The one phrase that will get you FIRED from a TV writing staff
Advice from a TV writer/showrunner
It’s every aspiring screenwriter’s dream to make it onto the staff of a television show. Even if they ultimately want to write features, TV writing is the perfect place to cut your teeth. It’s where you learn how to write.
If the show is successful, they’ll almost certainly bring on one or two staff writers per season. (Technically, every writer is a staff writer, but in this context, “staff writer” refers to the lowest rank. Sometimes they’re called “baby writers.”)
Because the learning curve is so steep, the turnover rate for this position is extremely high. Given how hard it is to break into the industry, it’s always heartbreaking to see someone get fired. But these young writers often bring it upon themselves, just by uttering this simple phrase:
