Tom posted a new blog entry:

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...iendID=31817970

Thursday, June 05, 2008

The Game of Waiting...

Current mood: relieved

Oh, so THIS is what my friends in Hollywood are always talking about.

The good news? The initial pitch is over, and we made it through to the next level!!

Now it's just matter of waiting for notes on the characters and treatment. Which usually involves waiting. And more waiting. Did I mention there's waiting involved? Waiting and sudden last-minute "Oh-we-should-have-done-this" moments. In the soap opera world, you get notes within a few days of turning your episode in. No longer than a week. It makes for some stressful weekends. But this will be a lot longer than just a weekend. This is weeks. Long, LONG weeks.

Writing for a soap, (if you do it well), means you have to live up to the legacy that's been created by writers long before you, crossing decades. Creating a show from scratch, that pressure isn't there. You have the ability to explore, to let the characters grow and evolve and come into their own. When we first started brainstorming this idea, it quickly became apparent that we were not going to write it. It was going to write itself. Everything started to take on a life of its own, and all I can do now is have faith that we'll pass through to the next level, and the one after that. And then, of course, there's writing, and casting, and staffing and more notes meetings, and shooting... wait, hold on. I think my heart just stopped beating.

But I feel great about it. I do. When you hear words like "clever" and "original" in regards to something you've created, it's hard not to. So in case I haven't said 'thank you' enough, THANK YOU!!!!! Whatever vibes you all sent my way, you did good! We did good! And I'll definitely keep everybody posted. This is all brand-new territory for me. Even if this whole thing falls apart, just going on this journey and experiencing all of this for the first time, makes it all well worth it!

And the waiting begins...

Tom is absolutely amazing.....such a great mind and talent.

Tom is absolutely amazing.....such a great mind and talent.

To show how ridiculous I am...I'm sitting here desperate for an update on how his pitch session went :-).

And I don't even know the guy...

But my positive energy was definitely sent in his direction.

Congratulations on the successful first pitch, Tom! Knew you could do it! Keep us updated!

This is so OMG Jumping Up and Down Great News!!

Add being able to see some *much deserved* good karma shine on Tom and it's totally perfect!!

Fingers crossed, Mr. Casiello. Please keep us posted. We are curious as hell.

Tom's latest blog is awesome! I love seeing breakdowns and scripts but I've never seen thrust notes before. Way cool!!

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...logID=405192621

Hmmm, very interesting... I'd like to try something like that one day... but probably never will.

Great post!

I wish he'd used an example from a soap that I watch LOL. Then I'd be able to compare the visual with the script.

Tom should give credit to the script writer; his blog reprints a whole passage from someone else's script. Who wrote the dialog?

Good call, Raven! Apparently, you're not the only one who caught that slip-up, lol...

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...logID=405322407

That whole blog earlier today, and as somebody pointed out on SON (And she's so right, THANK YOU FOR REMINDING ME, RavenWhitney!!!!), I didn't credit the script writer!

It's the lovely and talented Renee Godelia who wrote those Sami/EJ scenes! I adore her! We only got to work together the last three months before the strike, but when I flew out there in February, I finally got to meet her in person, and had lunch with her, and I'd work with her anywhere. Just a good egg, and loves that show.

SORRY, RENEE!!!

And my apologies to those of you who pointed this out - sorry. It was an honest mistake.

Edited June 13, 200817 yr by Khan

Tom has an intriguing entry today in which he says, in part:

We are paid... in some cases, obscene amounts of money... to, as you guys would put it... "drink the Kool-Aid". We get an assignment, and we are given the plot points required of us, and at first glance? We might not like them. In fact, we might downright disagree with them. But our job (be it breakdown or script) is not to argue with our head writers. Our job is to make it work. Sometimes? The writer will dig into history, find a way to make it sound a little feasible. Other times? We can't find a way and just have to throw it out there with no foundation. Which is unfortunate for you guys. But sometimes it happens.

In the cases where we can't find a logical, character-driven motivation for the point we need to get across... you immediately stop referring to us as "TPTB" and change it to "TIIC"

He concludes by saying

Having been out of work for almost a year, I can see who is drinking the Kool-Aid and who isn't. But I am in no place to judge. Because I've been paid... in some cases, a LOT of money... to drink the same Kool-Aid. I'm sorry for all the people watching who pay attention to detail... but it's part of the job.

And you have my sincerest apologies... and my most sincere gratitude... because sometimes? No matter if we're part of the "talented" sect of soap writers, or the "hack" sect of soap writers?... we're not given any other options.

So damn us... save the empire...

I don't have a myspace acct, so I can't comment...but what is MISSING from his blog is this:

WHAT IS THE SOLUTION??? Even if it IS the fault of the HW/BDW....what is the solution to "de-hack" them? I'd really like Tom's opinion.... And everyone else's....

He's still at this? Wow, he really doesn't want to work again, does he?

I don't have a myspace acct, so I can't comment...but what is MISSING from his blog is this:

WHAT IS THE SOLUTION??? Even if it IS the fault of the HW/BDW....what is the solution to "de-hack" them? I'd really like Tom's opinion.... And everyone else's....

I don't agree. I don't think there's anything missing from Tommy C's blog today. I haven't replied to it yet. It's one I have to think about. Primarily, what it makes me go to immediately is that he's not saying anything new or anything that's not long been known by fans when it comes to the Writing staff & although he doesn't say this, it's not new in many cases in terms of what choices the HW has, either. This is not Doug Marland's world & even at that, he had to go through GH & GL before he landed at ATWT & was able to have everything in the right place & time to be able to be a visionary HW.

And, there is no one canonical solution. That's also not new & not known.

Tom has an intriguing entry today in which he says, in part:

He concludes by saying

I don't have a myspace acct, so I can't comment...but what is MISSING from his blog is this:

WHAT IS THE SOLUTION??? Even if it IS the fault of the HW/BDW....what is the solution to "de-hack" them? I'd really like Tom's opinion.... And everyone else's....

I get what he's saying, and I'm one of the ones who thinks killing off Bryant Montgomery was one of Hogan's worst decisions ever. The episodes surrounding his death though, were some of the best work under Hogan. It was really the long-term execution that failed, and made Bryant's death seem meaningless. That's on Hogan.

The logic behind a character's motivation should be part of the overall story, not left for the scriptwriter to invent on a daily basis. I think that would "de-hackify" stories a lot.

Edited August 28, 200817 yr by P.J.