Write to TV

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.

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 DRAMA, 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 ONTHE 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, Chapter 33 OTHER THINGS THAT CAN HELP YOU SUCCEED, Chapter 34 WELCOME TO THE ROOM!, Chapter 35 SOME FINAL THOUGHTS Index