Is Your Idea Perfect? Or Beautifully Messy?

Perfect? Or Beautifully Messy?

A script is not a pomegranate.

Last week I peeled a pomegranate. Its a fiddly job, time consuming, the white skin clinging stubbornly to the red seeds. You have to pull the whole thing apart, put the seeds in a colander, wash, separate, and repeat until you arrive at a perfectly clean, appealing handful. I could have gone to Sainsbury's and bought them ready-prepared. It would have been quicker, possibly cheaper, but much less satisfying.

If the seeds weren't beautifully presented my fussy kids (and their friends) wouldn't have touched them. Nobody wants to sit down to food that looks half-prepared, like the host couldn't be bothered.

And so it is with a producer when a script lands on their pile.

First impressions count. A script that is perfectly presented (correct pagination, font, font size, no spelling mistakes, characters named in BOLD CAPS) tells me how much the writer cares about their work, and they are subtly demanding I give it the same care when I read it.

But beyond presentation what I'm looking for in a new or emerging writer is an interesting mess or a script that is beautifully messy: clever or witty dialogue; characters who don't behave nicely or do as they ought; characters who challenge my preconceptions of how their roles in life should define them. Mums who enjoy sex. Daughters who fancy their best mate's dad.

I recently watched This Life again from start to finish and revelled in Anna's messiness. She's supposed to work hard, play nicely and acquire a boyfriend. Instead she sleeps with a work colleague, then Egg's dad, considers shagging a female colleague in pursuit of a work contact, and wears her skirts a bit too short. She's bold, challenging, and audiences lapped her up week after week. She was definitely not a pomegranate.

A script doesn't have to be perfect. Just make sure its beautifully presented, and that the mess inside it is beautiful too.

If you'd like to hear more about how to write successful TV, learn about the mechanics of the UK drama industry, consider the craft of writing, how to pitch, and how to spin your ideas into stories, join me for the weekend, 'Writing Successful TV Drama' on October 17th and 18th, at the iconic Ealing Studios.

https://writingtv.co.uk/