Bøger af William Rabkin

When I finished Writing the Pilot a few years back, I figured I'd managed to cram everything I had to say on the subject in that little 90-page package. But that was 2011, and in the years that have passed, a lot has changed about the television business.And when I say "a lot," I mean everything. The way series are bought. The way series are conceived. The way stories are told. The way series are consumed. The kinds of stories that can be told. The limitations on content at every level. The limitations on form at every level. And maybe most important of all: The restriction on who is allowed to sell a series.What's far more confusing about the future is that there are as many changes in the business models for "broadcasters" out there, and no one knows which ones will prevail. And the changes in the delivery model are actually affecting the way our viewers watch our shows - and that in turn is affecting the shows that are being bought and produced. It turns out that we approach a series differently if we're going to binge an entire season in three days instead of taking it week by week. And while you might leap to the conclusion that this only applies to shows produced for Netflix, that's actually not true - the market for syndicated reruns on independent and cable channels is mostly dead, and the afterlife for almost every drama currently produced will be on a streaming service. So in those cases you are writing for two completely different audiences.And this is only the beginning of the forces that are changing the ways stories are told on television these days. Who could have guessed, for example, that a change in the way networks count their viewers would result in a huge acceleration in the pace of storytelling? Or that an overabundance of outlets would lead to a complete liberalization of the kinds of stories that would be allowed to serve as foundation for a series?TV drama storytelling has been changing constantly since the turn of the millennium, but the pace of that change seems to accelerate with every passing television season - except that there really isn't any such thing as a television season anymore. Series are getting bigger and faster - and also slower and smaller. A hit show from even five years ago can look hopelessly dated in this new world. And the only thing that's certain is that everything is going to keep changing. Well - almost everything. Because the one constant in this new television world is the need for great writing. Strong concepts, rich characters, intriguing plots. And more even than great writing: a voice. There's a desperate hunger out there for a fresh, original vision, something that can cut through the clutter of all those hundreds of other shows out there.But in order for that voice to be yours, you've got to understand how TV writing has changed - and what it may be changing to. That's why I've written this book. I believe that almost all of what I said in Writing the Pilot still applies, but right now it feels there's a lot to talk about that wasn't even a fantasy back in 2011. This book is about addressing the changes that have overtaken the TV business - and more importantly, have overtaken TV storytelling. I'm going to be talking about all the changes I listed above, and how they may - how they must - affect your pilot.In many ways, this is the greatest time in the history of our art form to be a TV writer. There are no limits to the stories you can tell or the ways you can tell them. But beneath what appears to be a market in chaos, there are still rules that guide our storytelling - and you can't get into the game before you master them.

THE UNTOLD STORY...Aimee & David Thurlo's Ella Clah, a Navajo Police special investigator, is one of the most enduring and popular characters in detective fiction today. Ella's dedicated fans have long dreamed of the bestselling, critically acclaimed series coming to television...and it almost happened. In 2001, CBS commissioned a pilot script, a sample episode of a proposed series, from writer/producers Lee Goldberg & William Rabkin. Sadly, the Ella Clah pilot ultimately wasn't produced, and ever since, the script has been hotly sought-after by fans. Here, at long last, is that rare pilot script, along with the original sales treatment, six episode ideas, a foreword by the Thurlos, and a detailed account from Goldberg & Rabkin about how they approached their adaptation and what their plans were for the TV series. It's an exciting, must-read story for Ella Clah fans and aspiring TV screenwriters alike and a fascinating peek behind-the-scenes of network television."One of the genre's most believable and empathetic protagonists," Booklist "A tough, appealing heroine who faces personal conflict between professional duty and pride in her heritage," Publishers Weekly

Trained to be a detective by his father, blessed with astounding powers of observation and deduction, and cursed with a refusal to take anything seriously, Shawn Spencer has convinced everyone he's psychic. Now, with his best friend, Gus, he's either going to clean up…or be found out. It's Psych's coolest case ever-the founder of a computer game company has disappeared, and the only way to find him is to search for clues inside the game. But before Shawn can get to level two, he is shocked to discover his partner, Gus, has decided he doesn't want to be a detective anymore and has taken a grown-up job in the real world. Is this the end of Psych? Or is it the end of Gus? Because when a fellow executive at Benson Pharmaceuticals turns up dead, he realizes there's some bad business going on behind closed doors. Now Gus needs Shawn more than ever to solve this puzzle-before he's forced to take an early, and permanent, retirement.

Based on the hit USA NETWORK television series A tie-in readers will be totally "psyched" about... Shawn Spencer has convinced everyone he's psychic. Now, he has to either clean up or be found out.After the PSYCH detective agency gets some top-notch publicity, Shawn's high-school nemesis, Dallas Steele, hires him to help choose his investments. Naturally, their predictions turn out to be total busts. And the deceptive Dallas is thrilled that he has completely discredited and humiliated Shawn once and for all, until he's found murdered. But the police have a suspec found at the scene with a smoking gun. And she says Shawn took control of her mind and forced her to do it. After all, he is a psychic?