How to #5: Story

There are hundreds of resources available to become a better screenwriter or to tell a better story, but a few classic tips apply to writing for web series in particular:

Start with a gunshot

Maybe not literally – though that’s a good hook – but throw something in the first few seconds that will keep your flighty audience interested. As early as 2002, internet audiences are spending less than a minute on a website. Now, it’s mere seconds. Make them count.

Start the scene as late as possible

Once you have your audience’s attention, you need to keep it. The best way to do this is not to waste any time. Do not write your characters getting out of the car, entering the house, sitting down, opening the mail, discover their father passed away, and then calling a friend to talk about it. Just do the last step – audiences aren’t stupid. The rarely seen positive of hyperactive audiences is that the shorter attention span means they’re a bit better at keeping up than they used to.

Show, don’t tell

If you can ever cut the dialogue, do it. In the previous example, you may be able to get away with an opened letter, the phone off the hook, and a depressed looking protagonist. On a similar note:

Exposition is the most natural thing in the world…

Don’t force it.

Figure out where your going with this before you start filming

The best advice I’ve ever received as a filmmaker is to simply go out there and film. We let a lot of little things get in the way, things that will eventually drag you down into not accomplishing anything. However, if you’re serious about a web series, have a fairly good idea of where you’re going with it. Don’t waste episodes (and the audience’s time) by hashing out exposition for yourself.

My advice to have the first few episodes written, as well as the last few – of the season, the narrative arc, whatever. Think of it as plotting your route from A (your beginning) to B (your ending/major plot point). Then figure out what needs to happen in-between.

Then go out there and film.