Paper Team

Alex and Nick invite J. Holtham, writer on Marvel's Cloak & Dagger, to discuss breaking into the TV industry later in life, and writing on a comic-based series.

What is some important advice for people wanting to pursue TV writing later in life? How can breaking in older help in the writers' room? What is the process of writing for Marvel's Cloak & Dagger? What can writing plays teach you about screenwriting?

The Paper Team powers up...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Breaking in older, getting noticed, staffing on Pitch, being a playwright, the first staff writing job, working for Marvel, working on Cloak & Dagger, adapting existing IP, moving to LA, advice for people pursuing writing later in life (00:51)

Resources and Next Week On (44:21)

Links

J. Holtham on Twitter

Marvel's Cloak & Dagger on Freeform

Screencraft Fellowship

PAGE AwardsHumanitas Prize

Pitch

Ensemble Studio Theatre’s Youngblood

Doom Patrol

Resources

Amy Berg's Twitter thread about being staffed

This episode brought to you by Roadmap Writers

Use code ROADMAP to get $15 OFF your first Roadmap Writers Program

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick answer audience questions about television writing and the TV business.

Is there a benefit to writing beyond the pilot? Do dramas have an equivalent to comedy "punch-ups"? What does an outline look like? How do you sell a TV concept? Where can you find networking events that TV writers go to?

Plus, we look at two new Paper Tease entries.

The Paper Team raises their hand...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Tease Session (00:56)

1 - Questions about TV writing (11:22)

2 - Questions about the TV business (20:26)

3 - Questions and comments about the podcast (33:32)

Paper Tease Entries

"Figments" by Dustin Pinney

"Jackie & Marilyn" by Benjamin Morgan

Links

Pitch Doc One - TV Calling

TV Pitching 101: Who, What, and Why (PT13)

TV Pitch Documents (PT82)

Bringing the TV Writers’ Room Process Home (PT06)

From Outline to (First) Draft (PT28)

How to Meet People in LA (When You Don’t Know Anyone) (PT03)

Putting Yourself Out There (PT75)

This episode brought to you by Roadmap Writers

Use code ROADMAP to get $15 OFF your first Roadmap Writers Program

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick discuss everything you need to know about rewriting your TV script. Whether you’re working on a spec or in a writers' room, we look at reasons why you should rewrite and things to watch out for.

When should you rewrite? Why are notes a critical part of rewriting? What edits should you do on the page? What if your script still runs too long or too short?

Plus, we give feedback on four teasers in our inaugural Paper Tease session!

The Paper Team goes back to the page...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Tease Session (00:45)

1 - When to rewrite (29:47)

2 - How to rewrite (35:59)

3 - FAQs about rewriting (50:00)

Takeaways and Next Week On (56:24)

Paper Tease Entries

"Chattahoochee" by Clint Williams

"Christian Cross" by James Creviston

"Conquer" by Katie Brown

"Mythos" by Will McGhee

Links

From Outline to (First) Draft (PT28)

Feedback and Notes: Building Your Reading Onion (PT08)

Bringing the TV Writers’ Room Process Home (PT06)

TV Dialogue 101 (PT51)

This episode brought to you by Roadmap Writers

Use code ROADMAP to get $15 OFF your first Roadmap Writers Program

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick welcome Tom Ruegger, creator of iconic TV series Animaniacs, Tiny Toon Adventures, Pinky & the Brain, and Histeria!, to discuss the process of writing and producing animated television shows.

What is the process of generating and selling animated TV series? What makes for a great idea that can be succesful? What are the differences between storyboard-driven and script-driven shows? How was Animaniacs developed? How can you take established characters from franchises and give them a new take? How do you balance educational component and entertainment value?

The Paper Team gets wacky...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Getting started in animation, Working for Hanna-Barbera, differences between storyboard-driven and script-driven shows, coming up with ideas for TV shows, selling TV shows, animation versus live-action, developing Animaniacs and Pink & the Brain, using music, reinventing established characters, working on Batman, selling Histeria, and thoughts on the Animaniacs reboot (00:55)

Final Advice, Resources, and Next Week On (39:11)

Links

Tom Ruegger on Twitter

Tiny Toon Adventures

Animaniacs

Pinky & the Brain

Histeria!

Freakazoids!

The 7D

Hanna-Barbera

Filmation

A Pup Named Scooby-Doo

The Premiere of Platypus Duck (Video)

Sport Billy

Yogi Bear

Batman: The Animated Series

"Hooked on a Ceiling" (1x04 - Animaniacs)

"This Pun for Hire" (3x08 - Animaniacs)

Resources

RhymeZone

Urban Dictionary

This episode brought to you by Roadmap Writers

Use code ROADMAP to get $15 OFF your first Roadmap Writers Program

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick discuss how to use your characters' perspectives and points-of-view to drive your episode narrative. From unreliable narrators and voice-overs, to POV on the page, see the world through your characters' eyes.

What is a point-of-view in the context of a television story? How can you put your audience in the shoes of a character? What are interesting and unique ways of using POV as a narrative device? How can you translate a character's perspective to the page of a script? What are common problems with writing POVs?

Plus, a major announcement about the podcast.

The Paper Team looks ahead...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Scraps: Paper Tease Announcement (00:45)

1 - Defining Point-of-View and Perspective (03:07)

2 - Interesting TV examples of POV as a narrative device (05:57)

3 - Using point-of-view on the page and common problems (21:53)

Takeaways and Next Week On (32:51)

Links

Paper Tease - TV Script Teaser Competition

"Analyzing Great TV Scenes" (PT77)

Rashomon

"The Ugly Truth" (2x16 - Farscape)

"Critical Film Studies" (2x19 - Community)

Boomtown

Graham Yost

The Affair

Big Little Lies

Peep Show

"Nonlinear Storytelling" (PT70)

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick invite Bob Dearden, writer on the CW's iZombie, to discuss how he worked his way up from assisting Rob Thomas on the Veronica Mars movie to being staffed on a television show.

What is the journey of becoming a television writer? How do you work in US TV as a Canadian? What is it like working with Rob Thomas and cowriting for Play it Again Dick? How was the transition to iZombie from writers' assistant to staff writer? How does the writers' room break episodes and arcs?

The Paper Team picks a brain...

SHOWNOTES

Content

MFA programs, moving to the US, living in Austin, getting involved with Rob Thomas, experiences on Veronica Mars, experiences on Play it Again Dick, joining iZombie, being staffed, writing for iZombie, fandom (00:27)

Resources and Next Week On (57:07)

Links

Bob Dearden on Twitter

iZombie on The CW

Rob Thomas

Veronica Mars

Veronica Mars Movie

Play it Again, Dick

Party Down

Jason Dohring

Ryan Hansen

CW Seed

Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television

Search Party

Resources

"Adventures in the Screen Trade" - William Goldman

"Which Lie Did I Tell?" - William Goldman

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick discuss the importance of branding yourself as a TV writer and ways to define why you write what you write.

Why should you "brand yourself"? How are you able to drive the conversation about you? How to understand what you can bring to a writers' room? Why is it important to know your strengths and weaknesses in TV? How do you translate your personal story into your writing? What are ways of showcasing yourself online?

Plus, an announcement about an announcement.

The Paper Team makes its mark...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Scraps: Announcement of an announcement (00:31)

1 - Understanding who you are as a person (02:54)

2 - Understand who you are as a TV writer (11:24)

3 - Putting it all into application (21:49)

Takeaways and Resources (28:23)

Links

"Comedy v. Drama: Declare Your TV Major" (PT02)

"Putting Yourself Out There" (PT75)

Dunning–Kruger effect

$h*! My Dad Says

"Six Feet Under’s Alan Ball on grief and dying" - UTNE

The Goldbergs

Resources

"Building a StoryBrand" - Donald Miller

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick invite three fellows of the network TV writing programs to discuss their experiences applying, being selected, and participating in the curricula.

Guests include Andy Mathieson from the 2016 Disney/ABC Writing Program, Jenny Deiker Restivo from the 2018 FOX Writers Lab, and Thomas Reyes from the 2016 Warner Bros. Television Writers' Workshop.

What is the selection process of the TV writing programs? What are the interview rounds like? What are the fellowships' requirements? What can you learn in the writing programs? What are some common misconceptions about them? How do you get the most out of the experience?

The Paper Team applies themselves...

SHOWNOTES

Content

1 - Speccing, applying, and the TV writing programs' selection process (00:00:39)

2 - Being in the TV writing programs (00:28:46)

3 - After the TV writing programs (00:48:58)

Resources and Next Week On (01:06:20)

Links

Andy Mathieson on IMDb

Jenny Deiker Restivo on Twitter

Thomas Reyes on Twitter

"TV Writing Fellowships: The Big Six" - TV Calling

Disney/ABC TV Writing Program

FOX Writers Lab

Warner Bros. Television Writers' Workshop

Nickelodeon Writing Program

Altered Carbon

Hard Sun

Future Man

Victoria

The Carmichael Show

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Alex and Nick discuss how to be proactive in the way you write your TV pilot script, and how to keep the reader interested.

Why are loglines and titles so important? How can you connect your script to your personal story? How do you set things up in a pilot? What are ways of counteracting reader fatigue?

Plus, we take a look at the recent revelations about Amazon Prime Video's internal numbers.

The Paper Team turns the page...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Scraps: Amazon Prime Video viewership (00:37)

1 - Meta: Elements around your TV pilot (07:20)

2 - Script: Translating your TV pilot to the page (26:11)

Takeaways and Resources (45:49)

Links

"TV Pilot 101" (PT30)

"Amazon's internal numbers on Prime Video, revealed" - Reuters

"TV Characters 101" (PT46)

"Analyzing Great TV Characters" (PT72)

"TV World-Building 101" (PT44)

"Tone in TV Writing" (PT60)

"Act Breaks" (PT15)

"Teasers & Cold Opens" (PT61)

"Analyzing Great TV Pilots" (PT54)

"Weaving Storylines: A/B/C Stories" (PT53)

"Macro Storytelling: Writing Character and Story Arcs in TV" (PT68)

"Writing Themes and Values in TV" (PT36)

Resources

"The Pilot Script Checklist" - Splitsider

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

For the second Paper Team Live event, Alex and Nick head to WonderCon 2018 to host a panel on adapting IPs to television.

From books, to comics and movies, it seems that all your favorite TV shows are adaptations of existing properties. But writing a fresh story within well-known worlds poses its own set of challenges. That's why we've invited an all-star panel of TV writers and producers to hear their thoughts on this topic.

Panelists include Michael R. Perry (Altered Carbon, The Dead Zone), Ray Utarnachitt (DC's Legends of Tomorrow, Person of Interest), Kai Yu Wu (The Flash, Hannibal), Britta Lundin (Riverdale), and Colleen McAllister (My Little Pony, Littlest Pet Shop).

What is the process of adapting something to television? How can writers stay true to established material while putting their own spin on it? Why do certain properties make for great TV? How do writers and producers interact with original creators and rights owners?

The Paper Team returns live to room 209...

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Team WonderCon 2018 panel on adapting IPs for television (00:41)

Next Time On (48:13)

Links

Colleen McAllister on Twitter

Britta Lundin on Twitter

Ray Utarnachitt on Twitter

Kai Wu on Twitter

Michael R. Perry on Twitter

My Little Pony: Equestria Girls

Littlest Pet Shop

Hanazuki: Full of Treasures

Riverdale

"Ship It" - Britta Lundin

DC's Legends of Tomorrow

The Flash

Supergirl

Hannibal

Deception

Altered Carbon

Captain Cold

Justice League Action

Psych

Jughead Jones

Richard K. Morgan

Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa

Bryan Fuller

Greg Berlanti

Geoff Johns

Heat Wave

Felicity Smoak

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Marc Guggenheim

Laeta Kalogridis

"TV Writer vs. Fandom: Writers’ Rooms and Fan Interaction" (PT38)

Ms. Marvel

Five Deadly Venoms

Nancy Drew (Film)

Into the Badlands

Little House on the Prairie books

Weird War Tales

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for the audio recording and Lauren Conoscenti for the photo.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:

Alex - @TVCalling

Nick - @_njwatson

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]