Archives for October 2007

I’m waiting for notes.

… so I’ll chat about stories. I’m looking for stories. I’ve got a commissioning meeting for Holby tomorrow. I’ll be in a room with my editor, producer and a fellow writer, as we are commissioned two at a time. We’ll discuss the story documents, just to make sure they make sense - then we’ll pitch our guest stories. I can see from other blogs and comments that this mysterious pitching business causes a lot of interest. How to pitch an idea? How to sell your story? What needs to go into a treatment? A synopsis?

Most ‘departments’ have guidelines for submitting ideas and work, it’s probably best to find out what is required of you, before pitching anything into the proverbial ring. A fair amount of our Academy class time was spent on our feet telling each other our ideas, given a particular project. They do this a lot in secondary schools now - peer to peer dissemination, small break out groups will explain part of the lesson to the rest of the class. Pupils have to collect their thoughts, structure them and communicate ideas effectively. Bring it on I say! The earlier we learn to share our thoughts and sell our ideas with confidence, the better. Being able to ‘hold your own’ whilst your idea is trashed, bigged up or simply laughed at is a great skill. Have courage and have the courage of your convictions I’d advise.

Actually it’s never been that scary. Nobody at CD has ever asked me to stand up to pitch an idea (apart from Academy Boss), more often than not it’s a low level discussion, with ideas back and forth, scribbling on paper, lost notes, interruptions for coffee, mobile phones etc. CD writers are asked to come to commissioning meetings with more than the required number of guest story ideas, not because most ideas are laughed out of the room, but because so many times these ideas have already been filmed. There are only so many hospital stories out there…

…And I’m looking for them.

I have a bank of BBC researches at my disposal, which is great. We get monthly email bulletins about what’s big in the medical news, or what gory story has made it onto page 5 of the Mirror. These stories can be followed up and are often good seeds for ideas. I read our local paper - the Newham Express. There’s quite a bit of depressing scary stuff in there, not many skateboarding ducks - but also a strong sense of community ID and interesting stories. It was in this local rag that I stumbled across the now famous (in medi/writing circles) paramedic blogger who works in my neighbourhood. His daily blog of real life accidents and musings makes for fantastic reading, whether you’re writing for Casualty or not, put his book ‘Blood Sweat and Tea’ on your Xmas list. Real life stories are good for kick starting ideas of your own - as is visiting the ED department. When I visited my local ED, doctors asked me, was I looking for stories or ‘ambiance?’ Truth be told - an average day at an ED would probably translate as a very boring Casualty episode, but the ‘ambiance, colour and flavour’ of the place was priceless.

I’ve got a friend who’s a nurse and a relative who works in a hospital. I fleece them for anecdotal stuff whenever I can, then buy them coffee. There is something to be said for arranging a dinner party of well placed (in the medical establishment) guests and letting the wine flow… patient confidentiality being paramount of course. Ahem.

Mostly I’m not sure where my stories come from. Characters just grow over time in my head, until a tipping point - like the day before a commissioning meeting - and then they spill out. I do rate public transport for furnishing me with a lot of good character stuff, I’d take a bus or a tube over a car ride any day, purely for story value.

What the Academy has taught me is how to structure these disparate story and character

ideas into a compelling, driven arc. It’s not at all clinical, it’s not an imposition, it’s a tool. I’m a story teller and pitching my ideas is a lot like telling a story - it needs to be compelling, interesting, engaging - think of the execs and editors as toddlers on the story mat .. they want to be entertained, ultimately they want to be Wowed! “Let’s tell that story!” That’s what you want to leave them with. You’re the author, so pitch with authority - and passion.

… still waiting for notes.

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If you don't read Variety or The Hollywood Reporter, you might not see these ads.

Just before award season every year, the studios take out full-page ads in the trade magazines marked "For Your Consideration" - and then points out the film that they think has a chance of winning an Oscar, or an Emmy.

It's to refresh voters memories, or perhaps encourage them to watch a film that they haven't yet seen. They also arrange free screenings for Academy members to help this.

Yeah yeah, I hear you cry, all well and good. So what?

Well, this year Universal are making the screenplays of six films available to download.

So if you're a writer who wants to read the six screenplays that Universal think are good enough to win an Oscar, check these out.

American Gangster

Breach

The Kingdom

The Bourne Ultimatum

Elizabeth: The Golden Age

Knocked Up

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Thought I'd better update our pages with some recent good news:

Ed Hime won the Prix Italia prize for best original radio drama. Ed was one of our '50' writers, a project we ran with the Royal Court Theatre. Having confessed to never listened to a radio drama before, Ed pitched his idea and it was commissioned for The Wire on BBC Radio 3. The play was also brilliantly produced by Jessica Dromgoole, my predecessor here at writersroom.

Mike Bartlett's Not Talking won both the Imison and Tinniswood prizes. Mike's original stage play came through the writersroom unsolicited system, was recommended heartily on to the Commissioning Editor of the Friday Play and subsequently produced, starring Richard Briers and June Whitfield. Nice to see the system working so well.

Levi David Addai, a young writer and another one of the '50', came on a development scheme with Eastenders in January 2007. He subsequently was taken onto the full shadow scheme and has just been commissioned for the show.

And Dystin Johnson, yet another of our '50 writers, pitched an original TV series as part of the project and her fantastic idea is now in development with BBC Drama.

Great news for all the writers involved.

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My Casualty script seems to be in fairly good shape with a strong heart. Draft 2 was received warmly and deemed good enough to go ‘upstairs’ for approval by the Exec Producer. This in essence gives me a few days ‘off’ which is just as well as it’s half term and the London Dungeons are calling to my 9 yr old, along with visiting relatives. It also gives me a chance to get my head into the Holby zone as the storylining conference is in two days and I’ve still lots to read.

Although it feels like I’ve been writing CD for ever this past year, I have only had 2 episodes aired - Eastenders in May and Doctors in August. My Holby ep is due to be aired next month and I’m waiting for the DVD copy to drop onto the doormat. So what’s it like watching your own show? Scary.

My Eastenders episode was finally great to watch after the 3rd viewing. After I’d got over the shock of cut scenes and changed dialogue, which is what happens when somebody else interprets your story. It’s a ‘cog in the machine’ scenario - my humble little episode is only part of a bigger picture. A goody bag with various different elements thrown into the mix, elements such as budget, casting, choice of director, rehearsal time etc. What you hope (and pray) for is the ‘positive collaborative experience’ that enhances your script - here’s my story, now *wow* me with it please! I was wowed by my Eastenders cliffhanger which had young Darren Miller telling Keith he was a lousy Dad outside the Walford tube station. Thank you Charlie Hawkins.

I made a point of going to see my episodes being filmed. It’s vitally important you do this at least once, you may find it extremely distressing, but it must be done. Just as ‘walking the set’ is of vital importance too - get onto the set of your show when they’re not filming and ‘walk your script through’. (Filming is like roadworks - never seems to be any action going on, at all, ever). Or at the very least familiarise yourself with POV’s from various angles on the set. Look for interesting and new areas where scenes can take place, sit on those hospital beds. One thing that is missing from the Holby and Casualty sets is smell - hospitals have a particular smell, so imagine it - come over all ‘method’ and just inhabit the world of the show for a while.

I’ve always known that film and TV is shot out of sequence, we all know these things - but it truly dawned on me when I had the shooting schedule in my hands trying to decide which day to watch filming of my Holby ep. Not only is the show filmed out of sequence, but they film two episodes at once! I ask you, who’d be an actor. And yes, filming is a laborious process, but it’s also very special and fascinating when it’s your work they’re filming.

I went in to watch filming of a chunk of my Holby guest story. Everybody was very warm and welcoming, there was a sense that things had been going well and spirits seemed to be up. But as a writer on the set, you do hope that some PA is going to stride ahead of you announcing ‘writer on the set’ just in case there a dark murmurings about how awful the script is and people will know to shut up.

It was great seeing the director at work, he was very unassuming and focussed (these are long days). I was, of course, fascinated by the props table (see previous career incarnation) and the props man was so enigmatic looking I wanted to write him into an episode of something there and then. Somebody asked me if the casting of my guest characters was what I’d expected. I of course answered ‘How could it be?’ It’s nigh on impossible to replicate in flesh, these figments of my imagination. That said, the casting was spot on and I was so impressed by the actress’s ability to be convincingly on death’s door at the drop of a hat - over and over again. There was much excitement as the prosthetics arrived for a small medical procedure I had written, and again - so much time setting the thing up…

Now my poor medic had to act, and handle a scalpel, and make an incision, and look like he knew what he was doing. Like I said - who’d be an actor.

More excitement ensued as the production manager came down for a swift visit - for it was he who had baked a batch of the most amazing brownies anyone had ever tasted, for cast and crew. I had eaten about 4 and congratulated him heartily before bothering to introducing myself. He was hailed hero of the hour, his brownies worthy of a culinary Bafta/Emmy/Oscar.

It was a fascinating day at Elstree, and impossible to tell what the finished ep will look like because of the next raft of hands that will edit, cut and sew together the completed Holby into another hour of hospital drama. It’s all out of my hands.

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Some of the best writing advice I've come across is available gratis on Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio's magnificent site Wordplay.

If you don't know who they are, you certainly know the films they've written: Shrek 1 & 2, Aladdin, and the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy. So they know whereof they speak.

Anyhow, the reason I'm bringing this up is that for the first time in over a year there's a new column up. Three, in fact.

These were started back in the day on AOL (which shows you how long ago it was), and give a ton of useful advice on screenwriting. I can't recommend 'em too highly.

You can catch up on the columns here. There's 48 of them so far, so expect to be some time.

Gold dust.

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Well, we are all at the mercy of the unforeseeable glitch. I worry about the unforeseeable glitch every time I switch my computer on - what if it just decides not to work today? What if my 9 year old has deleted all my files and replaced them with Tracy Beaker documents downloaded from CBBC.

For 24 hrs this weekend I was without internet due to a fault on the phone line. I didn’t panic, My 2nd draft has to be in on Tuesday - there was still time. There was the post after all, I could simply mail my script .. Ah, if they posties weren’t striking. I did once have some script notes delivered to me by courier, which was very exciting, I guess I could hire a motorcycle guy to speed my draft 2 over to Bristol. As it was, the phone fault was fixed by Sunday morning and the only real crisis was my not being able to bid on those two tone shoes I really wanted on eBay..

2 fellow Academy writers fell foul of the unforeseeable glitch last week though. One emailed me to say he’d just sent off his finished Casualty script, was knackered, looking forward to a drink, some sleep yadda yadda the usual. I replied fab, well done! Enjoy the rest! Half an hour later he’d emailed back an expletive ridden explosion of pure frustration and rant. No sooner had he handed in the final draft than his script editor had contacted him to say due to unforeseeable circumstances, one of the actors in his episode would be unavailable for filming !

I suggested he lie down in a dark room for half an hour.

He, of course, spent the rest of the day rewriting, no doubt in a fug of adrenalin, coffee and Red Bull.

The other Academy writer friend, also working on Casualty, emailed me rather mournfully to say that the programme Final Draft was eating his scripts. A gremlin had got into the programme - every time he typed in a character’s name, the programme crashed. FRUSTRATING or what? He’d lost loads of script and the clock was ticking..

I work on a Mac. I love my Mac. I’m sure my Mac would never do this to me. However, I have booked in my Mac for an MOT next week - just to be on the safe side.

Working up draft one into draft two has been quite tough this week. It’s a bit like rearranging bricks in a wall in such a way that the wall doesn’t collapse as you do it and the finished wall is stronger. A lot of my episode takes place out of the Hospital and I needed to find ways to bring us back into the Hospital and the world of our Regulars that didn’t somehow seem contrived or arbitrary. The main character back at the ED (emergency department) had to ‘Bigged Up’ a little, his story made stronger and clearer - a sturdy through line that would anchor the audience to the department when we were there. I worked hard on my ED scenes and tried to trim my location scenes. After a few days, loads of blutacked index cards and the cut and paste function on my Mac going into overdrive - I thought I’d cracked it.

I did a page count - I had managed to increase the script by 6 pages - It needed trimming by 8 or 10! Now I’d have to trim it by 16 or so.

I can get obsessed with formatting and script length. I think it’s because it’s something tangible and easy to explain - the ‘dramatic purpose of your protagonist’ being less so.

After another day I’d whittled away 7 pages and the notes from my medics came in - (now you know how we slip in those ‘Nurse, I want FBC’s U’s and E’s..’ lines - the medics tell us). Unfortunately one of my guest characters would be in a rather a bad way after all I’ve had done to him, and probably wouldn’t be able to utter his last (and important) line. Hmm. I look at this, tweak, and hope for a little dramatic licence.

In the midst of writing my draft 2, I had a shed load of Holby storylines to revisit and a Holby planning meeting to attend. I had been waiting for my Holby storyline document to drop into my in tray for weeks. Who would I be writing for? What exciting things would be going on in my episode? Would it be a real ‘ethical medical humdinger’ or one of those slightly dull ‘all about hospital policy’ episodes that take place in board rooms with men in suits?

For those of you unfamiliar with writing for Continuing Drama - the storylines of the Regular characters are mapped out over the season. My job as an episode writer is to fully realise the Regular’s storylines by introducing two or 3 guest stories that will interplay with the ‘serial’.

My Holby story doc arrived. I made a cup of coffee. I sat at the computer. I painted my nails. I came back to the computer. I opened the doc…

So .. I’m writing for so and so am I? Interesting…

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Yesterday morning I went to TV Centre to pitch my series idea to a commissioner. I’d planned to use the two-hour train journey from Manchester to prepare witty and intriguing things to say in the meeting, but then I bought a newspaper, tried to do the crossword and was fast asleep by Stoke. So I turned up for the meeting with newsprint on my forehead and nothing to say beyond “Hello,” and “Rainy, isn’t it?”

Luckily the producer I’ve been developing the idea with was considerably better prepared and came out with a string of reasons why our show could be funny, unusual, yet still relevant to a mainstream audience. I chipped in a couple of times, we discussed some of the commissioner’s concerns about the tone of the programme, and by the end of the meeting we had a script commission.

Brilliant. It feels like a great achievement, and I have to remind myself that despite all the weeks of meetings, research and drafting pitch documents, I still haven’t written a single word of the script. Only when that’s done will we really know whether the idea is any good or not.

High on adrenaline, I got back on the train to Manchester, opened my writing pad and was asleep by Watford.

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The train journey to Bristol was blissfully uneventful, I spent half of it listening to the two women opposite me, they had an almost symbiotic way of talking over each other, so in tune were they with each other’s thoughts and feelings - it was great fun to (stealthily) observe. I love public transport - I cannot, will not, drive a car - I much prefer to be out in the world. Also, I worry I would abandon any car I drove at the slightest opportunity - I do not like stress and tight spaces.

When I realised that being a writer on Academy 06 would mean 3 months classroom work at Elstree Studios, I was curiously thrilled. Elstree Studios - it conjured up low Deco buildings the colour of vanilla ice cream, stars walking from lot to lot, amusing pieces of scenery being transported around on little golf buggies - scenes from any MGM musical of the 30’s and 40’s you care to name.

Ha! What a surprise! Our Academy classroom work took place in a retro tower block reminiscent of a derelict school somewhere in Merseyside (Kirkby actually). There are still some lovely bits of architecture to be found around and about Elstree if you look, but alas no Deco leather couches and chrome light fittings.

Then there’s the Casualty Warehouse, if I thought Elstree lacked glamour…

The Casualty Warehouse in Bristol is constructed along the lines of a Russian Doll - it’s a big functional Warehouse full of smaller units and in these smaller units sit the editors and producers. The Casualty ‘Set’ is in there too, and the communal gathering/eating area when people with various appalling injuries sit and drink tea. The Cafeteria is in the car park - a glorified burger van, if it rains you have to dash back with your sausage and mash floating about in rain water.

Appearances are deceptive. It’s a fab place - a hive of creativity and the food is lovely. Honest.

I was in my editor’s portacabin, stacked above somebody else’s portacabin inside the Warehouse for my 1st draft script meeting. My producer was there as was the Series Editor. Everybody made lovely noises about my script and the tension that had kept me rigid and tense for past few days dissolved into the metal floor. It was going to be ok. No major re-writes, no starting from scratch.

That hurdle over - the discussion turned to what problems the script did present. Writing for a Continuing Drama has it’s own particular difficulties (the clue is in the title). My ep has to continue where the previous ep left off - and I don’t know what’s in the previous ep when I start writing mine - because the previous ep hasn’t been finished yet. So as writers, we’re all slightly trying to second guess each other.

Now I have a copy the ep before mine and I realise that the tone of my opening scenes will have to be tweaked, my regular character’s through line is going to have to be honed in a certain direction and my ending isn’t playing right - yet. This all makes perfect sense and isn’t problematic, it’s the nature of the beast. I scribble a few notes.

My guest stories get a little muddled in the middle - a common problem - I need clarity. Academy Boss was for ever telling me to keep my stories simple, I can overcomplicate things to the point of stasis. The point being - although I know what’s going on and understand fully everybody’s motives and sub textual actions, the viewer may not - unless it’s clear and simple. Lastly, the script was too long by 10 pages or so, which is not a huge problem at this stage and scheduling were concerned that it was ‘Location Heavy’ meaning that any cuts I make would best be made in the location scenes. All this discussion around my script was peppered with friendly comments about how nice the writing was and how the regular ‘voices’ were working well. It all felt very positive.

Back on the train to London and I have the episode prior to mine to read, but I’m too tired to look at it so spend the journey watching a businessman proofreading some company documents whilst talking ‘golf’ on his handsfree mobile. More coffee and Ella Fitzgerald on my ipod.

(I have since read the episode before mine - only in its second draft - and it will be a hard episode to follow, both tonally and because the writing is cracking!)

With all the notes made at the script meeting typed up and digested I can go forward with confidence into my draft 2. I have constructed another scene by scene breakdown on a huge sheet of A2 with coloured pens for each story strand - I’ve been able to shift some scenes about and cut others. I can see this happening across the wall to my left, my regular characters are still smiling down at me from their promotional postcards - we’re on track gang!

Next week I can sit with my notebook and pen to write some new scenes - I prefer to do this long hand initially, because I find composing on screen very awkward and a little sterile. The only spanner in the works I foresee, is when the notes from the Medics come in. Lest I forget, Casualty is a medical drama and my first draft is also being scrutinised by a team of working ED doctors and paramedics who know their stuff. If they say that my poorly guest character can’t have his major setback in Act 4 as written because it’s medically impossible - then I’m stuffed!

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In my last post I mentioned Project X, an idea I’d submitted to a BBC executive in the hope that she’d commission a script. Well, her verdict is in, and it’s…

…wait for it…

…lukewarm. It’s a maybe. She’s not sure. She needs to be convinced.

So the next stage is for me and the producer I’ve been working with to go into the exec’s office and pitch the show. We need to sell the idea, explain how it’ll work and show what a broad appeal it could have.

Problem is, I’ve tried pitching before and I’m rubbish at it. I get scared. I’m like one of those people on Dragons’ Den who get two sentences in, forget their words, stand quietly for a bit and then cry. And that probably won’t get us our script commission.

But we’ll have a go anyway. I’ll try to make Project X sound like a sure-fire winner while being refreshingly different from any show that has gone before. I’ll try to make it sound like a mixture of all the best and most successful shows of the last few years – a sort of Shameless meets The IT Crowd crossed with Lazytown with its own slant that makes it completely different to any of them. I’ll be dynamic and enthusiastic. And I’ll be talking through my hat the entire time. (That is, unless the executive in question is reading this, in which case it really is a guaranteed sure-fire hit, honest).

I’ll let you know what happens…

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The Writing Centre in the South West of England recently conducted an interview with the BBC's Creative Director of New Writing (and my boss) Kate Rowland.

In it, she speaks about The Wire (experimental radio drama), why Radio 4 needs new writers, and the purpose of BBC writersroom.

Interview here.

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The UK Film Council has completely revamped applying for funding.

Of particular interest to writers is the First Feature Development Programme, which offers up to £25,000 to develop a feature film.

It's open to any writer who hasn't had a feature produced and screened in a cinema or on television. Here's a link to their page of Frequently Asked Questions if you want to know more.

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