Tips for Coming Up With An Idea for Your TV Spec Episode
So you’ve chosen what TV series you’re going to spec and done the intense binge-watching (ahem, I mean, research) required to get to know that show front-to-back and side-to-side. You’ve read some of the actual scripts for the show, analyzed the episodic structure, and know the characters like they’re your real-life best friends. Now you must face the toughest challenge — coming up with an original idea for your TV spec episode.
While you’re brainstorming brilliant ideas, keep these tips in mind.
The Three No-Nos
Let’s get one — okay, three — things clear to start.
No births. No deaths. No marriages.
When it comes to specs, you don’t want to alter the makeup of the show. You can’t just kill-off a main character, introduce someone brand new, or marry two characters off. Birth, death, and marriage are the kinds of big life events you want to stay away from in spec scripts.
Of course, there are certain instances when a birth or death would occur naturally within the world of a show.
If you’re speccing Grey’s Anatomy, for example, it’s wholly possible that someone would come into the hospital and end up dying in the operating room. Or a patient might discover they have a medical complication with their pregnancy that causes one of the doctors to re-evaluate something in their personal life.
But you’re not going to kill-off Meredith Grey or suddenly announce that Miranda Bailey is pregnant. There are just some things — well, three things — you don’t do with specs.
Make a Nice Sandwich
It’s true, you can write a spec script of the first episode of your show’s next season. But it’s a risk you must be willing to take.
The name of the game in specs is longevity — you want your spec script to have as long a shelf life as possible. If you write a spec of the first episode of season three of Bridgerton, and then season three premieres and the actual writers of the show have gone in a completely different direction, your spec is essentially useless.
Instead, try to find a way to sandwich your spec script in between two existing episodes of the show.
This has become increasingly difficult as shows have gotten more and more serialized. It’s much harder to find a place within the latest season of Only Murders in the Building to situate a spec episode than it is for Abbott Elementary.
So, you have to look for gaps.
As you’re rewatching your show, try to find any gaps — either between episodes or within storylines — where you might be able to sandwich in a spec. Keep an eye out for time jumps and pay attention to where the elapsed time in between episodes is a bit vague.
What happens between episodes three and four? Find out in your spec: episode 3.5!
Be Normal, But Stand Out
I’m sorry if I’m the first person to break this to you, but your spec episode isn’t going to get made. You could write the best spec of The Sex Lives of College Girls imaginable, but Mindy Kaling isn’t going to buy it and produce it for the upcoming season.
The good news is… that means you have incredible freedom when it comes to what your spec episode can be about.
With specs, you want to stick to the series’ established structure and format, utilizing the major characters and locations to demonstrate that you’re capable of writing someone else’s show. BUT! You don’t have the budgetary restrictions or time constraints that must be taken into consideration when it comes to filming actual episodes of the show.
Say you think it would be hilarious for the vampires of What We Do in the Shadows to visit the Statue of Liberty and then get stuck there when the sun comes up. The producers of the show might tell you that Liberty Island as a location poses too many production limitations and difficulties, but you don’t have to worry about that because you’re just writing a spec! Your spec isn’t going to be made… so go for it!
Above all, you want your spec script to be memorable. So, write a “normal” episode of the show when it comes to structure, format, and tone, but take big swings in terms of story so that you stand out.
Shine the Character Spotlight
Specs are a great opportunity to shine a spotlight on unusual pairings of characters. Every show has its typical pairs… but what about characters who don’t often interact?
Take Ted Lasso. Wouldn’t it be fun if Coach Beard and Rebecca had a storyline together? Or what about Coach Beard and Keeley? Coach Beard and Roy? Basically, put anyone with Coach Beard and you’ve got a winning spec.
In all seriousness though, look for characters who aren’t often paired up and center your spec on that new and unique dynamic.
Or bring one of the minor or recurring characters to the forefront. Keeping with our Ted Lasso example… maybe there’s a spec to be written about Mae, the barkeep at the Crown & Anchor. Or Roy’s niece Phoebe, or Will, the new kitman in season two.
The point is, shows are populated with tons of characters, all of whom have stories you can tell in your spec.
Build on the Afterthoughts and Throwaway Details
When I’m planning to write a spec, I purposefully go overboard on the note taking while I rewatch the show. As I do this, I make sure to keep a running list of little details.
Anything can go on this list — a piece of character backstory that isn’t fully explained, a throwaway anecdote that was probably only included because it provided a good punchline, details that seem like afterthoughts but could become much more. I even add questions that I have about the characters or plotlines.
Then, when I’m trying to figure out what my spec episode could be about, I look to this list for inspiration. Without fail, I’m always able to find a kernel of something to center my spec around.
When I was writing a spec to sandwich into the second season of Ted Lasso, during my rewatch I noticed that, in the wake of Earl the Greyhound’s untimely demise in episode one, Rebecca mentioned that the club made a hefty donation to a local dog shelter called “Barkingham Palace.”
Ding! Inspiration. I centered my whole spec episode around the team visiting Barkingham Palace to volunteer with the shelter dogs.
Using these small details that are already part of the show to build up into a full episode not only proves that you know the series well, but it helps make your spec feel like part of the show’s world.
Put Yourself on the Page
Yes, writing a spec means that you’re writing someone else’s show. But that doesn’t mean you can’t infuse your script with your own unique perspective and voice.
Maybe there was a teacher who had a big impact on you in middle school and that relationship is something you can turn into a storyline for Abbott Elementary. Or a friend told you a mortifying story of a hook-up gone very wrong that could become the basis for an episode of Sex Education. Or maybe a lesson you learned after years of therapy could become a theme for a spec of Shrinking.
Don’t be afraid to mine your own life for story ideas. The more you can put yourself on the page, the better.
Originally published by ScreenCraft on July 6, 2023
None of the photos in this post are my own.