Scotland Writes - Launch Event

Yesterday I went along to the launch event for Scotland Writes, a new initiative from BBC Scotland intended to change the way BBC Scotland engage with new talent, find and develop new writers, and celebrate writing in Scotland.

The first event for Scotland Writes will be the Scotland Writes Competition, which is open to all new writers. The competition will be to write a 60 minute pilot episode for a series that the writer would like to see on TV and which also reflects Modern Scotland. There's £2000 on offer for the winner and there will be workshops for 20 finalists. There's no URL with full details yet but I'll post it when it comes. I know the competition is due to launch this month and close in October, so it won't hurt to get thinking about an idea now!

As well as the Scotland Writes competition, there will be Writersroom Roadshows (Sept), BBC Scotland Open Days (Oct, Feb and May), the Radio Lab (Sept & Oct), and a Writersroom Residential. The Residential sounds interesting - 8 writers who have stood out over the year will be invited to a week long residential course on writing for television. There are also going to be writing masterclasses on a range of different mediums, but I'm not sure of the dates of these as yet. Keep an eye on the Writersroom for details.

After a brief chat about the schemes, there was a panel event hosted by Kate Rowland, Creative Director of New Writing at the BBC. On the panel were Annie Griffin, Ann McManus and Gregory Burke. It was mainly a discussion of how they got into writing, and any advice they would offer to writers. Here are some of the highlights:

On the differences between film and TV:
AG: it is much more accepted in America now that the 'talent' is writing TV, where here TV often feels ignored, and more kudos and money is given to film, which can have a much smaller audience.
KR: the TV audience is quite sophisticated .
AG: in TV there can be an acceleration of storytelling. You don't need to see everything a character does. (She cited ER - a doctor spotting someone who needed treatment before an ad break, then afterwards coming right to the person chatting in hospital, treated and well. You should know the characters well enough to know what they would do and to fill the gaps sometimes.)

On what makes a script stand out:
AM: I immediately look for character voices: that is that each character has an individual voice. Heart is important in a script, but it comes back to strong dialogue and bold characters.
GB: a script that establishes the world quickly and helps you get into it. The writers voice must be genuine and understand what it is talking about.
AG: again, unique character voices. In something like Dawson's Creek every character spoke the same, in literary references. Women are also always underwritten, even by other women. They are often relegated to the girlfriend or wife role. We don't see enough women working in their jobs or fully engaging with their careers in TV. (She recommended watching the September Issue, a documentary, as the female subjects are very strong.)

On what they would like to see on TV:
GB: just more. We have lots of actors, but we need more scripts for them to work with (in Scotland).
AG: the talent base in Scotland is extraordinary, but there are lots of actors and not enough scripts because writers here tend to focus on features and shorts. TV commissioners are crying out for drama ideas.
KR: in a few years 50% of all BBC content has to be made outside London, and must have authenticity, so regional drama is going to become important.

On writing for TV:
AM: authenticity is great but you must put yourself in the commissioners shoes when writing. Trust that they know what they are talking about when they want a particular thing.
KR: the priority for the BBC is long running series, balanced with serials and one-offs. There are at least 16 drama singles produced by the BBC each year. (She then mentioned Occupation doing very well.)
AM: avoid writing for a particular demographic. Write for yourself first. People jump on the bandwagon and write dramas similar to those they have already seen on television - avoid this.
AG: if you feel strongly about something, people are looking for that passion.
AM: if you have a voice and a passion for your idea, keep bugging them (execs).
AG: if you spend a month writing a script, say to yourself: if something thinks it is rubbish will I argue for it or give up? You need to stick by it, or someone else will fill that slot.
AM: BBC Scotland really do embrace new talent. Use these schemes, they are great.

My favourite quote came from Gregory (or rather, from Gregory's agent to Gregory, then to us):
TV is all about the long game.

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From the day I took away this: if you have an idea, work at it, submit it to schemes, and use opportunities like this to promote it and yourself. Don't give up on it.

My problem just now is that I have no ideas suitable to a drama series. Must get the thinking cap on.

Guardian Short Story Competition

Just saw this on the Guardian website and thought it might be of interest:

"we're inviting readers to submit their stories to our annual summer fiction issue. We've asked authors William Boyd and Julie Myerson to judge your submissions, and they will be looking for the most original, gripping and well-crafted pieces of writing. Their favourite story will be published in the [Guardian's Weekend] magazine; the five runners-up will have their stories published on guardian.co.uk/books.

All you need to do is send us a story of no more than 2,000 words by 10 July. It can be on any theme, but it must be previously unpublished and we can only accept one story per entrant."

See the Guardian Books website for the full terms and conditions.

I wrote a short story whilst travelling a couple of weeks ago which I might just polish up and send in. Anyone else going in for this?

Edinburgh Book Festival 2009 - Programme Launch

The 2009 Edinburgh International Book Festival programme launched today.

An interesting collection of authors and illustrators are going to be there: Will Self, Richard Dawkins, Tracy Chevalier, Margaret Atwood, Kate Atkinson, Nicholson Baker, Terry Deary, Irvine Welsh, Neil Gaiman, Alexander McCall Smith, Ian Rankin, Douglas Coupland, Cornelia Funke to name a few.

Looks like even more writing events than normal (though I could be wrong) with some topical discussions on writing in the recession, making your living as a writer, and the usual talks on structure, publishing, short stories, graphic novels et al. Much as I love all the author talks, it's these workshops and discussions I tend to favour, so it's good to see that there are so many.

Tickets go on sale at 8.30am on Monday 22 June.

Wonder if I will embarrass myself in front of anyone this year?

All you need is love...

...and a bit of funding, to make a film.*

If you haven't seen their blogs already, then I would like to point you in the direction of a couple of worthy souls who you will be able to help out in the funding capacity.

Lucy at Bang2write is raising funds for a seven minute horror/comedy short called Slash. "Slash follows the fates of mismatched couple Tom and Kimberley and their disastrous weekend camping trip in the woods." In return for your donation (any amount), Lucy will send you a helpful 19 page PDF called "Secrets of Script Reading" - written by her good self. Check out her blog for more details and a link to the payment page.

You can also assist Mr Danny Stack in his Twitter short film fund, and help him to raise £1,000 to complete his latest short. You can choose a different amount to donate: you can donate enough to be credited as 'thanks,' 'associate producer,' or even as an executive producer, or you can donate a few quid to help the fund. Either way you get his great booklet 'Get Your Movie Made' which lists the contact details & personnel of the leading UK film companies.

So there you go. I look forward to seeing the final results of both films, and I have my lovely guides printed out and ready to pour over. Go the independent producers, says I.


*Alright, so you need more than just these two things, but they certainly help.

Holiday, Celebrate

Hello there! I'm a little under the weather at the moment, so thought I'd post a few snaps from a recent mini-break.
I love the seaside. One day I will have a house overlooking a nice beach... Perhaps.




I am also a big fan of strolling around the countryside to find sites of archaeological interest.


And, of course, I do like to walk on the sand.

Normal service will resume next week!