‘li you dow'tateastattem torent, you shoul’ wast your ime ‘ational comedie wl ewaye aes eatineeutbecuse thea somany of then, why spend your ine rehashing ot eae Tike itvetoncan comes ch fom carck fe orm Rc ites. Pople whofe uniquan eh pins fiw cn make formal ‘Romnew agin” Steve Stark, except, Matin, president Gane! eer : Lace HOW A FREELANCER FITS IN Unfortunately. frvlance writer isnt usually invited fo the table reading oe ‘any of the un throughs or rehearsals Once you tim na relance scrip the staff writers takeover and Randle dhe revisions. While this may not sem i, itis actually for your protection Since you are not tcl nthe show's payroll asking you comein everyday would be asking you to work fo re. {oalcat this way: youare worth more than fre, arent you? ‘On tape day, however, frclance writers are generally given an invitation (ovich sual includes gues) to come and watch te taping of the show they have writen. Prepare yourself. Thiscan bea rather nal biting experince How much has the sript been rewritten since you tured iin? Have your favorite jokes survived all ofthe rewrites? His the writing staf ded ings ‘hat deep down you really dont ike? At this point teres litle you can do about i What's inthe sript sin thesript and that's what they ate going ‘Shoot You ust have to tras that ts going to be good. And sly is ‘Once you ari atthe stage you wl eel very important — and deservedly so. An usher wil ake you to an assigned eatin the audience Before the show” begins and during bres in the taping. you will be entertained by a "wath up” person. This person's jobs actually ist as itsounds — to ge the audience waned up, red to laugh, ana in goed spats for the taping The warm-up person will usually be high energy an tel lots of jokes He or she wil alsa ‘explain whatis gong ona well as answer questions om the audience: Ques tions can range from "what's the difference between a producer and odie toe?" to "whois the star curently dating?” ‘At some point during the taping, there will bea break in the ation — pethaps itis ast change ar even a costume change. At this point, the warm tp person whois told madvance where you are siting, wil walkover to you, pill you onto your fet, and intoduce yout the audience ns the person wh ‘wrote the episode. The acience will applaud. You will smile and wave. This {sabi and thlling aight for you. They are taping your episode 4. DEVELOPING YOUR SITCOM STORY GETTING STARTED ‘on ht you ve decided that comedy writing the path you wat tae, “TEL3y nove tat your fist sip wl be to write a pec sxp for an Fee Once you have cone he sow you want to wn he ist ee tng proceso stu tat show One the mare folih Bel geeate Sie and te agains "Td ever watch suc anc Bey cant tea pec srponanyoay? Th answer isa resounding WNoncamot wre wea youd not kw es impossible to writes good Pee lor sah you dt watch, You mist commit youre ght here acon watching whatever show you have cose afl each ard very SECT wit ep you gta fe for who the characters are, what they se Uprnin te currentecoson whatsoylines hae end been done elas instar ac ch we As we dese yout real bed a oval sages ht you tape theshow and watch afew ines. You Bturstel wittgeu me ocevenwant ogo bckte when consiraing Sour son Having epsodes on tape will ao be extremely sel ae Envtben iste fo wae the loge ‘THE IMPORTANCE OF A GOOD STORY [Now that your have picked a show to weite and sted that show finding a fo story key Teannot emphasize this enough, Without a good story you Smply cannot havea good script Think oft this way: when waste ast ime sort walked ut of e movie prolaiming, "That was the best movie Thaveever eon. The oeting was great, the diecting brillant, the cinematography, Super “=the story stunk, bu sil it was the Best movie Thave ever seen My gues that you have never uttered those words. The reason being that Sorpnthe ent every script. I your tary sn good it willbe the Domino fect everything else will ulimately a This straw in all scripts, whether for television of. Coming up witha good sory may sound easy but most ‘wrters il fell you Ht story is She hardest part of eept, With that in a gc cecessecsecceereaeceeeceeeeiecseeceeseaeeeeeeeenseeeeEseaeeeeeEeaeeeeee aaa‘ind, please he this in pl Important warming: take ig Your sor: Infact take as fine me SNE WP WH and Wit what you kao wih oie courage wit nuh oes will” moe you've ard all youre Have the we eu think you be xpd the ny Avedeviningr Heny Winkie HOW TO CREATE AN ORIGINAL STORY nsitcoms th ‘Again, sitcoms are about Seong sy Sey pelo Ung sy fe) — ra combination ofboth you lok styour Sen ee abi calsnber ofa ing at ave app ly an fends a home and/or a wrk Thee sae a vcs enigue constructing tories Wire ae they nth es? The pene ves? Tha thn of ng ta ‘own life that might be a, Sectiinens oe {hat might bea god ft ora stay Ness ee dele eee MAKING ORIGINAL stORD ES Wo EXISTING SHOWS oe ; dont have a mother one or lf he gus woul ave to epi. ora oft ce isan tn gc my own Anat gare on ne when war ou the same a oD Bae nd Nal? Ger in para cam ma Bi wont ort Sephnic apron show ease Dene tool The ce was sed by gender the boys wert See A gym ech eh ps wee eto te eon Sei anf eur mers Theme teed «rae cbt | Tolivantalelieventtlnga ve cult opet ery A He oe was menagerie an ok), oe dha mse ed tlsccson sn revered enbarasig hog what fabulous ies fora Ful Howse episode, Stephanie as to oruthc movie ut she doesn have moter ogo ils therfore one or Migr the guys would have tog instead could see the men crunched into aaah chats wanting to be nvble whe he ema discussion went on ll Stn them The uncerying moc ofthe story — Tull Howse always had Sar vas ofcourse, that even though Stephane did't have moter, she Bade guys who loved her so much they would do anything for ee: “Alen dye later, ook tat story ide along with five oes, drove to ‘Warer bros an pitched it fo the producers. OF Uh ss ies the one they Tied he most wsthe one that cane del fom my cldhood They bought ikon he spt teling me that ft was orignal, something they had herd Feloe They sa tht ey could nelly se the Bumor snd where he jokes ‘rou come rom. Trt the Fal Huse offices that day having sold my ist network ssp. remeber eng ail coo Lite did Tanow that my colness woul be Srorive outa ek ar, I returned to the Ful House offices where I worked withthe entire writing staf fo Beat out the tory I went heme a rote the Tuiin, ander tag theft deaf Then, got the cll hat every writer Geis twas ate Warren one of be sow'sexcutve producers He was Eling tote me tat they hd dake gait ding msrp. Apparent, Jel Franklin, the show's Creator and extve proce ha read my Sept fe gore cl fcr fl that a storyline hat dealt ih hanging Innis was far too sophisticated for the Ful Hane fay audience: ws ershed in retospect, Franklin was 100% sight Thad made a huge mistake hod svt completly done my homevorke Wile Thad studied the characters and nw allo thests on Ful Howse Id to study the show isl Tha, | Mul have understoe tat it asthe leadin fo ABCs TGIF ieup. Iwas In Bolclck show th was clean fry comedy ~ the hind of show that imothers at downand watched wih fiveyarclds Whlethe show hd alto Rigging and a ite Kssing that wa a: far ob It wet Therefore, an episode Shout “changing bodies” was no ght forthe shaw and probably would ive gotten complaints rom viewers had itmadeit on he.cn ae on and Rg oe sles The ee tre * Pht So Raven and Cary ne Hoe EY EES roe sTupy up. Asyou work on: fazo work on your awn story, you shoul Possibly can. Inhaleitall Watchtiees ld be watching as me Bet good fel forthe current. onnwand gos coms that eon and you wll fora reason thy some of them are bo bei ing pretuced today 5 st Te My yer aS ash i he Sin ee ty ty a eg sr ay tha ‘i ent even bot yet sayin years fo ome ‘Youshould also ocean this isnot an easy thi generations frie ae keep an ye on some te cornet are AOS the pond. Nowhere on Gade e ere ee crouch say ftie than the Bre ene co Bd a group a ss = jumpstart your tory | suggest you joumey t the places storie ming ip to youl Boob or Herr Her as You wand nay wellcome acrowsa book ora atl hat gives Youn ie. dpc folowing the "Shunber Party” episode, 1 was invited back t St Ful Haase Tse more hans ite gonshy since my ast experience Peer atwen so disastrous, Thi tne, I ely wanted 10 come up witha thoy wore Da ting wn coming ome reel ht ing ERA aes hour after hour was geting me nowhere. 5, went ext ‘hes Gra lear my hea. [soon found mysclf ina bookstore went the Htc and began o browse Tcame aro a Book about The Brady Bune Theses beeen tat show and Ful Howe were incredible ke Full Tse, The Braty Bch we 9 Pray right 8 lock show on ABC about a ‘ational aml Gin the ste steplamies were nt nearly 28 common they are today). Like the Tanner family the Bradys were squeaky lean, Soathew was usualy sal bu nprtant son ob lesa ach Weck ‘As began to browse the bok. nai there was a episce guide a the ‘wok began to skim One shove sng out tome, was astory abut Bobby, The youngest male Brady who, becase ofa al developed a fea of height, soe family had to elp him overcome Tew Fl once was looking for some stores for Mchlle 1 thought aboutwher litle Micelle wasn er fe and ohat ind of hings she might Ieding. Ate time, Mary Kateand Ashley Olsen were about five years ld Nims ight dey bearing to dea ike? What f Michelle wos eam fngto nie a to-wheslor flo the bk, and was fad to get Back on? Tied tobe exemely ls {id ot sta rom that ray Banc piso. ‘Nord adveatplagisam nay way shape, orm. you wee o pt the Bini Bunch episode next to the “Easy Rider” epaode of Fall ows, you would see that there is nothing simular about them, except pepe the tneriying theme, which comes rom an aged adage you fal ofthe Ire, you gota get ight bck on ‘Whichbrings me tomy next poin: Bartlet Bookof Quotations ls a good. ‘ur for i's lack. t wil open up your mind lots of dierent sory thames, Likewise commonglicefor wef keep waka TY Gwides around and skim them aa vay to get dens, Again, we are not steal= ing, we are simpy jump starting our minds ‘STORIES TO STAY AWAY FROM ‘Thar are some story ides that you should avo both in a spec seript an in ‘pitch Fit, and most importantly, you don'twantto d'#stry that changes he Likewise, don’t have any ofthe main characters ‘Bane pan The are fre main esos as Pst teens of milestones ae gong to cccur on a show it is the decison of the producer They are disused in-house at considerable lengdh — and then, because i'sthecpandewilalmesaivaye urine Sweepa eae sean hg ctl he any orem a Titeutaayt company pedeee er Ene ee aes Hewnbogins tie nlp hpongtenere Wigebonee oes sae you a bates an onc pes oe ae ian idethow kod pony ope mone ox anor a kal sory es ihe ay Sealy vig hen rode aaa vont mata see tenee eit Go tar ae en ‘nivel aestlinemeldtoce sin ea ot "ic ton esas en av sl ete rae oul te ual rtotnce Dad wager Satyeucantatetheshow ants" Te cheng eb eee cpeauipmuleames ven iyo dang sgiocam Sy te asl canoes ere ol eciiveds ththedoke pen conf winter ie fart sae eiotiany now serpentine cesar nog ree Shay doinyou sy wecheneryorrnecctensar ie on he, ‘See ideliasi ann sth ore toca ea ote mnoy cpecaly ey eon gangs cand Re oeseoncae Siting tack fbour nda wee Gia anante iets tur deammed atone ee aacagesteetrarrin renal teu henson ot our ceptions very Fo be sand SE jounhoul atl ent wares Tg that a mules You sould sc no mare han ne tent Ang stonssteruorcoctpraty berm canet Trepericais ofa" turers a rt a te. ieuan post ining "br heshow nentioartoneersee ae nen eng eb ig bee wen you peenaer ey Youcanincahunyvingieeus erase ind ec bespeeonn Toeqoalans omen bat youce agora Peteeatpn oie ‘Soilig poles at ou een lor onting os eal camet GETTING THE POOP Before you tart to construct your sory id, I recommend checking ot the show's Web site to see if it lists episodes | that have already been done The last thing you want iso vest he amount of te an energy at takes to vite a good spec script only to fd oat that youestory esha alieauy been Produce the show does’ Its episode, yo night ty ealing the pro Slueton office: Fxpiin that you aes ielace miter deny aspee and ask them (beg them i eed te) 2 send yo poop sheet epode pd). ean? tzunraee that they il Some shows ae the mindset tat hey dat have thetime to send tis ivormaton out o everyone thot aks (which is ue), ne yy RE er nem De acl eee gem eer rt RE aoe a iegaceinte ‘pal to you, PHYSICAL COMEDY whenover posible its god dea o incorporate physic comes into your Mey pt Bette hard prt Pia comedy has o work oF Fens etn forthe show le cat be saps. What worked forthe soe oes whe freer than fanny, spy wor’ wanlate to most of todays shows. “The Many new ‘overthink physical comedy and it comes across 25 convo Tied and inthe end not very funny. Another commen mistake Tse is for 2 tvttert ada physical comedy jus for the sake ofa laugh. The scene as noth: Tag to do with the story If your story does’ maturally lend itselt to physical ‘oanedy (and not every story does) itis better to leave tout, Plting itinjust tosay you did will mn the track and flow of your stor. ‘ill ifyou can think of way to add some physical comedy to yourserpt, ‘you increase your chances of having a weally funny spec which inthe end Al make you stand out asa writer Lean to write physical comedy well, nd actors iloveyou. Actors tend to lke physical comedy ait challenges them to do more than just deve fury lines, SIGHT GAGS sight agissomehing tats simply xing For emp an sor essed ins hilarious costume. He o she walks onto the stage dressed 083 nana os hotdog, the actor des’ redo saya word bur the mance hows Sight gags arent required in scripts, but like physical comedy if you an think of any that ane a natural fit for your stry, you will be one step further ahead of the pack “A" STORIES, “B” STORIES, AND THE OCCASIONAL “Ct STORY AND “D* STORY ‘Temalnstory tat you choot to xp in your sitcom is knownas the" A ory its the primary sry your esc. Tink tas he blr that will Sfpanrin TV Gate Ipaddion ost "A" story mast sitcoms have" Feta ta wel AB" story va tconday sory Sut uns thoughout the “pode Depending on th scom and the number f main charac, there er anonanand "Dates aswell may be“There ae a few reasons that sitcoms utilize secondary sores Fist you took atthe opening eects ofa sitcom, you wil sc the entire cat In S0me sitcoms, this tan bes far number of people. Ala these ators are Being Pak hefty salaries tobe on the shows: Therefore, it eould be foolish otto tell ‘of them each week Secondly the television audiences prime ech week to ‘welcome al f these characters int their homes, I aha they tune in for Imagine if you tamed on Desperate Housruizes ane week nd the only Rouse wife to come across your Seren was Susan. Wouldnt you bea ta disap pointed — pechaps even annoyed? Wisextremely dificult, especially in shows with larger cass, to incorpo- rate everyone into one lage, djnaimie "A" story, asthe reason there are '” stores. Secondary stores can also help heighten the tension By present ing another story to cutaway to. Tn addition to your “A” story, you will have to write a °B” story — and epending on wether o not your show eals for 3 °C" story and a "D” sory Be sure that each stor utes diferent characters. Ifyou ate going 0 ‘write a spec Too and a Fal Mon and your “A” story centers on Charlie sd Alan, then you might want te think of 2"B" story that fecuses on Jake and Judith, See how eaey that? "Now, you try it Writeone sentence that encompasses your “A” story Then. rite a sentence for your “B” story and, if applicable, your “C” and/or °D" sores GETTING FEEDBACK (Once you have your story eas itis always good to get some feedback before proceeding. The bst people t ask for feuback are people who know the Show: Whatever show you have decided to rite, my guessis that you ko fother people who watch it In fac, you peabably already discuss the shove with them every now and then ab topic ofconvetsation. Feedback can bea godsend in a couple of ways Fis, itcan let you know ‘whether or not you ae on the right tack. Do the people you ae telling the Stories to think they are fanny anal right for the show? Second a= you discuss {your idens, you will be surprised how people wil chime in and offer you di ferent way’ to go tha wil vastly improve your story Its the old “two heads ar better than one” theory, (CHECKLIST FOR STORY # Ismy “A” story fresh and original? {Is my °B" story (and applicable "C” story and/or “D” story) ually fresh and orginal? ‘s Domy stories work forthe characters ad forthe show as a whe? ‘Are my stories fanny? Can Leasily se where thejokes and humor le? ; a ———< 4 Have used lof the main chavscers? 4 Have used all (ormos) ofthe standard sets? Hinve Isdiscassed my story with poople who regularly watch the show? 4 Hive I sesearched what episoesthe show as already done? possible, have incorporated physial comedy? 1 possible, have Included sight g055? Ifyou answered “yes” toall ofthe above fasten your seat bel, Weare ready fomove on to the dificult tak of stucturing your stor.ae ee: SITCOM STRUCTURE ‘THE IMPORTANCE OF STORY STRUCTURE (Quite simply, structures one ofthe most important elements of your script Ws the glue that holds your story together. Think ofstacture a how you ‘choose to tell your sory, What happens in each soene ad what isthe ort in which it happens? Let me warn you tat stracture one ofthe bares things todo, It takes time, energy, and boatioads of patience You probably wont get itright the frst time. You may not get tight the second tte, Most ely you ‘will ned to rework your story several mes. Dont got aggravated By th it isa normal part ofthe writing process one thai dficul for even sem soned wiles Toften se new writrs work a story structure, gt frustrated, and give up They 5, “Teouldntfigueitout and twas aking too mach time, sous did it my way.” Ths i a colossal mistake, The television industry in’ Burger King, You cant have it your way. Structure exists because i works, Those in the industey understand story structure because they live it everyday. your story is stricture incoreetly — or worse ill not all — they will hear ti ‘your pitch or od itn your srpt and they will automaticly think of yo 3s ‘a pedestrian writer Because you haven’ conquered one of the most Randi ‘mental elements of TV weiting ‘TRADITIONAL TWO-ACT STRUCTURE VS. ‘MODERN THREE-ACT STRUCTURE For the most pact sitcoms have always been stacked into ats. An at 2 lecam shows aediferent. Thee will, lhe more scenes as scenes in these shovts tnd to be shore Inclasie wena your character(s} ino hot water The seco resolution I you get your characters) out of hot water. The ats shold be approximately (doesn’t have to be peeect the same length. 8 Inahemileot yours thee hats now a on ERB A tr ‘Act Break is ey foe pd ory Think of asa miclifhmger Something ‘ig must happen The sso tht tor esi, Act res coinede mr cmmeral te, Cuenta ive the audience «ae Woe sway fom your show. They cn (and en do) pick up the remote to sce Int cei on. But» good Act Bek wl always bing the auenee Back ‘Retusc they will want tosoe what happens and how the characters gt ost of fot water iso zr that nthe past decade networks have struggle to get nd © stp an audience This dial fo do, since cable television has opened up Tae coe stations Dat an ying for (and geting the share of ewer In Arto win ncororks wil ry mest anything that feels eileen. While Shows were coe slmostlvays structured in vo act, hee dayssome shows follwr a trecact strate. To make ex you can think the hee acts “eben, idle and end As with two-ctstractre each act shoud be mand the int and acon act shoal have rong Act Breaks “Typically, a show is consistently veriten interact structure or three-act tecture nother words, shows doa’t mi-and-match by doing two-act one tyeck ad three ac the next eis too confusing for an aadence "When you ate writing a pec cript or pitching an epic, you should struc tue your story in whichever format your particular show follows. How ean you be suse how many acts your show has? i's easy. Watch the show fora fee iresks about halfway dhrough? Then, cbvicusy that show is follwing elasicwo- “getatractre, But the show haste mus-ithangees ant wo commercial Tai, then the shove is folowing the moee-modem.thre-ct strate “Avword tothe wise — be sue, when studying a show, that you are watching, itinplane ine rather than in syndication. As we have discussed shows that sno sation often hve morsel ro ae or any Teas, you re clear on how many as yout ptr how has, you can Algo look at the sctasl show script that snow in your possesion. Act Breaks re rien in, soi will beeaby for You to Figure out ‘The one exception to tworact of dheeact structure is shows that ate on ‘ommercalfee nets lke HBO and Showtime. These stores donot have ‘Act Bevaks, but rather go from beginning to end. Ifyou are writing or itching _ ope ofthese shows, you don’thave to worry about creating strong Act Breaks CREATING TWISTS ‘The worst stories in the world ae linear stories. In television, linear stores simply dont work. They ar, for lack ofa btter tem, boring The best stores are those with twists. A twists something the audience doesnt ee coming. Tnother words, the sory scems wo be going inane direction, and then some happens that spins the action into a ferent direction. Twist catch theude guar, koping them engaged and pe! and eneained Tink ofa ‘ileus de How nou nde ance og tel down with drops tht seem to come out of ewer? Tear A imc fun atl ls the se wh sry. Be forarnes ong op ih tnt con be itt But is something you mast dos snn hae ah ‘stingy and intl an swestmes /NO-FAILSITCOM STRUCTURE am going to give you the ep for no-fail u of sitcom structure I yo fallow this toa te without deviating, promine you no one wil be ale io soy Your structure isincorect Here an te main ings youneed toon «Bop achat onthe “A story { Endeachacton he "A" sory $ Wein ey lt Qh" sary a Dy ap 4 Have clearcut bepnning mide and en forall stories © Patall stores nal sca “ Putall ain characters inal ace 4 Develop strong Act ea hat leave your characte in jeopard * Eecalate the jeopardy inthe beginning ofeachact # Crente tint the second-tvissene {+ Restve he" sory nthe al scene Begin Each Acton the“A” Story 1esinportantto hep nang that yout “Ast tor yor primary story. Tere fre ou ed se a pry ard gv thot ae te, ew Saussure ond eh lent waste pcos ime In Act ne, you need ges hooked on you" A” Story in subsequent 2c, you ec keeps hooked on your" sy End Each Acton the “A” Story Your Act Breaks suf on your “A” sory. Aga this th thi the primary tne ronon we hein Neat og bea vee nurs any tres beatae hey ares big, Thus anint-clitangecetered on ASE yore sy vtech obs kar eo ‘Weave In the “B” Story and then the “C* Stary and “D” Story, ‘fapplicable) ‘Once you have clearly established your “A so nce 304 haw ory, You ean weave in your vary stories. In ame shows, secondary stores are completely separate scenes that cutaway from the main action. Sometimes, the secondary stores ‘walk ino the main acon, Ofcourse, you should dot however your parti Lirshuw does t The important things to give dhe most me tothe A" story, then the "B story then the"C" and/or "I" story. Have a Clearcut Beginning, Middle, and End for AU Stories Ech story should be able o stand on ts own with a leary defined bepinning erdile ca end You don’t want to start or dabble with a secondary sory anc Tren jst let op. The audience will walk away fing SyPPed becmsse they dont know the resolution at All Stories in AML Acts ‘tis important hat you ince scenes from al of your stviesin each of your ae ea dont want twat unfit second attoset up a“B” story. Likewise, AiRould bea mistake to start story in Act One and then never return tt ‘Put All Main Characters in AIL Acts Whenever psi, you shoul try og af the main characte into each Ihre are in reset sence tune neath week — ese are hey invite tf tha horney 0 ou Want tobe seo delver Seer secngton Ale, you wanttomaesurthatallof then char BRE sated monccftestnes-—belt he" story o ane of he se Seer and testo shold al be moving forward ech 2k Ahan he eaton Develop Strong Act Breaks that Leave Your Character Jeopardy Tean'temphasize this enough. Something significant mst happen a the end of ct at that will make the audience year to know how the characteris going forget out of the ight spot you have plced him o erin. An act must bud £0 Thismoment At the Act Brak, your character must be in the doghouse Escalate the Jeopardy in the Beginning of Each Act When we come back froin the commercial break, you must now escalate the jopady Just when we think the character can® get In any deeper he o she floes something hat makes the situational the worse. Aso, once youhave put the charecter fa jeopardy and the audience has patiently waited through @ ommeril break to see what happeas, you dont want to put them off by fing immediatly tothe" sory. Create a Twist in the Second-to-Last Scene Thebest-written sitcoms have twistin the second-to-ast scene of the show. ‘ory willbe going one way, and thn, out of nowhere, something hap- ‘Dens that spins the show ina new diction on ts way to resolution, Not all|) eee oot ee Scripts do this, because coming up with a good twist can be extremely dif cult Nonetheless, if youcan igure outa goed vis in the secon ls scene you willbe aheod ofthe game Resolve the “A Story in the Final Scene ‘Your “A” story is your primary story. Once you have resolved the "AY story, you have given aay the keys tothe candy store. The show isover Thezefore, ishugey important to hold off en the resin of the “A” story unt the final scene ofthe final act EXAMPLE OF STRUCTURE Below is an example of how to structure your sitcom. tis ony an example ‘Yous story wil probably be structure ait bit diferentyas you will have 10 come up with your own story sequence and structure, base the news of your ACTONE Scene One (star "A" stony) Seene Two (start “B" story) Scene Three (back 40 "A” sory) Seene Four (tart “C" story) Scene Five (back to "A story characters) in jopardy) ‘ACT BREAK AcTTWwo ‘Scene One (continue “A” story escalate jeopardy) Seene Two (Contnve“B”atry) Scene Three (continue “A” story) Seene Four (esalve"C” story), Scene Five (resolve "B story) Scene Six (continue “A” story with ist) Scene Seven (resolve “A sory) jetta aes neat ensure Ao Ce “isthe prima nes ar st aside forthe “Bator an two fo the "C” story, Once you have established your “A” story and al of your se ‘ondary stories, you ean place them in any der that makes senses omg a5 {youstartand end each acto your “A” story and give thatthe mgs me ad ‘As Thave stated, thore are exceptions to every rule. Tam telling you what works for most shows. You will know by studying the show yeu want €| Write hove that particular show works. For example, The Singzons tarde to siarton the" sory. So, ifyou were wetings spac for that show ys wu Sitcom Seucture 52 ‘TEASERS A teaser (al Anownr as cold opening”) is he first few minutes ofa show y such ke i sounds to tease the sence and get thee immediately hooked into the show, ths beating tthe competition night frm the get go. At the tp of every hour andar al hows such of the TV audience has clicker in hand, flipping around fo see whats oming on. Whichlo you think the audience would find more interesting the Iain credits ofa show ora small hiaron litle section the show? Of ears, ‘most people would prefer the later Nelworks banka that Teasers vary from show to show Insome shows the leet has nothing at all to do with the main story. tis completly separete In other shows the ear actually helps set up the show. Most shows are consistent they either doe fenser each week or they don't Occasionally, you mig find «show that ates from week to week, but this relly the exception ta the sale, ‘Should you include teaser in your spec sip? The answer edependson fhe show you are writing for. Remember, you are trying fo make your episode look exaiy like the show you are writing. Therefore, its imperative to co ‘actly as they do. they have a tener every week, then you should de ftely write a teases Ifthe show you are writing for docs ot have a teaser then puting one in would look ike yo don't know the tructurco the shone Tnthose rare cases wheel could go ether way, would recommend doings fener I's another opportunity to geta chunk of funny into your sept, Tacs iaE{t ate woo twee spent that comes te endaa show mera retkand sight ble there: some ey, ican ink ofatag asthe oppo of ateser The tang harmon os aso dfewnts tthe sistance pio eth ea ene othe fiat ac ata ther shel 9 ep igi block that stands completely on sown, You shold tees eo pee GA sory ina tag — should always be wrapped up le haven ae {ial sc The reason his isimporat isthat when show gosta fim tote gets edited ta tern inorder o aod necro 0 that esl TV statonscan nce evenueInthseaoe ee ey Aatbeshovn J can be small extensions ofthe story — oF they cin be as simple as Hebe someouiakescfthe show Should you include sapere eee the aner is onli the show yousre wring eh eee ‘few wordsof ction When tying dtemine hoe nea a ee 5 dent confuse ers and ng or Ac Bras Fer eae eo ee later the teaser o Before the tag ut tho re he Bee aca a ones th(CHECKLIST FOR STORY STRUCTURE '¢ Does each act begin and end on the “A” story? s rags OUTLINING YOUR ‘Ae the secondary sores woven in, ech with clear-cut beginning, + Bom Actbaks veh hacen part wae? SITCOM STORY Have escalated that jeopardy at the binning of the next at? {Do my acts feo fairly ever in terms of time an material? * ave T incl teasers and tags if applicable oy show? you answered “yes toaofthe above questions, congraltos! isi tobegin outlining your sep. ae SS WHY YOU MUST BREAK YOUR STORY DOWN ACTBY-ACT, ; SCENE-BY-SCENE Inthe professional word of television vrtng once a writer as beng tory the fst thing he or she does sto write an actby-acy,sene-by-acene Story cutine, You can thik of story outline as a blueprint to the sip In hesame vey tht abulder wool’ inal start construction one Howse ut sold plans etched in stone, profesional writers don't st down #0 ea srt wrt te story being lout in fll detail the sory doesn’t tek the ap wont work Is that simple. Therefore, proces init fone the Mn welling your spec it is highly advisable that you waite a story outline justasa profesional write would. Fst ofall good practice. Peshaps more fant, an outline fall but guaranted to save you time and ag3r2V3" ‘Over the years, Ihave witnessed many a promising young Wnter enter ting process withthe words, "Tdon’tneed an outline. know what The weiter then spends several months hammering out the script. bly, ence the serpti finished and peoplestart reading it mistakes are an holes ave pointed ot thal the writer had considered. Alf the ‘work goes down the dan and the Writer has to go beck to square one reconstruct he sory. Alot of precious time and effort hasbeen waste. ‘Don'tdelude yourself nto thinking that sa fst-ime waite youcan skip line phase and yo right to script Comparatively speaking the storys nde fo write than te seript sell. Let's go back othe construction anal- 3 Which house would you rather ve in one built ona whimby a builder thjust a vague idea of what he hopes the house wil look lke when i's ete — or one bull By a builder who has followed a set of plans by a qualified architec? Obviously the builder without plan risks lo time and eng up witha Big mess, whereas the bualdes with ative st of plans il probably be finished faster and have fewer prob Ws the same with wring an ovine. The writer who writes without ‘sks getting lost along the way. On the other hand, onee you have 35Your story outined, and you know where you ar going, waiting the sxpts ot neatly as dificult not as daunkng, i WHAT A GOOD OUTLINE SHOULD ACCOMPLISH Jina nutshel, good outline should give an overview of the main ation of the story On work for hie, writers and producers shoul be abe to Sead a ‘outline and be completely clear on what is going to happen, when is gol ‘ohappen.and how the story wil evolve and salve outline is broken down aet-by act scene by-scene, Within each see, ‘he writer tells where the scene takes place (on what stand when I takes place (day or night). The writer then deserbesthe main beats points or actions) ‘that oscur in each scene, from the mament we enter that scene ual the ‘moment we lave it Outlines are always waite n present tense with ste dlalogue as posible If for example, yous have realy funny joke, you ean ieee itn the outline, but avoid adding dialogue justo ld dialogue gai, an outline is a Blueprint of your story. Wiig dialogue comes inthe ript phase ou should also ster clear ofthe huge temptation to direct your scipt by \rtngin camera angles. Remember, you are the writer, ot the decor. The clrectr wil be more than capable of choosing his or her own shot, only ‘ada shots in an outline an scrip) if they are 100% pertinent othe telling of Your story. word tothe wise Ifyou ae going toad shots or use any type FTV lingo, be sure you are using itcoreecly. Many a day Thave wen outline and scrips that are overloaded with direction that doceyt make any sense Wa ifthe writer fees that by using television jargon produces will ink he o she is a professional who fits igh in, You won’ fit inf you have ed the language incorrectly n fact, ust the apposite wil happen GOOD WRITING Is KEY ‘good outline should read like a good novel. The same is true of your cpt. {don't mean thatit shouldbe written nthe samesiyle asa novel but rather thatthe writing s30 crisp, the story so compelling thats reader willnot be able to put it down until the very end. well-witen outline shouldn't Beall, ‘owery and wordy: Here ss fs more. You are looking to describe the ation in your story with as fee words posible The ey ist find the precise word ‘or words for what you are trying tos For example, does the character ‘merely “enter” the room —or does he “sink” int the room —or dees "ball nto the room? Choosing jus the right verb fr what you want e character © donot only makes the read accurate, it makes ial the move interes ‘more excting In writing an outline, you definitely want to think back to high school English icturecan_greally- improve the read ” _gtammar 1 matters _ Sourarea writer, Thiemeans hateterything you write—outlines included — must be writen wel FORMAT MATTERS Sooner tetas an Sons wacicee natant sg eof ee rs oe rdutad eta gents and produces wl fever bre How good the ier tenses eur, clove the srt an that wil be that Trey ae dealing wih an amateur clove the span hat we that loin the bins yo read Mfodas ar apent ors profce or anyone poutine Your etc ver el ant pt ern be al [Err devin om standard format So, when a sript oan oon Sin aco sera yy titi ame Seoseevo ung chsh writers pesenian and dosnt hrow Tm aten Sate wrter knoe bt dws care. Nether scenario odes palfor tie wee HOW LONG SHOULD AN OUTLINE BE? apne of he qusons am asked os fe yng shuld an Dati er Uninayfsie uston for which doth pei Shaver Tan mare aboot gully tam quant. The most importa iy Shout your tine ta tis welenten — that he sno set rumbet fags and ini we ct eth of ing anvary depending on the soy and ha many scenes ae vol Settings tional utc sso, you wil probably have fever sees thera single-camera comedy does, though in a mullicam sitcom, the scenes Xilprbsbly be Tonger I The omakes rough estimate | WouLsnS 40407 seacepincotw ma con out foriethatyou temo qu ane thing ure ev okt for tht n't to many ene Keepin mi atte newt step after Yur out Testo wre the pt So evestng inthe one well eed to be ane nd those Ie ins scton and logue If your olin ha oo many scenes ad thos Sxnes are to long ou Wl aves fic me petting alin the cigece atowcomenina oun 0-35 pages important that you Your script in at around thee numbers Bectse tha ndsty standard ‘hte, young writers have prob robles cutng tings: Cet ed Yo Cat sep meting yw do every dy ce You bcs fst wie wt once a apc for ne il ulmatly “ou sould also make sre that your act afl bal your acts ae fil balanced both in the ay ofa ae eng do thave i pees ut yo hee se ‘eenes in another ach you aon the Wrong ‘SAMPLE OUTLINE FOR’ Wha ows an atin of he ite sees called Pape Employed bythe tote of Neo York to Fight Crime nthe 140s, The ute es writen by Steve Fin, det in ny Wing Televison Pt ‘lass at Emerson College. eis reprinted with Steve's permission, Give ita read, and when you are finished, I wil point out some ofthe more important for: ating sates ACT ONE 1k is 1640s Hew Yors and the retirement party for BULL EAUSHR, ono of the most respected and oldest members of the pole force, Bul stands at the makeshift podium, ‘Years streaming down his face as he, filled mith emotion, tells all of his co-workers what working there all of thes years means to him. Bveryone begins to ory ad the emotion resches 1 fever Ditch when BEESLHY Io, tho aclstant to fated ene ‘es Diam Mournats sr on he sen ane of th parsers know tat Dayne in fat dead, He is alive. once Having een Ball's e's work, Bul iin dsl about che ‘inet of Magi’ vag aa ks ving ‘my for suppor ia serupiee hen ‘out in @ flash. . aaa ‘When they come back on, DWAYNIe MONTEGUE, the erime boss of Wew York, stands in the middle of the room, with | three oronies an hia side. : Ho tells Bull that ne 1s geing to comm a crime right HOw. fand that Bull willbe foreed back onto te force beowuse of {He taxes Bull's con Chavo and casually watks Dim OOF of the room, as Bull and the other polie aicers ysl. Shoot" and others call for help. Thay don"e accoaly hase after him though, As soon as Dwayne is out of the ‘room, they mun after him, - JAe Dwayne and company drive away srom the pollos Gation, "iloon River" from Breakfast at Titans". pl ‘om the car OD player (blatantly disregarding that fore no CD players in the 1980s). Dwayne looks off Soriousty affected by the music. One of his cronies Straight. up asks him why he always insists on ist {tis sone, and follows ie up by asking if this beaut to representative of a guarded secret thst reveals a that Dwayne onge possessed. Dwayne looks at ni loses his ayes. ‘EXC, BY THE RIVERSIDE — 40 YEARS EARLIER, Dwayne, as & young strapping gentleman, stands by the ‘vevside with the woman of is dreams. They stand foci feuah other, bolding eadh other's hands. The moonlight hstens off the water. Things suddenly take an unbearable {Sum for the worge when the young woman tells Dwayne that ahe doesn't ink this Is working, leaving Dwrayno al fslone and cold. Inside and out. As Dwayne looks ‘ground, trying to igure things out after this traumatic ‘event, & miracle hsppens. ‘A strand of moonlight, coming down from the sky, reflects ‘through overhanging trees in guoh a way and into the river {just a way that the word ORIMEE is visible on the surfaoe of the water Dwayne says out loud that he realizes, Dosauce of the moon and the river, wha his destin ts. Notice, right ofthe bat, Steve tls us what at we are in. The words “ACT ONE" arin capita leters centered, and underline. You should follow this fue and note thatthe same willbe tre when you ge fo subsequent acts, 'Next come the magic words “FADE IN" in caps, followed by a colon. From there, Steve sat fo write his story, sceneby-scene. The writing fs ick and casa. Thisis story Its move. evs look a his fist lines “INT. POLICE STATION = NIGHT.” This is Bown ae n scene heading or sughine. Its in all caps and underline. ings are importants they’ give us quite a bit of information Soene boutwhere and when the sone tkes place. When writing a aene heading, the first question you want to ask youre s where does the ation take place — Inside oF outs? In Steve's story, the fist scene will tke Place side & Policestation. The word “INT” means interior Ifthe scene takes place out Side, as ome of isate scenes do, the sen healing stare with EXT, which means exterior or outside. ‘After the interior or exterior, you then Want 10 ist the specific set. In ‘Steve's story, it 8 obviously 9 police tation. So INT. POLICE STATION, means thatthe scene takes place inside a police station. A word tothe wise ‘when isting sets: make sure that you are consistent Once you have named 9 if you go back to itlaterin your outline and serpt make sure you use the Same sene heading. Others, It can get consing ‘Now that you have added the sett the scene heading, you want to tll us what time of day the scae staking place. You don't have tobe exact. Just eve usa rough idea, by using words lke "DAY" or “NIGHT,” or slight var sions suchas “MORNING,” "AFTERNOON," “EVENING.” "DAWN" of “DUSK”. Note tha the set and time of day are separated by a hyphen, whish hhas one space on each side. At the risk of sounding picayune — which [ admittedly am — be sure tobe consistent in the use of hyphens, Often wet es will use a combination afhyphens and dashes nthe sugline. Again this Inslop,andalack ofatention to deta Be perfectionist Itisthe underlying inciple of god writing, what hay ewes, welt hat you mean quickly, but write i wal few things to note: becuse this is singlet ra sitcom, is welt filmtyle, Therefore, each lame » new characte i Introduced, that person's name appears in copitl letters. This rue apples ‘only to the ist ime we see that character. Also, notes how Steve breaks the action info several small paragraphs. Not only does this make the outline ‘esse to read (huge paragraphs canbe dificulton the eyes), bu it helps with the flow of Steve's vriting, When you have particulary Tong scenes, look 10 break them into smaller paragraphs. A good place to break is where the ction or emotion silts of changes. From the fist scene, Steve begins to move though his ac, each scene push: ing the story fora until eventualy he arive a the big Act Break moment. When the acti finished, the words “FADE OUT" goto the lef ofthe page ‘Steve then skips spice (or two) and offically ends the act, with the wor "END OF ACT ONE,” which arin capital eters centred, acd underined, A FEW MORE RULES mn outlines and seri, I you want to put say away fom bold an tales: tmphasis on something — especially in dialogue — underline i Ifyou are underlining more than one word, da each wor separately De en pete tres opin ern enemies se Saree Ren ee eee eae re te ee a Ee ete teE we ni sometimes, new writers fonget this important dela. For ample, let's sty {iEintesing nN BebROGM™ MORNING Bian Mary eng wefinglevson when the dor ings, Mary woes 0 pt Ja wha Mary opening the do and walks Marys othe Fn covert Ba, th wr fg to change te ene see er Livin ROOM ~ MORNING. Thnk of ke th: your a lathe dete where the action aks Pace ae thus where Fees Sate se up Unt you el th decor nd eeryone ds) rae chang eatin no ones going to move a yo canexpiain won, even m missentece, 1 emphasize eben ta chia Ties eran rma at tere SSE ge ane emi *%. iw; punctuation. If the last sentence Tests page of Your cui must end inp ie cont mart ten goto net pgs and bg the nee een ter: Se thing une books, pad ones have wo paces between sconces This sples tot cee desertion and dog HOW MULTI-CAM SHOWS DIFFER IN FORMAT You wil ce inthe next chapter thatthe format for multicam serps sss Ailfanly flere than single serps Tn terms of outinng, Howevet, they are pretty much one the same say for the sake of argument, that Steve's pilot was a mull "is fat cone would thon begin like this: SCENE A {UT POLOE STATION = 3IGHT eis 19405 New York and the retirement party for Bull Hauser, one of the most respected and oldest members of the police force, Bull sands at the make shift podium, teare streaming down iis faze 9s ho, filled with emotion, | tals al of co-workers what working there all of these ‘Years means to him[Notice in this ca, ‘malcom scripts, charscer names are ot Benerlly capitalized. Another thing that mult-cam shows do ciferenty stat, afer the Rist scene they ada a reference as fo how much time has passed since the previous sone Keeping with the idea hat Steve's seript fea muliveam show ner show his second scene would look in outline form SCENE B ‘DET. DWAYNE MONTEOUE'S GAR ~BAME NIOHT — ‘ALITTLE WHILE LATER ‘As Dwayne and company drive away from the police station, “Moon River" fvom Breakfast at Difany's plays fn the oar CD player (blatantly disregarding that there ‘were no OD players in the 1980s). Dwayne looks of, obviously affected by the music. Ono of his cronies straight up asks him why he always insiste on Ustaning to this song, and follows it up by asking if thie beautiful song 's representative of a guarded soores that reveals a sot ‘that Dirayne looks at him and eloses his eyes, READING YOUR WORK, OUT LOUD [always tel writes that they shold ead the nd this includes outlines — before handing itn fo anyon. This advice is seldom taken, know, because I constantly get outlines where 3 word is missing se tence structure ist varie, the same verb is used repeated, ee ete On the ‘ccesions that actually hear these walters read thei ork outloud, Lath in quiet amusement as they catch ther orn typos and mistakes, and find Shemeces stumbling over thee own word fa writen eds or het own outline smoothly how do you thinks producer will ever make ttvough? ‘Thetis something about reading your work outloud tat allows you to really heart Tea promise you tht you da this, you willimmediatly eal. ize where things are off, and thus you wil be able to give it another pass before sending it ou GETTING FEEDBACK ON YOUR OUTLINE ‘rer inh your sory ulin i mpeg out ‘ekefore diving into the serpt. Again, this i where you wil key lean if yout story is working, Iti ideal to get feedback rom people who versa felevision writing. However i tht int fosble, lok for people that wate ‘he show you are writing Tel thom up fro ehat you want thet o be honest in thir exitue of your work (and wen they ar, don't make them fe Ey acute danger ng your work ofa and os ends tg hey maybe eure tel you the whole ahi they Hake Hae ealtg You need to mae them understand hat yur =i ee You oud aes hear rom them nw rather than rom prod Teand agents te avin the general rule of fedback i to remember that everyone has ue he owrtpinnn of whats good and hasnt, AE Whe very st i ed iok or fk rom ce people Before moving fa Peet of te oral tee make the sme comment about something foul df keno Te nara igh someting wk si ele ot of tc peopel come to the same conelsion, Bre NSS Zo elagents and proces. Now isthe chance fo change thine Trees if peopl ar pointing ot diferent things, then you shoul itn eee Ta tey ave to sn works for You great Go ahead and ares whatever it sand you wl probably have an even better utine see eetpt Ht docst inet you, you obviously don't have tose i eA SIE hover reading your works dang You a favor, 0 ty toi fen to te cick without beng axgumenitve % nerdefensve tes. Mfc an danger reeving feedback that some people may look t your storys havea enliely diferent approach. This can ake you rethink the fren Bel ut hs Tov ae a ain way le oy shave icked the way that You want to ft Just becuse come ha aan ay aigeway io ete It could be tat tsa t= ferent pa Of course if tha aprosch is dfitvely betes, then it might Be srorth aking he change A WORD ABOUT COVERS! When doing an outline or script, you should use a cover page. Again) there are industry standaeds for how covers are done, and I don supgest You devise from them. Covers should be on white paper and the {ype should be Back ink nly Stay away from fancy fonts even ifthe actual hove uses one) and fom adding any Kind of pictures or cartoons or anything Ske that you tink is funy. Professional writes ely on the weittn word. Period ‘Aover page should include the name of the show in capt eters “hs should be sentra onthe page and undedined. Then, ship aspace and ‘write the ile of your episode, This should be centred and putin quotes Ming upper and wes avers Sip anther space an eer the words Patten By" Then sip another space and center the bo most important ‘words your name‘To better demonstrate what I mean let me give you an example, wing, ‘Steve's plot episode. Here ls what Steve's cover age woul oak kee ‘PEOPLE-EMPLOVED BY THESTATE OP NEW YORK TO HIGHT ‘CRIMEIN THE 13405 “This the Hpsse Whore th Series Bens Baus of Complains Between the Good Guys and! he Bad Gay Weiter By Steve Pinto ‘his information arts about thio aay ov he page this were {potelonalculne nati ons youd Den rtd eu ‘Swot tena th wore “Sry Outline” ante ine oe Sencha comer twee posal spt ited of mete, youd ‘hte Dr Pl Duan he daw doen nthe we gh a comes When comes tape scp, ever Ida et in Putting dt cover Dates a impoant on wk for Ne, ese [yi pera hold thr be ny gl res “Tn dnc te Be dana Ls sy four pet brs sod ot the sp but you dont get wrk ht ay Si month ter en Se agents sl sndng he cp opr, ey wl a the date ‘cw tour won akon ute fers whee ea ed Jou inion vay andr asain! meget esp mas et be Shee Ifyou are sending your script out ou should put your contact informa "rin the lower right-hand comer so that people will know hots to contact you, should they wish to discus your work, Once you get an agent, Your ‘personal information, such as addres and phone number, will be replaced by your agent's conte information ‘Before sending your workout You should always register it withthe Wat ers Guild of America (see Chapter 2), When you do, you will be given are {station number, Many writers put this number in the lowes ighchan commer ofthe script. While I avays register my work before sending it ny ‘where, 'do not ever list that its registered on my script cover A weiter fo ‘whom Ihave a great deal of respect once cautioned me against ths, He aid ‘that successful walters stew ler ofthis practice becuse it sens a messoge to people reading it that you dont really trust them. Professional writes dont walkin the door expecting thei work tobe stolen. They expect p= ‘ducers to do well by them and to teat them fil. agree wih this philoso hy, and have come to realize that most working writers don’t ad the WA fisclaimer. The bottom lines that someone i going to steal your ides, they fate going to steal your ides, and Lam sory to tell you that most likely they won tbe deterred by a WGA registration numbee. (CHECKLIST FOR STORY OUTLINE leyouruline writen nthe presen tense? DiS ane all the show's reglarcharocters Pia Sou rene rom unnecessary dnlogs? Busdeaddjekertyoutavethen? Fiat jousteed cle of overasing camera ng Dayeaay ote 3 Dowgeach st begin ona new - Dosen ate punto, rather tan nie 5 Didyou speltcheck your ouine? ou read your workout a? ' 7 Hey ren your work to at eat thee people for oboe Fane Jou Shade changes to the outline based on that feedback a wo, then you are Fal ead to bein you answered “yes” toa of the above then J ly i your senpL