nbc writers on the verge – week 3

TUE 10/16/12

we usually focus on writing on tue, business on thu, but this week, it was flipped.

we met with an executive who developed and/or oversaw shows including awake, prime suspect, house, bones, the sarah connor chronicles, and he gave us tips on pitching.

it was an amazing session! here are just a few notes:

as a general rule, a pitch should not be over 15 minutes.

when you’re pitching, you don’t have to memorize everything. it’s ok to have notes and look down once in a while, so write out your pitch as best you can, and refer to your notes.

when pitching, don’t just explain the plot – this happens, and then happens, etc.

focus on character!

THU 10/18/12

we got notes on our outlines last tue night, and we only had one week to write a first draft! we uploaded our drafts on tue, and we had until today to read everyone’s scripts and have notes ready.

i was extremely impressed with everyone’s scripts. they were well structured, the dialogue was great, everyone matched the tone of their shows, and they were all fun to read.

as with the outlines, we first got notes from jen, karen, and julie ann, then notes from the other writers. i have to point out that everyone’s notes are extremely insightful.

for my happy endings script, the big notes were:

• bigger stakes throughout.
• a stronger set up for my B story.
• a stronger dilemma for my C story.
• the main character should solve his own conflict.
• what is the theme?

2nd drafts are due by sun at noon, so 2.5 days.