I’ll be teaching the "Beginning Writing for the One-Hour Drama" course at UCLA Extension this summer (taking the baton from my friend Matt Witten). Here’s the info on the course:
Modeled directly on how writers write in the real world of one-hour
dramas, this course focuses on what is most central to creating a
strong script as well as the largest piece (40 percent) of the writer’s
deal with any show: the story and outline. The course goal is for you
to master the process of constructing an airtight story and detailed
outline so that you are ready to write a script for any current show as
quickly and expertly as possible. The steps you take include choosing
the best story for your spec script, mapping it out from beginning to
end, and writing a strong outline in proper script format. In the
process, you learn how to identify and capture the tone, characters,
dialogue, and themes of any one-hour drama series–the key to breaking
and staying in the field. This course also introduces students to the
various genres (police procedurals, medical, legal, etc.) and their
specific rules; what’s popular in the current marketplace; and how to
work within the special requirements of timeslots, outlet, and styles
(for example, single-character drama versus ensemble cast). All student projects must focus on current shows; no pilots.
The enrollment is limited to 20 students, so if you’re interested, act now while there are still some seats left.
Argh! I so need to move to L.A.
By the by, Lee, in case you’d like to return to the islands, but can’t get another grant from the library system:
http://www.outreach.hawaii.edu/pnm/programs/2006/EVENT-L08412.asp
Mark
Lee-
Have you ever considered doing this sort of thing as an online course? For those of us not living in L.A.?
William,
Bill Rabkin and I have been teaching an online course for a couple of years now at http://www.writersuniversity.com — in fact, Maestro was one of our students.
Despite having no interest in writing, I had to take a look. So, how did you like Edmonton?
William,
Continue to monitor the blog; Lee often posts a heads-up similar to the one above when he and Bill have an online class coming up.
In the meantime, if you haven’t already, pick up a copy of their Successful Television Writing book (linked in the sidebar) and do the exercises so that you have a working knowledge of concepts like franchise, four act structure, etc.
Then, when you take the class, use Lee and Bill’s guidance to hone a particular storyline for a particular show that you want to spec.
That approach worked well for me – Mark
Lee and Maestro-
Thanks for the info. I’ll keep an eye out for the next one.