HOW TO SELL YOUR TV SHOW IDEA
I get emails all the time. How do I get an agent? How do I break in? How do I outline my screenplay?
The one I get most is — I have an idea for a TV show… how do I get this TV on the air?
Short answer — you don’t.
Even more than film, TV is hard for outsiders to break into. Mostly, it’s because buying a TV show ‘format’ (the word that describes a show as opposed to a story or single episode) is as much about hiring a creator as it is about buying an idea. In film, there’s a long history of buying ideas and then having the writer fired and new writers brought in. It happens. A lot.
It happens in TV but not as often.
Instead, the creators tend to stick around, work in the writer’s room, sometimes run shows…and usually collect checks every episode.
Creating a series guarantees money over the long term. The people who run shows(called showrunners!) want that money! And they deserve it. It’s one of the hardest jobs in the biz. And if they’re going to give up years of their life— they don’t want to work on your idea! They’re writers! They have plenty of their own ideas.
They also work with talented writers who have ideas and are climbing the ladder to be showrunners and creators — people with experience and ready to take the next step. These people sometimes sell TV shows too.
Oh, and by the way, even these people have a hard time selling TV shows. It’s not easy even for dedicated professionals with track records.
Look, I can barely name a show that born from the idea of a true outsider. The ones that I can think of — are people who made Youtube series or popular audio dramas or some other form of IP or proof of concept that got notice. Honestly, that might be the better move — go make an audio drama or comic book or something. Not that that isn’t easy. But it’s satisfying. There’s closure. You might find an audience and realize the TV dream isn’t even the dream at all.
So why write TV then? I wrote a book about writing for TV(SAVE THE CAT! Writes for TV — go buy it), did I do just for the hobbyists?
There is actually a path to selling your show. It goes like this…
- Write an amazing TV Pilot.
- Use it to make contacts… people who will champion your work — probably an agent or manager or someone who works in TV.
- Use these contacts and your great writing sample to get a job in TV.
- Kick ass in that job! Make friends! Make a reputation.
And now…you can sell that TV pilot.
It’s a lot to ask. A LOT. It’ll take years. It’ll be fraught with ups and downs and horrible dark nights of the soul. But it’s the path.
Good luck!
