Tweetstorm: On Becoming a TV Writer

A series of tweets on how to break into the business as a TV writer.

Gennifer Hutchison is a writer whose TV credits include ‘Breaking Bad’, ‘The Strain’, and currently ‘Better Call Saul’. In April 2016, she posted a tweetstorm giving advice on how to become a TV writer. Reprinted here by permission.

Some go to film school, some work their way up through the assistant ranks, some break in through fellowships, some win script contests…

some make web series , some make shorts that win festivals, some find managers who want to invest in them, some sell a spec…

Luck doesn’t work if you aren’t ready for it. My luck was I forged a working relationship with a talented writer who created a great show

… and who trusted me enough to write an episode. I had to prove I was worthy of that trust. The luck was that he was open to it.

There’s no easy way (and even overnight successes are usually years in the making).

So, practical steps: Move to LA. Most writers’ offices are here. Some are in NY. You gotta be where the jobs are.

Find work as a PA on a show. Soak up everything you can about how shows work. Be very good at your actual job (be the best gofer ever).

This is how people decide if you can be trusted with more responsibility.

DO NOT fall into the trap of thinking that being a good PA means people won’t think you’re a good writer. This is a fallacy.

Also, no one is too good for PA work. PAs make the show go. They are an integral, vital part of the team.

Being a PA or an assistant is hard. You may burn out. Do your best to maintain perspective and decompress in your off hours.

You may feel hopeless. Don’t let this make you bad at your job and close off doors to advance. I nearly fell into that trap.

You have to build a relationship before someone will give you your shot You gotta earn it. Really, REALLY earn it.

And no, your script being “so amazing” is not earning it. Your hard work, enthusiasm, and dedication are.

Above all, write. Read a lot of great scripts. Apply your knowledge. Edit your own scripts mercilessly. Write some more. Then…

Join a writing group. Learn how to give and receive notes. Find your voice — why you’re important in the writers’ room.

Lots of great advice here. As always, having and developing your talent as a writer is key, but in TV especially, who you are as a person can be equally important. Writing a TV series requires people working with each other for extended periods of time for long hours under enormous pressure. You can’t fake being a quality person in those conditions. So part of your work should be to grow as a human being and learn how to work with other creatives.

Follow Gennifer on Twitter: @GennHutchison.

For all of the Screenwriting Tweetstorms, go here.