Is This the Beginning of a Beautiful Partnership?Complications Ensue
Complications Ensue:
The Crafty Screenwriting, TV and Game Writing Blog




Archives

April 2004

May 2004

June 2004

July 2004

August 2004

September 2004

October 2004

November 2004

December 2004

January 2005

February 2005

March 2005

April 2005

May 2005

June 2005

July 2005

August 2005

September 2005

October 2005

November 2005

December 2005

January 2006

February 2006

March 2006

April 2006

May 2006

June 2006

July 2006

August 2006

September 2006

October 2006

November 2006

December 2006

January 2007

February 2007

March 2007

April 2007

May 2007

June 2007

July 2007

August 2007

September 2007

October 2007

November 2007

December 2007

January 2008

February 2008

March 2008

April 2008

May 2008

June 2008

July 2008

August 2008

September 2008

October 2008

November 2008

December 2008

January 2009

February 2009

March 2009

April 2009

May 2009

June 2009

July 2009

August 2009

September 2009

October 2009

November 2009

December 2009

January 2010

February 2010

March 2010

April 2010

May 2010

June 2010

July 2010

August 2010

September 2010

October 2010

November 2010

December 2010

January 2011

February 2011

March 2011

April 2011

May 2011

June 2011

July 2011

August 2011

September 2011

October 2011

November 2011

December 2011

January 2012

February 2012

March 2012

April 2012

May 2012

June 2012

July 2012

August 2012

September 2012

October 2012

November 2012

December 2012

January 2013

February 2013

March 2013

April 2013

May 2013

June 2013

July 2013

August 2013

September 2013

October 2013

November 2013

December 2013

January 2014

February 2014

March 2014

April 2014

May 2014

June 2014

July 2014

August 2014

September 2014

October 2014

November 2014

December 2014

January 2015

February 2015

March 2015

April 2015

May 2015

June 2015

August 2015

September 2015

October 2015

November 2015

December 2015

January 2016

February 2016

March 2016

April 2016

May 2016

June 2016

July 2016

August 2016

September 2016

October 2016

November 2016

December 2016

January 2017

February 2017

March 2017

May 2017

June 2017

July 2017

August 2017

September 2017

October 2017

November 2017

December 2017

January 2018

March 2018

April 2018

June 2018

July 2018

October 2018

November 2018

December 2018

January 2019

February 2019

November 2019

February 2020

March 2020

April 2020

May 2020

August 2020

September 2020

October 2020

December 2020

January 2021

February 2021

March 2021

May 2021

June 2021

November 2021

December 2021

January 2022

February 2022

August 2022

September 2022

November 2022

February 2023

March 2023

April 2023

May 2023

July 2023

September 2023

November 2023

January 2024

February 2024

 

Friday, January 23, 2009

Q. I wrote a script with a writer I know. Now an agent is interested in repping us. But I really hadn't planned to make this a partnership. He has a very different sensibility than I do. What should I do?
This is why you don't co-write a spec script unless you're open to being partners with someone. No one will hire you based on a co-write, unless they can hire you both to co-write.

However, "different sensibilities" = good. If you had the same sensibility, there'd be no point to being partners. Lisa and I have partnered on a bunch of things. She's good at having lots of ideas, teen girl characters, and goofy comedy. I have not so many ideas, but I'm good at structuring a TV show out of an idea. She thinks like a girl. I think like a boy. I'm a genre fan. She's not. We work well together.

Granted, we're married. But we wouldn't be writing together if the writing partnership didn't work out.

The big drawback to a writing partnership (unless you're already married) is you get half the pay. For everything. Even staff salaries.

The other big drawback is that you're stuck with another person in your writing life. Great when you click, lousy when you don't. And sometimes you won't.

The key question is: are your writing partner and you a significantly better writer than you are alone? If the partnership is even 25% better than just you, you might get 200% of the work and pay. How much better were Lennon and McCartney together? Since you wrote a script with the other guy that an agent wants to read, it sounds like the partnership is a much better writer than you are solo, at this point in your craft.

The second key question: is the other partner sane? If you're in a partnership with a crazy person, it is something like being married to a crazy person, without the makeup sex.

(I would say "do try not to hook up with your writing partner," but aside from being futile advice, I'm not sure it's even good advice. Lots of husbands and wives write together.)

A third question: do you two motivate each other to work harder than you would work on your own?

If you're just starting out, bear in mind, you can always get a divorce later. At that point you'll have to write some solo specs to prove you can write -- but that's what you'd be doing now, minus the script that got you the interest. So no loss there. In the mean time, you can learn a lot from working closely with someone who thinks differently than you. You might learn how they think; you might just learn that you can't duplicate how you think and therefore need them. And you can rack up credits for your resume.

Now, if you hadn't already written a good script together, then I'd say you're taking a pretty big gamble. If the partnership doesn't work out, you have to throw away all those spec scripts. It may take a few tries to find a person with whom you have creative magic. I've partnered on writing with many people, but I can think of only two where we really complemented each other, and one of those was awful on a personal level.

So make sure the other writer is at least as good as you are, and that you genuinely like being around that person. Make sure their work ethic is at least as good as yours. And spend a few days talking through the story before you write anything down, to see if your minds mesh in useful ways. You might be spending the next couple of decades together.

In big decisions like this, always pay attention to your gut reactions. You know things about people that you don't know you know.

(For more about writing partnerships, check out my books!)

UPDATE:
Are you really bound to your writing partner for life? I noticed that Bill Oakley is no longer co-running "Sit Down Shut Up" with Josh Weinstein, even though they've written so long together.
You can always get a divorce. But if you've been working with a writing partner, breaking up is akin to getting a divorce. The longer you were together the worse it will be. Your sample scripts are now semi-worthless and you'll have to write new solo ones. You'll have to retrain yourself how to write well without a partner. And whoever is doing better a year later is going to feel guilty about the other partner who is now losing their house. They may feel abandoned if not betrayed. And if the partnership was good, you'll miss the other guy, and you'll want to run a scene by him, and you know you can't because that would only reopen old wounds. Bill and Josh may not be talking any more.

Or, hey, they might get together again. You never know.

Labels:

2 Comments:

Are you really bound to your writing partner for life? I noticed that Bill Oakley is no longer co-running "Sit Down Shut Up" with Josh Weinstein, even though they've written so long together.

By Blogger Morley, at 6:34 PM  

The one thing I'd add is that everyone writes specs at the beginning. If you don't want to write with this partner, go write some stuff on your own. If your partner didn't exist, that's what you'd be doing anyway. And if this agent likes your partnered stuff, there's a fair chance he'll like your solo stuff too, right?

By Blogger Amanda, at 6:55 PM  

Post a Comment

Back to Complications Ensue main blog page.



This page is powered by Blogger.