Usman Mullan is a Development Producer at 大象传媒 Writersroom who works across our UK-wide programmes such as Drama Room, Voices and the Writers Access Group. Through his work, he reads many spec scripts as well as supports writers in the development of new ones. Here, he shares advice.
What is a Spec Script?
I think it's worth saying that 鈥榮pec鈥� is short for speculative, which basically means writing something that you've not been asked to write and usually you're not being paid to write. So it's quite simply an idea that you decide to write yourself.
Essentially a spec script is something which best represents to a reader who you are as a writer. It's a calling card that showcases your talent, your ability and your voice. We talk about 鈥榁oice鈥� a lot when discussing what makes a great spec script. When I first started off in the industry, I was like, 鈥榳hat do people mean by 鈥榁oice鈥�? Is it the voice you hear in your head? Is it the voice of the characters?鈥� I think the best way to describe Voice for me is a script that's written in a way that no one else could have written in the way you have. It contains the kind of qualities that express who you are as a writer, demonstrates your passions and strengths, and feels uniquely you. So if you do all of that, that's what鈥檚 going to make your Voice feel distinctive.
What is a Spec Script For?
A spec is a gateway to opportunities. It's something which gets you noticed. It gets you work. It gets you in a room with people working in the industry. For example, if you don't have representation and you're looking for that, you would send it to an agent. If they like what they read then they鈥檒l invite you for a chat and potentially take you on as a client. People working in Production Companies 鈥� Script Editors, Development Executives, Producers - will work in a similar way. They may want to read your spec script to consider bringing you into a writers鈥� room for a TV series, and they鈥檒l judge whether you鈥檙e suitable on the basis of that calling card.
You would also send a spec to be considered for a writing development programme, which is the purpose of our Open Call submission window. A great script could gain you a place on one of our development groups like Voices or Drama Room or the Writers Access Group. So see it as something to hook people and get them excited about you as a writer.
What do you look for in a Spec Script?
I look for, voice, character, authenticity, and originality. Does it feel distinctive? Is it a confident voice? Is it an unheard voice? Is it a voice that demands to be heard? Does it reflect the world we live in today? I want to see unique, challenging, funny, complex and engaging characters with stories which have complicated and messy relationships at the heart of them. Also, characters we've not met before who are emotionally truthful and distinctive and really pull us into their stories and keep us wanting to read on.
Character is something we talk about a lot. I think for me, I should be able to cover up the names on your script and be able to instantly identify who those characters are. If I can't tell one from another, that to me indicates that those characters just aren't well-rounded or feel distinctive enough. It鈥檚 a good exercise to try yourself when you鈥檙e writing your script.
Authenticity? Choose a world and characters that you can write authentically. I want to be able to enter a world and have the writer guide me through it. When we talk about the world of a script, it could just be a setting or a precinct. It's doesn鈥檛 necessarily need to feel huge in terms of scale, but just where you set your story and the particular area or characters within it. So it might be set in a world we are familiar with or see often on TV i.e. crime, healthcare, education.
If that鈥檚 the case, then what is your fresh take on that world? What's the twist you're going to give us on that world? Is there a distinctive point of view? That鈥檚 originality. I鈥檓 always looking for original stories that have never been seen before, but even if it鈥檚 a subject that has been covered many times, your unique perspective is going to make it different. Be bold and ambitious in terms of the stories that you want to tell. Be specific but at the same time speak to a wide audience.
What Should You Avoid in a Spec Script?
Definitely familiarity and something that feels derivative. If it is a well-trodden territory or a world which we've seen before then give us a fresh or a unique take on it. It shouldn't be an adaptation. It shouldn't use characters that we've already seen from TV or film or books. It shouldn't be an episode of an existing show. It needs to be an original piece of work.
The other thing is - if you鈥檙e going to submit to our Open Call - don't try and second guess what the 大象传媒 is looking for because that comes through in your writing. We'll be able to tell because it's going to feel self-consciously commercial and inauthentic and we end up with multiple versions of 鈥楩leabag鈥� or 鈥楲ine of Duty鈥�. We often find there are ideas that have these really great central big themes that you want to interrogate or a world that feels interesting but it misses the heart of the story and the momentum to keep that story engine going.
Genre twists (like Sci-Fi, Horror, Fantasy) are something we see a lot, and I do like a bold genre twist, but it can often feel quite shoehorned in and done for the sake of it. If you want to write genre and you're really interested in genre, then absolutely write that spec script. I would say that if you are going to go for a genre twist, then ask yourself the question: 鈥榳hy am I doing it?鈥� You need to subvert expectation with it and not make a script supernatural just to make it feel a little bit different. Again, it needs to bring something new to well-trodden territory.
Usually a spec script can be for any medium. Many agents or TV Production Companies will consider Theatre scripts when looking for talent for instance. At the 大象传媒 Writersroom, we accept TV, Film, Theatre, Online or Radio scripts during our submission window. When choosing your medium, however, you have to ask yourself if your story is right for that particular medium. Why have you chosen for it to be Radio over a visual medium like TV or Film for example? When scripts feel like they have been written in the wrong medium it can have a negative effect and jar with the reader.
Also, when I see 鈥淒raft One鈥� on a title page and it's been submitted, my heart always sinks. Don't submit your draft one! As a writer, it鈥檚 very common that you鈥檒l never be completely happy with your work, but as long as you've done a few revisions on it and you've sent it out to people who you respect and got their feedback and it鈥檚 the best it can be at that point, then that's when you should send it out.
Further advice鈥�
There are so many free scriptwriting resources out there. You don't necessarily need to go and study on a paid course. Look around our website. We have an extensive Script Library of over a thousand scripts that you can download and that in itself is an education. It's important to read lots of scripts as well as watch or listen to lots of the medium you鈥檙e writing for. Analyse the work when you do. What works for you? Why does it work? Or what doesn't? Apply those observations to your own writing and it will really hone your work.
Final piece of advice from me 鈥� BE YOURSELF! Write the script you want to write. Is it a story you鈥檙e burning to tell? Are you passionate about it? Does it move you emotionally? If it does then trust that it will move and engage the reader!
Open Call is our annual open submission window for writers and will be accepting applications from Wednesday 9th November 2022 to noon on 7th December 2022.