the-Blog Jeff Greenstein comments on the last entry. He says: I always pick out a special font for each show and put it (fairly) big on the title page. I’m looking at his most recent pilot script and it’s true. However, his own name appears below the title in 12-point Courier. This seems to me to be a fine compromise — the script looks unique without looking over-puffed.

Jeff also points out the importance of making it clear that a script is, in fact, a pilot (as opposed to a spec feature or a spec episode of an existing show). He does this with the simple subtitle (without quotation marks) “a pilot,” while I do it by listing the name of the episode (with quotation marks) as “Pilot.” They’re both perfectly fine options.

EVEN MORE ON ENTITLEMENT:

I had just completed this post when I got another email from an experienced writer. Friend-of-the-blog Mark Verheiden checks in on the other side! …the first studio script I submitted, I did a title page where I put the title (that’s it) in 16 pt type. The executive practically hurled it in my face. […] I don’t do that anymore.

Fascinating, no? I’m not sure what to advocate anymore! I suggest that this choice should probably be dictated by your own personality and values, and perhaps even the tenor of the script — free-wheeling comedy might allow for looser rules than a restrained drama. If anyone else weighs in, I’ll let you know!

ADDENDUM: I found the letter that prompted this entry. Thank you, Eddie in Van Nuys! Eddie is a Friend of the Blog. He adds this helpful tip: Fortunately, it’s an easy mistake to fix. In Final Draft all one has to do is open the “Document” tab and hit “Title Page.” That brings up the script’s title page and it can be formatted from there. Problem solved.” Got that? Thanks!

Original Post:

I’m back in Los Angeles again, gentle readers. And I’m awfully glad to be home. I’m hoping that I’ll have more time to blog with you than I’ve had in recent weeks. Production is fun and exciting, but it is all-consuming.

Now, as I’ve mentioned before, my blog-mail has been tossed like a salad as a result all the moving around. So while today’s entry was inspired by a letter, I can’t quite put my hands on the letter. One of you wrote in a while back with an excellent point that I’ve never seen before and I’ve decided it’s worth mentioning even with a shameful lack of attribution. When the original letter emerges from the chaos, I’ll let you know!

Sometimes you convert your script to PDF format for emailing, right? At least I do. Well, when a Final Draft script is converted to PDF, a generic title page is generated. Be aware of it, because when the recipient prints out the file, that generic page is going to be on top. Apparently, some operations around town literally have stacks of these indistinguishable-from-the-top scripts. Don’t let yours be one of them! You want your title — and more importantly your name — visible, front-and-center.

But, and here I go off-road to make an unrelated point, in my opinion you don’t want that name to be too big. I’ve been organizing my script files here at home, and I’ve realized that one of the ways I can instantly distinguish a script from a working colleague from a script by an aspiring writer is that the aspiring writer uses a big font on their title page. Now, others may disagree with me here, but I would advocate an all twelve-point title page. I think it looks more professional.

This is a classic battle, actually — professionalism vs. self-promotion. Aspiring writers have to do a lot of things that professionals don’t have to — introducing themselves to working writers without a name to drop to ease the intro, and writing self-puffing essays about their qualifications and dreams, for example. It can be very hard to balance aggression and grace. The art of humble self-promotion can be as important in the early stages of career-exploration as writing skill, and I’ve seen it misplayed in both directions. You’ll have to find the tone that’s right for you. But on title pages, I recommend a soft and steady voice.

Lunch: the “studio plate” from Poquito Mas. Do you have Poquito Mas? It’s a chain, but they make their own tortillas right there — mmm.

I noticed something in my own writing the other day that I’d never consciously been aware of before. It’s kind of a neat little distinction you might enjoy.

This is about a short little scene I wrote that went something like this (names and content changed to prevent Battlestar webisode spoilers):

That’s the end of the scene. Notice what I did with the word “grim”. It’s hanging out at the left edge there as a stage direction when it usually would be a parenthetical on that last line, the way “realizing” was on the previous line.

I made it a direction because I wanted it to be bigger than those two words. I wanted to succinctly convey that it wasn’t just the tone of one man’s voice that grew grim, but rather that the tone of the whole scene changed. By taking it out of the dialogue, and putting it into the stage directions, I made it more inclusive.

It’s a neat little trick. Look at the tonal shifts in your script — are they at the line-level or the scene level? Consider moving your adjectives around appropriately.

Lunch: leftover ribs from Ribs USA! Perfect.

So last week I took a break from my never-ending stay up here in Vancouver with the Battlestar TV movie, to go back home just long enough to attend the Emmy award ceremony. And it was wonderful. Oh, I know the hosting was terrible and the show was long, but there’s something so lovely for me about being out in that audience full of all the people who entertained me when I was growing up — Betty White! Tommy Smothers!

And afterwards, there’s the Governor’s Ball, in which the star power is even more dense and they give you a map of where everyone is seated, so if you want, you can go watch John Hodgman eating his appetizer or Howie Mandel apologizing to everyone.

I didn’t actually see him apologizing. I’m just assuming.

I met Stephen Colbert, who was just as charming as you could ever want. He’s a sci-fi fan! I sort of knew that from interviews, but it was darn cool to hear him say it. I also saw Betty White locked in intense conversation with Phylicia Rashad out by the limo pick-up area. What was that about? And I ran into our own Katee Sackhoff and Grace Park in the ladies’ room, where they both looked beautiful despite fluorescent lighting. All in all, a wonderful night. Did I tell you met Stephen Colbert? I got to hold one of his writers’ Emmys. Hefty little lady. (The Emmy, not the writer.) Plus, I met Stephen Colbert. If my typing fingers could dance…

But the best part of the night was part of the acceptance speech of Jay Roach, who won for directing Recount. I’m paraphrasing, but the good bit went something like:

…and Danny Strong, who wrote a great script that really inspired us all to do this…

That’s significant not just because Danny is one of my dearest friends. It also has a lesson for all of us about our own writing. The truth is, I gently counseled Danny against writing the Recount script. There were too many obstacles — the real life events he wanted to chronicle were so recent. Everyone knows the ending. The tone is tricky. But, primarily, I was concerned because there’s really only one place to take such a project: HBO. If they don’t want it, there aren’t a lot of second options. And I had no sense that there was a lot of enthusiasm gathering out there for a movie about the 2000 Florida recount.

Here’s what I didn’t take into account. Just as a forest fire makes its own wind, Danny’s script made its own enthusiasm. Jay Roach said as much — the script fueled the project.

Does that mean that you should drop that spec pilot and instead write a movie about the financial bailout plan? Heck no! Do all the practical things first, but when you’ve got your specs in a line and you’re taking aim at your dream project, don’t let others’ opinions keep you from doing something that you just know you can deliver. Danny ignored me and as a result he wrote the Best Made For Television Film of the year. Go Danny, and congratulations!

Lunch: leftover squash agnolotti with extra parmesian cheese from the Italian restaurant right across the street from my hotel room

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