Introduction to Writing TV Drama

Part 1

"In all my years I have come to realise that there are only two kinds of writer, those who love the idea of being a writer and those who are prepared to do the work."
- Julian Friedmann, agent, author and publisher

"If people knew how hard I worked to achieve my mastery, it wouldn't seem so wonderful after all."
- Michelangelo

"Becoming a writer is easy. The hard part is remaining one."
- Harlan Ellison

Television needs a constant supply of new writers. Drama is the most consistent ratings performer and every network is looking for the next returning series or mini-series. They are also looking for writers to join the teams for Soaps.

The most important thing is to start watching television drama critically. If you like or dislike a show then try and work out the reasons why. Does the story make sense? Are the characters believable? Is the dialogue naturalistic? Also look at the structure. How many main characters and minor characters are there? Were there too many characters? Was there a clear three act structure? How long are the scenes and what is their tone? Try and read TV critic reviews and see if you agree with them. The idea is to get you to distinguish good shows from bad and good writing from bad. So you can tell your own good scripts from the bad scripts. To quote Marc Peirson, TV writer, "A lot of writers...don't actually have a critical self that truly judges the material they submit". You develop that critical self not only by reviewing TV drama critically but by writing a lot of scripts and reading a lot of scripts.

"Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself; but talent instantly recognizes genius."
- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The other most important thing is to be prepared for success to take a while as you learn your craft. Writing isn't a quick and easy route to fame and fortune - it takes hard work, dedication and talent. OK, maybe talent isn't strictly necessary but sufficient hard work and dedication can make up for it.

Soaps (or Continuing Drama Series)

There was a time when Granada refused to allow their Coronation Street staff to appear at any event with 'soap' in the title claiming that Corrie wasn't a soap but a continuing drama series. For a time soaps meant 30 minutes and 60 minute shows got the continuing drama series title but now that distinction's blurred as Casualty, Holby and the Bill become more soap like. The Bill's distinction was never having anything to do with the copper's private life but it became more soap like by focusing on character's relationships as much as the police work. And, incidentally, its audience figures have shot up as a result.

Working on a soap is considered by many as an ideal way to start your career. Although it means working on other people's characters and stories the experience will stand you in good stead when it comes to creating your own series.

However, if you don't like soaps then don't feel obliged to follow that route, it's not obligatory or necessary.

If you want to get on a soap then you will need an original calling-card script, there's no point in attempting an episode of the soap itself. They want to see your original voice and how you write your own characters. If you attempt to write characters that producers know inside and out then you'll be at a disadvantage. So The Bill, for instance, not only don't want a made-up episode of The Bill but they don't want a police sample script either.

Once you've impressed with your calling-card script then they will usually invite you to shadow a current storyline. In other words you'll go through the same process and time scale as a commissioned writer except for the payment bit and seeing it produced part. If you can do that well enough then you may get an opportunity to do it for real. Although bear in mind that for some soaps there might be a waiting list to join the team so it might be some time before you get your chance to drop subtly into the conversation: "I wrote tonight's EastEnders! Me!"

If you want to write for Soaps then Chris Curry, the stand out writer on Albion Market and part of Brookside's long-lamented golden age, has written an essential guide called, appropriately enough, Writing for Soaps.

Original Drama serials

This is a single story told over a finite number of episodes. They tend to be book adaptations like David Copperfield but can be new and contemporary like Murder. You only need to write the first episode, an outline (scene by scene breakdown) will do for the other parts.

Original drama series

Networks want returning series and will be less interested in a six part series where everything is wrapped up and concluded in the last episode. Again, you only need to write the pilot. Writing all the episodes is a waste of time because even if the show was commissioned the script editor, producers and network execs will have notes for you to consider. I remember one new writer who had written six episodes of 12 part series and was on his way to the rest but the premise, characters and story were fundamentally flawed from the very beginning. However because he had spent so much time on writing it he was very reluctant to make any changes at all.

Calling card and Spec scripts

Any script which you're not being paid to write is called a speculative script or spec. Let's say straightaway that the odds of new writers selling a spec are fairly remote. Your script may be too similar to something already in production or recently aired or the producer simply doesn't think they can sell it to a network. More likely, if the script is good enough, you will be asked for other ideas and outlines. But although the chances of selling that spec are remote they are not impossible, as a few new writers can testify both in drama series and drama serials.

So you can write a calling card script just to show off your talent, a spec script to be sold or a script that can be both.

If you want to write for a half-hour drama like Doctors or EastEnders then you'll need at least a 30 minute script. If you want to write for an hour-long show like Casualty or The Bill then it's best to have a 60 minute script - although you might get away with 30. There are no slots really for one-off 30 minute scripts and although there are some for 60 minutes they are rare. But if the objective is to get on a writing team then it's not about selling the script itself but selling yourself.

If you want your spec to get you work on a soap then it's probably best that it looks like a soap so avoid using narration, flashback, sci-fi, fantasy or any period stuff. If you can't tell your story without using one of the above then choose a different story. I would go as far as saying that narration and flashback tend to be used by new writers to try and disguise underdeveloped characters and stories and if you can avoid them altogether all the better.

Another important element of soaps is multi-stranding which means using more than one story basically. EastEnders, for instance, will have at least three major and three minor stories running at the same time. To quote Marc Peirson, who has written for EastEnders, Doctors and Holby, "Multi-stranding means giving everyone a story, a beginning, middle and end. And ideally weaving those stories in and around each other to give not only texture but resonance."

Writer's Voice

We are all a unique mix of different experiences and so we each have our own unique view of the world. When we start writing we naturally copy our greatest influences. Or we try to imitate what has been succesful even though we didn't like it. Have the confidence to write in your own voice, on subjects you feel passionate about. I'm a joke Jimmy McGovern, a weak Winnie Holzman, a pathetic Peter Bowker, a silly Sally Wainwright but I'm a respectable Robin Kelly.

Ideas

Many writers hope to be able to sell their idea and don't think it matters if their script is badly written because the 'original' idea will sell it. That doesn't really happen because a badly written script is rarely read in full and what you think of as an original idea probably isn't.

Your sample script should be something you care about and would be happy to spend a lot of time working on - just like any script really. Script readers are looking for your original writer's voice. If you want to write popular drama then you have to make sure the idea of your story will have popular appeal. This doesn't mean shying away from controversial subjects but simply ensuring that the way you tell the story doesn't alienate the audience. Beware of self-indulgance or feeling you need to do something ground-breaking that's never been done before. Something good will do.

"Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

If no idea springs to mind then look at newspapers, magazines or documentaries for inspiration. Choose an issue or subject that interests you rather than trying to second-guess what the producers will want.

An example: you might be really bugged about the state of the environment. One story that suggests itself is about a chemical company secretly polluting the river. Maybe our hero finds out about it and the chemical company tries to kill them, there's a car chase which ends in a huge explosion but our hero escapes. The police and government are in on the conspiracy and won't help so our hero decides to destroy the chemical plant himself so he buys some explosives.

That's an incident packed plot but it will be useless as a spec. Why? Because specs should be designed to show off your ability to write characters, story and dialogue. Anyone can do plots, that's easy and takes next to no time because you're simply regurgitating plots you've seen before and don't have to rely on logic. The difficult thing is creating fresh characters and dialogue within a story that makes sense.

Character

Let's start again but this time with character and story. What character can I use to tell my story? The boss of the chemical plant? A worker? A mother who lives next to the river? A child? A reporter? The boss interests me more so I need to spend some time finding out about her. As I go through the character questionnaires, in the Character section, at the back of my mind I'll be thinking of the emotional impact and trying to create dilemmas, decisions and consequences. Making her a cliché, stereotypical, corporate boss is boring. What if she can justify the pollution as a way of saving money and so avoiding having to lay off workers? What if her best friend's kid is being hospitalised because of the pollution; etc? When I find out more about the character then other storylines and situations will suggest themselves.

That's my main character sorted but we have to show we can multi-strand so we need other characters and storylines. The problem with the spec is that you only have 30 or 60 minutes so you can't have too many main characters because it would be too confusing otherwise. Let's stick with no more than three main and three minor so it's like a Soap. Unlike a Soap your spec should maybe try and clear up all loose ends by giving each character's story a beginning, middle and end. You might want to make it self-contained.

So for my major characters I've got the boss, her friend who lives next to the river and a reporter. For the minor characters I've got the friend's child and the bosses' husband. Although as I develop my characters properly and outline my story fully this may change.

"The drama doesn't lie in the events. It lies in the behavior of the characters."
-- Martin Brest

Part 2