Weaving Storylines: A/B/C Stories (PT53)

NEW: Get the episode cheat sheet on our Patreon! Update: PT53 transcript now available Alex and Nick discuss the importance of weaving A, B and C stories in TV writing, and interesting ways of doing it in TV scripts. Why is it important to cut between storylines in TV? When should you start and end each storyline? Which storylines should you spend more time on in your TV script? When should you only do a single A story? What are some noteworthy and unique formats for A/B/C plotlines? Plus, we talk about where to read TV scripts. The Paper Team become master-weavers... SHOWNOTES Content Paper Scraps (FKA Odds-and-ends): Finding TV scripts (00:55) 1 - Why does TV have A/B/C stories? (03:51) 2 - Nuts and bolts of using A/B/C stories (10:27) 3 - Interesting and non-traditional uses of weaving A/B/C stories in TV (18:22) Takeaways and Resources (32:22) Links Writers Guild Foundation Library TV Calling Script Library Zen134237 Lee Thomson Script Library Simply Scripts Daily Script IMSDb "What are A, B, and C stories in screenwriting?" - TV Calling Team America Montage (Video) "Marge vs. the Monorail" (4x12 - The Simpsons) "Ozymandias" (5x14 - Breaking Bad) "That's My Dog" (4x05 - Six Feet Under) "Eleven Angry Men and One Dick" (3x07 - 3rd Rock from the Sun) Boomtown Graham Yost 24 (TV Series) "Kim vs. the Cougar: The Oral History of 24’s Most Infamous Scene" - Vulture "My Bad" (1x06 - Scrubs) Awake (TV Series) Kyle Killen "How Lost revolutionized storytelling" - TV Calling "Walkabout" (1x04 - Lost) "The Constant" (4x05 - Lost) Watchmen Slaughterhouse-Five This Is Us Oz (TV Series) Carnivàle "Bowling" (2x20 - Malcom in the Middle) Sliding Doors "Remedial Chaos Theory" (3x04 - Community) "Split" (3x01 - Coupling) "A Rickle in Time" (2x01 - Rick & Morty) Resources "Elephant Bucks" - Sheldon Bull "Cracking the Sitcom Code" - The Atlantic "Television Writing from the Inside Out" - Larry Brody Plot Threads (TV Tropes) Plot Parallel (TV Tropes) Two Lines, No Waiting (TV Tropes) Four Lines, All Waiting (TV Tropes) This episode brought to you by Tracking Board's Launch Pad Writing Competitions Use code PAPERTEAM to get $15 OFF when you enter a Launch Pad Competition Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode. If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :) You can find Paper Team on Twitter: Alex - @TVCalling Nick - @_njwatson If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]