The third Writers Room "showrunner" seminar got off the ground yesterday here in Lohr, Germany, taught by me and my friend Matt Witten. The way we teach together, it’s less of a lecture and more of a day-long discussion about various aspects of writing and producing episodic television shows. Lots of anecdotes and experiences are shared along the way between us and the students. It was fascinating for me to learn more about the differences between the German television industry and ours — and discovering common ground. Things that are second-nature to us — like the four-act structure — are new concepts to the writer/producers here and it’s exciting to see them embrace it with genuine enthusiasm. We’ve watched and analyzed both good and bad episodes of US television shows, some times stopping after every scene to discuss it. I am having a great time…but it’s also very exhausting to be "on" from breakfast clear through drinks in the bar late at night (in fact, it’s often during the those casual conversations outside of class where the real progress is made). And before crawling into bed, I try to make some progress on my other work. (Thank God they’ve got Diet Coke here!) It will be very interesting to compare and contrast this experience with the one I’m going to have in two weeks when Bill Rabkin and I teach the course in Sweden.
Yes, but have you noticed that Diet Coke in other countries tastes a bit different than in the US?
If they’re learning from you, they’ll learn how to it right, that’s for sure. Kudos on the latest Monk book, I gave it a swell review, but there seems to be some doubt as to if you are appearing at the mystery convention in Seattle, they say yes, your site says no. Can ya clear that up?
Oh yes, Diet Coke is different because they use a different mix of NutraSweet and add saccharin to it.