How NOT to Write a Sitcom
100 mistakes to avoid if you ever want to get produced
Published on 31. May 2011
Book
Paperback/Softback
272 pages
978-1-4081-3085-8 (ISBN)
Description
The craft of sitcom is possibly the hardest of all screenwriting genres, demanding a complex set of skills.
How NOT to Write a Sitcom is a troubleshooting guide aimed at both the novice and the practising sitcom writer. It illustrates and explains the many pitfalls in concept, characterisation, plotting and dramatic/comedic writing,which pepper the hundreds of scripts submitted every year. Each point is illustrated with an example of the error and each section contains practical suggestions and exercises for the writer to apply to their own writing. The book makes no assumption of the reader other than an interest in the form. It contains interviews with current producers as well as interviews with successful practioners of the craft.
Marc Blake is a script consultant, writer and teacher of writing for sitcom. In this book he acts as a `script mechanic' for writers - stripping a sitcom down to its component parts, isolating the faults and fixing them. What script editors and producers are looking for are scripts that work. Naturally they want a genius in embryo, but above all they first want to see something that is roadworthy.
How NOT to Write a Sitcom is a troubleshooting guide aimed at both the novice and the practising sitcom writer. It illustrates and explains the many pitfalls in concept, characterisation, plotting and dramatic/comedic writing,which pepper the hundreds of scripts submitted every year. Each point is illustrated with an example of the error and each section contains practical suggestions and exercises for the writer to apply to their own writing. The book makes no assumption of the reader other than an interest in the form. It contains interviews with current producers as well as interviews with successful practioners of the craft.
Marc Blake is a script consultant, writer and teacher of writing for sitcom. In this book he acts as a `script mechanic' for writers - stripping a sitcom down to its component parts, isolating the faults and fixing them. What script editors and producers are looking for are scripts that work. Naturally they want a genius in embryo, but above all they first want to see something that is roadworthy.
Reviews / Votes
"shows examples of pitfulls in concept, characterisation and plotting so you can create your own slice of sitcom gold." * DVD & Blu-Ray Review (June 2011) *More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 136 mm
Thickness: 22 mm
Weight
259 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4081-3085-8 (9781408130858)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
09/2011
1st Edition
A & C Black Academic and Professional
€26.49
Available for download
Person
Marc Blake is a script consultant, writer and teacher of writing for sitcom. At City University he taught Sitcom and Comedy writing for fifteen years with graduates including Katherine Tate and the co-creators of 'Genius' (BBC2) and 'The Thick of It' (BBC1). He has sold three sitcoms to ITV and the BBC and his TV two-part Drama 'The Swap' (ITV) was broadcast in 2002 to great acclaim and nine million viewers.