Top Ten Tips When Writing for the Entertainment Medium

If you happened to have read Content Creation & Ownership: Keys to the Entertainment Kingdom, you now know the following: The reasons why entertainment companies are consolidating and buying up what they can, and the importance of content creation and ownership.

With the COVID pandemic in the mix, these companies have consolidated even further and switched to streaming platforms to make up for losses in closed movie theaters and other venues. The irony is that the playing field has somewhat leveled between all the players. The size of the company is no longer much of a concern as to how interesting and popular your content is.

So the question to all you creatives out there is this. How does this impact you? Well, if you love to write, know how to tell compelling stories with interesting characters, and have knowledge of genre’s and what is acceptable, you are well on your way to writing for the entertainment medium. Bear in mind, you can write and sell to a third party or if you are technically savvy, you can also write and produce for yourself.

How many times have you watched a movie / TV show, read a book or comic, and predicted the outcome way before the end? Was that piece of entertainment satisfying and well written? Was it just a poor rehash of the same old thing? Do you think you could have done a better job? Could you have come up with a better story, with more interesting and engaging characters and situations? If you answered yes to the last three questions, you have the motivation to proceed.

Below is a list of top ten tips when writing for the entertainment medium. I preface this list with the following statements. Writing is an art that takes practice and dedication. The more writing you do, the better you become, and the easier it gets. Put in the time and you will see the rewards.

1. Know your niche/genre.
   What genre are you writing for? Is there a subgenre that might appeal more to you? What are the story conventions/rules for this subject matter? If you don’t know you are doomed to fail

2. Read/watch good work and analyze it.
   Who are the top people creating in that genre? What techniques do they employ? Can you incorporate these techniques with your story?

3. Write every chance you get.
   Take what you learn and practice, practice, practice! Keep what is working and edit or rework what is not. A quick tip: if an incident in your story is not providing either critical information, action, or motivational backstory, take it out. Storytelling is always about forward motion.

4. Know how to conceptualize visually.
   Storytelling not only has the literary component but has a visual component as well. It doesn’t hurt to learn a little about visual composition and camera angles. Some writers see the story visually in their heads; in terms of shots like a screenplay. If that is the case, the conversion of your story to a visual medium will be made much easier if you write with that intent. Tell the story by actions of the character.

5. Get feedback (especially from your target audience).
   Once you have a section done get feedback from people into that genre. Post a sneak peek and see what happens. Ask for comments and suggestions. If the feedback is mostly good, you are golden. If not, and you trust the source, revamp, or fix what is wrong.

6. Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone.
   We all tend to default to what we think we know as a safety factor. However, you never know what might trigger your next big idea. Expose yourself to things outside your comfort zone and you will build interesting pathways to new ideas and points of view.

7. Try genre bashing.
   One thing smart creators can do is this. If a genre seems worn and dated, selectively incorporate a second genre and see what happens. An example would be Game of Thrones. We have all read and seen stories similar to Lord of the Rings, where powerful, corrupt, and evil factions set out to overrun humanity and dragons persist. But, what if we were to take the zombie apocalypse and throw it into the mix? Boom. White Walkers! Sound familiar, Game of Thrones fans?

8. Discover the secrets to overcome writer’s block.
   Tips #6 and 7 are a good start. Have you heard of the Tagline, What if or Can, and the One to Two Sentence Scenario. More on this here.

9. Don’t try to reinvent the wheel just improve upon it.
   Take what you know, and what works and do it better. Add your spin or a personal touch to it.

10. Do background research on the top people to see what they went through.
    Not can you also learn by analyzing what the best in the field do, but it is also a good idea to see what they went through to become the best. By reading interviews or background info on these top people, there might be life lessons you can incorporate into your life journey that will improve the learning curve to your success.

I hope you find these tips helpful. Please respond to this post if you have some tips that we have missed or had feedback you would like to share.

Want more? Please check out these articles: 
The Secrets to Overcoming Writer's Block
Overcoming Writer's Block Part II
Character types Will Make Or Break Your Story
Types of Story and Why it Matters
The Importance of Plot and Subplot

Stay tuned for more to come.

Enjoy.