Write to TV: Out of Your Head and onto the Screen

by Martie Cook

Overview

In Write to TV (third edition) industry veteran Martie Cook offers practical advice on writing innovative television scripts that will allow you to finally get that big idea out of your head and onto the screen. With this book you’ll learn to craft smart, original stories and scripts for a variety of television formats and genres, including comedy, drama, pilots, web series, and subscription video on demand.

This new edition has been updated with expanded coverage on writing for global audiences, content creation for streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon and Hulu, as well as writing the web series, podcasts and utilizing free platforms such as YouTube. It also features new chapters on writing for niche markets; breaking into the writers’ room; creating binge-worthy series and how to accompany pilot scripts with a series pitch document. Plus, expanded information on creating complex and compelling characters including writing anti-heroes and strong female protagonists and much, much more.

Including information directly from studio and network executives, agents, and managers on what they’re looking for in new writers and how to avoid common pitfalls, advice from successful creators and showrunners on creating original content that sells, and tips from new writers on how to get into a writers room and stay there. This book contains information from more than 20 new interviews, access to sample outlines, script pages, checklists, and countless other invaluable resources, and is the ideal book for anyone who wants to break into the TV writing industry.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781000071900
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/11/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	NOOK Book
Pages:	340
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Martie Cook has over three decades of experience as a respected writer and producer of television and film. She has worked for all four major networks and PBS as well as for Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox, Columbia Pictures and Universal Studios. A member of the Writers Guild of America West, Cook has written for hit television shows such as the top-ten Nielsen rated Full House, and the cult classic, Charles in Charge. She has served as a writer/producer for Entertainment Tonight, America's Most Wanted, and the PBS Emmy Award-winning children's show Zoom. Cook currently teaches Television Writing at Emerson College in Boston, MA, where she also serves as the director of the BFA in Comedic Arts and the Founding Director of the Center for Comedic Arts.

Table of Contents

PREFACE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

PART I How Hollywood Works

Chapter 1 FROM DINOSUAR TO DIGITAL: AN OVERVIEW OF THE TV INDUSTRY

Chapter 2 THE LAY OF THE LAND

Chapter 3 THE SPECTACULAR SPEC

Chapter 4 GETTING YOUR SCRIPTS READ

PART II Comedy

Chapter 5 WRITING FOR LAUGHS

Chapter 6 DEVELOPING YOUR COMEDIC STORY

Chapter 7 COMEDIC STRUCTURE

Chapter 8 OUTLINING YOUR COMEDIC STORY

Chapter 9 SCRIPTING YOUR COMEDY

Chapter 10 OTHER KINDS OF TV COMEDY

PART III Drama

Chapter 11 PLOT-DRIVEN DRAMAS

Chapter 12 CHARACTER-DRIVEN DRAMA

Chapter 13 FORMATTING FOR DRAMA

Chapter 14 DRAMADIES

PART IV Creating Original Series

Chapter 15 THE MECHANICS OF A TELEVISION PILOT

Chapter 16 BUILDING YOUR SERIES FROM THE GROUND UP

Chapter 17 SELLING AN ORIGINAL IDEA

PART V Characters

Chapter 18 CREATING COMPLEX AND COMPELLING CHARACTERS

PART VI Dialogue

Chapter 19 WRITING DIALOGUE THAT DANCES ON THE PAGE

PART VII Rewriting, a Necessary Evil

Chapter 20 REWRITE THE HECK OUT OF IT

PART VIII Pitch Perfect: How to Pitch Stories and Series

Chapter 21 ESSENSIALS OF A PROFESSIONAL PITCH

Chapter 22 PITCHING IDEAS FOR EXISITING SERIES

Chapter 23 PITCHING PILOTS

PART IX Niche Can Be Nice

Chapter 24 WRITING FOR FRAGMENTED AUDIENCES

PART X Thinking Out of the Box

Chapter 25 WEB SERIES AND PODCASTS

PART XI The Business Side of Television

Chapter 26 THE WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA

Chapter 27 AGENTS, MANAGERS, AND ENTERTAINMENT ATTORNEYS

Chapter 28 WRITING TEAMS

PART XII How to Get Your Foot in the Door

Chapter 29 HOW TO GET WORK AS A TELEVISION WRITER

Chapter 30 GETTING THE INTERVIEW

Chapter 31 CONGRATULATIONS, YOU’VE GOT THE JOB … NOW WHAT?

Chapter 32 THE POWER OF NETWORKING

Should You Bring Your Spec Scripts?

Chapter 33 OTHER THINGS THAT CAN HELP YOU SUCCEED

Chapter 34 Welcome to the Room!

Chapter 35 Some Final Thoughts

INDEX

Editorial Reviews

"Martie Cook has one of the best minds out there when it comes to writing for television. Her experience and insight played a crucial role in shaping my writing career, and I'm thrilled for the aspiring writers who will surely benefit from the wisdom in these pages!"

– Jon Rineman, Writer, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

"Martie Cook's Write to TV is required reading for anyone considering a career in TV writing. More than any other single thing, I owe my success to following her teachings."

– Matt Fusfeld, Writer/Producer New Girl; Community; American Dad

"I think this is about the best book on writing for television out there. I hope it sells like crazy because television will be better for it."

– Peter Dunne, Emmy and Peabody Award-Winning Writer/Producer, CSI; Melrose Place; Dallas; Knots Landing; Author, Emotional Structure

"Write to TV takes you inside the minds of writers, producers, and network suits in this brutally honest book. A ‘must read’ for anyone who has the dream of making it in Hollywood. I wish I had read this book 20 years ago!"

– Glenn Meehan, Producer, The Talk; Little People, Big World; Entertainment Tonight

"Martie Cook’s Write to TV is the best book I’ve found on the subject in 20 years as a prime time writer/producer and 15 years as a college professor teaching the subject. I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn the ins and outs of writing TV comedy and drama."

– Ross Brown, Associate Professor of Film and Media Arts, Dodge College at Chapman University; Writer, The Cosby Show; Who's the Boss?; Step By Step; Author, Create Your Own TV Series for the Internet

"Write to TV is an invaluable resource not just for writers but for anyone interested in getting the inside scoop about the way the industry works and how to break in. It gives an extensive overview of the current world of TV and a step-by-step guide for the new writer in town. It's anecdotal yet informational, entertaining yet insightful. Because the author has lived this experience, she can give a first hand step-by-step account of how you get from that first pitch to the on-screen credit."

– Libby Beers, Executive Producer, The Christmas Ornament; Bringing Ashley Home

"Martie Cook imparts a tremendous amount of knowledge in a way that is both easy to understand and entertaining. It is like having a mentor in book form."

– Christopher Crowe, Writer, The Last of the Mohicans; Fear

"Martie Cook’s Write To TV is a smart ‘How It Is’ book. It’s an inspiring and edifying insider’s first-hand experience and knowledge imparted lovingly and entertainingly. It’s a book you can’t set down once you begin and when you’re done you’ll know what it takes to be successful in breaking into the business—the rest is up to you."

– Hassan Ildari, Writer/Director, Face of the Enemy; Assistant Professor, Emerson College

From the Publisher