Quote: zooo @ March 18 2011, 1:15 PM GMT
Congratulations on winning the internet!
I just want to know one thing...
Did you go on one of those "Help! I'm Writing a Thread Post" workshops before you submitted your post?
The Sitcom Mission 2011 Page 93
No, she's related to Declan
Quote: Declan @ March 18 2011, 2:02 PM GMTHi Michael
We're looking to get them out within the next three weeks, as soon as we've got enough to record together.
Due to logistics, Help! gigs are only going to be in London from now on. We're happy to do Introduction to Sitcom Writing workshops around the country if you can get enough punters together.
Is there a deadline for sending in scripts or is this an ongoing thing?
Sorry to hear you didn't make it to the top of the 100th page, Declan (word spreads fast in the forum writing community). Perhaps you should consider having more acheivable ambitions.
I'm going to try to make it to the top of Page 101...
Damn.
We'll be doing the script reading service on an ongoing basis, as long as there's a demand for it.
I've finished my sulk about not making the long list and am ready to learn how to get it right! Will definitely be signing up for some sort of feedback. Sitcom Mission rejection counselling has been most therapeutic, can't say the same for the Beeb ...
Hooray! I'm top of 101!
Doesn't sound like you're taking failure too well Declan. But its good to know that you have set yourself at least a short term goal. Which needs to be rethought. 102 instead?
Re-reads blog about rejection.
Writes new blog about chasing one's own tail.
Woohoo! I've just had a new idea today, so I'm giving myself a year to work on it, instead of 3.4 seconds before the deadline, and hopefully I'll do better. Rejection's got me reflectin', which must be a good thing, right?
I have put both parts of my script up in order to get a response and I would be grateful if anyone would take the time to have a look and pass any comments on the content, the grammar is apparently on a par with a kidnap letter, but I would love to read what you think about the actual content, I can handle brutal
Quote: Teddy Paddalack @ March 18 2011, 8:01 PM GMTI have put both parts of my script up in order to get a response and I would be grateful if anyone would take the time to have a look and pass any comments on the content, the grammar is apparently on a par with a kidnap letter, but I would love to read what you think about the actual content, I can handle brutal
I'll have a look in....
Where is your second half, Teddy? I can't find it but I have had a bottle of wine 
Hi there judges, potential winners and fellow non-longlisted optimists and pessimists
I have only opened my mouth on here a couple of times before but I've read all 101 pages so I'm "in" on all the in jokes and have particularly enjoyed the recent bout of competitive forum posting and Sean Knight's hilarious Adventures of Simon and Declan (I think that's what it's called - can't see a title on the final episode).
Like many of the other 1,210(?) Sitcom Mission "losers" I still believe my characters have big strong legs and I intend to pursue them further. I have therefore set myself the challenge of writing the other two planned 15 minute episodes which would have been required had I been longlisted, to prove to myself that my "sit" has lots more scope for "com" and with a view to submitting them elsewhere and/or trying again here next year.
I have two serious questions which I would like to throw in, to see if anyone has any comments:
1) I have been thinking about the whole pilot episode versus mid series issue and I genuinely feel that my characters and situation are self explanatory enough that they don't need a lot of preliminary exposition. They don't move in together or set up in business together, their relationship just "is" and the impression is that it long has been and long will be. Bearing in mind my understanding that the fundamental difference between sitcom and drama (apart from the density of laughs)is that the characters and situation never change and always end up back at square one, I feel that my planned episodes could theoretically be presented in any order and the one I have already written and submitted could be the pilot or episode 6 (or any other random number). My question is, do any other writers feel the same about theirs? And do people think this is "a good thing" or am I missing something important? Obviously there needs to be an inciting incident at the start of each episode but does there also need to be a big one that starts the ball rolling at the very beginning? Or if you have characters and a situation that are self explanatory, such that the viewer/listener/judge can come in at any point and immediately know what's going on, might that be an advantage? (Well, OK that's a whole bunch of related questions)
2) My second question is about titles. I noticed that one or two sore losers started carping on about some of the longlisted titles being familiar and suggesting that some of the chosen scripts had been aired before, in response to which at least one writer explained that it was the same sitcom but a different episode. I intend to submit my "rejected" script and my yet to be written scripts elsewhere and/or stage them myself and while I want to keep the overall title, which I really like, I wonder if it's a good idea to also have episode titles as tag lines and to include these even when offering/presenting a single episode in isolation. Does anyone have any views on this? I know it's a bit previous when I've only written one 15 minute episode thus far but I like to think ahead!
Thanks
Julia Bolden
Quote: seascribe venus @ March 19 2011, 8:40 AM GMTI have two serious questions which I would like to throw in, to see if anyone has any comments:
Am I missing something important?No that is a traditional approach. However LOTS of sitcoms have set up introductory episodes which set up the SIT - FRIENDS, FRASER, DADS ARMY, PORRIDGE, HOW NOT TO LIVE YOUR LIFE, BIRDS OF A FEATHER, GOODNIGHT SWEETHEART some don't MIRANDA, LAB RATS etc
Some sitcoms come back to the status quo at the end of the ep and some don't - May To December has a running arc for example as DOes The WOrst Week of My LIfe.
If there is no throughline acr running then it's probable you can get more eps wrung from the concept I guess.I noticed that one or two sore losers started carping on
Nice. Welcome aboard. 
As far as we're concerned, we're happy to see a pilot episode as your initial entry, but we ask for two more episodes from the long listed writers for a number of reasons, in no particular order:
1) we want to see that they're committed to their craft
2) we want to see that they're not a one-trick pony
3) anyone can write episode one, can they sustain this?
4) industry don't want to see episode one, for the above reasons, so we won't be showcasing episode one
From what I can remember, Only Fools and Horses didn't have an over-riding inciting incident in episode one, in the way that Friends or Cheers did.
As for titles, I think you should be flexible on this, and it's not something to worry about.
While I'm here, we'll be doing our script recording service on April 16, so if you want a CD recording, let us know before that date.
Cheers, Declan
Quote: Declan @ March 19 2011, 9:21 AM GMTWhile I'm here, we'll be doing our script recording service on April 16, so if you want a CD recording, let us know before that date.
Oo, my birthday. Possible omen there.
1) I have been thinking about the whole pilot episode versus mid series issue and I genuinely feel that my characters and situation are self explanatory enough that they don't need a lot of preliminary exposition. They don't move in together or set up in business together, their relationship just "is"
I think this is an important point. So many writers used at least 5 minutes to set up the situation as if we needed to understand absolutely everything before we were able to laugh. There were no laughs for pages. This is death.
The opposite is true.
As a reader I would rather be puzzled and laughing, than fully understand everybody's backstory and relationships and remain stony-faced.
You really need to explain less than you think.
And you need to make us laugh as soon as possible. Why not take a highlighter to your script and mark where you think the laughs are? No laughs on page one? Uh, oh.