TV Writing 101
Other education that may be of interest to you:
How To Write A Query Letter That Gets You Past The Gatekeepers
A New Exclusive Webinar! Learn how to write a query letter that makes people take notice of you and your script so that you can make connections, get repped, and launch your career! Plus! You'll see examples of successful query letters and will receive a handout of the format and formula that you can use for your future queries. Your script is ready. You have a killer logline and an impressive bio. So, why isn’t anyone responding to your query letter? The truth is managers and agents are inundated with daily emails from hopeful writers looking to get their scripts into the right hands. These are “cold queries,” where writers reach out to industry professionals or "gatekeepers," hoping the executive will want to read their script or even meet. Most of the time, these queries are dismissed or ignored, and sometimes can harm your ability to build a relationship with an executive. However, a select few will cut through the clutter and gain attention. So how do you break through? In this exclusive Stage 32 webinar, you’ll learn what managers are looking for from your query letter, how to find the people to contact, and how to ultimately grab their attention so you can move your career forward. Showing you exactly what representatives want to see in your query letter is Audrey Knox of The Cartel, a full-service management and production company. Audrey has built a successful roster of screenwriting clients who have written for shows including SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, GINNY & GEORGIA, P-VALLEY, and THE GOLDBERGS, and are writing projects for Netflix, Nickelodeon, Apple TV+, and more. She recently found her client, Heidi Lux, through Stage 32 and produced Heidi’s feature film CRUSHED, which premiered on Tubi this year. Audrey will also show you examples of successful query letters and will provide you with the best format and formula in a handout to keep and use in your future query letters. Don’t miss out on your chance to learn exactly what literary managers are looking for from one of the best in the business!
Stage 32 Screenwriting Class: How to Better Approach and Sign With a Literary Manager to Advance Your Screenwriting Career - With a Query and Writing Sample Workshop
All writers think they have the next great screenplay or series. And maybe you do! But to get the proper feedback, get the script into market shape, and have a confidant on the business side of your pursuits to get your work out there, having a great manager who's plugged in can make all the difference. It’s your manager who often is the key to getting in front of execs, getting staffed on a TV show, and building your career to writing full-time. But as most writers can attest, finding a manager can be HARD. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible, though. It’s more in your power than you may think. Most managers will tell you that most newer writers make the same mistakes when looking for a manager that can prevent them from ultimately finding representation. The good news is that these mistakes are easily avoidable and can be replaced with effective strategies and actions that can greatly help your chances. It’s time to hear from a successful literary manager herself on how she finds clients and what you can do to find the representation you need for your own career. Audrey Knox is a TV literary manager at The Cartel, a premiere management company with clients on shows including the Emmy-nominated IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA, Golden Globe winning CALIFORNICATION, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, BONES, LUCIFER, HAPPY!, BLACK LIGHTNING, STAR TREK: DISCOVERY, and more. For years, Audrey has been helping clients get their work in front of execs and networks and most recently staffed one of her clients on the new series THE UPSHAWS for Netflix. As an established and successful literary manager, Audrey has seen more than her fair share of queries and writing samples and has met her fair share of hungry writers. She knows very well what mistakes most writers make and how the writers she ends up working with find success. And now she’s going to lay it all out for the Stage 32 community. In a special and exclusive 2-part class, Audrey will give you the tools you need and the strategies you’ve been lacking to put your best foot forward and better your chances of getting a great literary manager for your own screenwriting or TV writing career. In the first session, Audrey will walk you through how to approach managers the right way and explain the proper approach to query letters, writing samples, bios, and loglines. She even dissects brave volunteers’ own query letters and writing samples. After laying out this approach, Audrey will leave you to put these skills to use and actually reach out to managers on your own! The second session will discuss how the new approach worked and then dive into next steps you can take as a writer once you have an interested manager, including signing, how to be a good client that your manager will want to keep on board, and the other members of your team you may or may not need, like agents and lawyers. If you’ve been struggling to find representation, there are likely things you can be doing differently to better your chances. here’s no one better than Audrey to help you adjust your approach and ultimately get the representation you’re looking for.
Write Now Webcast - Describe Tools, Mechanisms, Machinerly or Complex Ideas
While the scene will be heavy with exposition, disguise the exposition in dialogue and conflict as much as possible. How does the character make the complex simple? What props does the person use? How does the character who receives the info react?
12/12/18 Tiegen Kosiak, Producer & Former Development Executive for Zoe Saldana
Producer Tiegen Kosiak joins our Panel as we listen and read your pitches live to help educate the Writers' Room screenwriters on what is and isn't working in their pitch.
First Impressions: How to Create Memorable Character Intros - Includes Case Studies
You only get one chance to make a first impression… And the same goes for your characters in your scripts. A compelling character introduction can hook a reader instantly so they climb aboard for the rest of your story. So many people talk about how a screenplay needs to grab a reader within the first five pages – let's dive in to how you grab them and keep them turning pages. Includes real world examples from PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, WHIPLASH, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and BREAKING BAD. If we don’t care about the characters, we won’t be invested in the story. Far too often, we’re so eager to get into our script’s plot, that we don’t give our characters the attention they need. Ultimately, a character doesn’t have to be likeable, or even relatable, but they do need to be captivating. If you’ve ever received a note like, “I don’t like your protagonist,” or “I’m not sure what the character wants,” or “the characters felt one-dimensional,” or “the story took a while to get going,” then this is the webinar for you. Steve Desmond is a screenwriter who works across a variety of genres. His sci-fi adventure screenplay, HARRY'S ALL NIGHT HAMBURGERS, was sold to Warner Bros in a bidding war and now has an Oscar nominated producer attached. FilmNation (ARRIVAL, THE KINGS SPEECH) hired him to adapt the Stoker-award-winning horror novel THE CABIN AT THE END OF THE WORLD. His short film, MONSTERS, which he wrote and directed, has amassed over one million views online and screened in over 100 film festivals worldwide, winning 45 awards including being a winning film in the Stage 32 4th Annual Short Film Contest. Steve will focus on different methods to introduce your protagonist, antagonist, and supporting characters in your projects. By using both real life examples and case studies in film and TV, he’ll help you tailor your thinking to “character first, plot second.” Whether your characters are larger than life heroes, cruel villains, or average Joe’s and Jane’s, he’ll give you tips to help them leap off the page from the first time that we meet them. Steve will not only dive into your main characters, but supporting characters including your villains. He will also go deeper into how to create suspense, setting up opposites for your characters, and establishing contrasting needs. Finally, Steve will illustrate everything he's gone over with real world examples from films and shows such as PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, WHIPLASH, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and BREAKING BAD. Praise for Steve's Stage 32 Webinar "This was fantastic. Steve offered so much insight, dozens of little nuggets that rang true or gave me pause to think of something I'd never considered before."-Ed K."Perfectly laid out, clear and concise material taught by a genial host!"-George P."Steve was fantastic. His examples and insights were on point. Thanks!"-Adam H."I made 3 pages of notes; good pertinent topics with simple fundamental answers presented. Very helpful, worth the time and fee."-Thomas W.
Get Considered! Evaluate Your Script So You Can Get Signed & Sold
So, you’re a writer with a great script. You want to get signed! You want to get it sold! Heck, you just want it to be read! This is where you learn what the studios/producers/agents look for in a script, so you can address those points before anyone even takes a look. You will be miles ahead of the screenwriting pack by knowing IN ADVANCE how they evaluate a script. Or you’re a writer/producer. The #1 job of any producer is knowing how to identify material, and how to make that material BETTER. This is where you will learn how to break that script down, and build it back up. Or you’re a director. It is your duty to look at a piece of material (yours or someone else’s) and know how to improve all aspects of it – from story to character to conflict. Or, you’re an actor reading a screenplay. You like the part, but something’s missing. The story needs work. You want to shine, and it’s up to YOU to give notes on that character and that story. But you don’t know how to express to the director/producer what you innately feel. This is where you will learn how to analyze the script, and communicate what you think to make your role pop. This workshop is for anyone looking to break into the industry, or anyone already deep into it who wants a better grasp of story. Story is king in entertainment – now and always – and knowing what makes a good story and how to improve upon one, is vital.
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