Story Maps: TV Drama: The Structure of the One-Hour Television Pilot

by Daniel P. Calvisi

Daniel Calvisi brings his Story Maps screenwriting method to television as he breaks down the structure of the TV drama pilot, citing case studies from the most popular, ground-breaking series of recent years, including THE WALKING DEAD, GAME OF THRONES, HOUSE OF CARDS, TRUE DETECTIVE, BREAKING BAD, MR. ROBOT, SCANDAL and MAD MEN .

Story TV Drama offers the first beat sheet for television screenwriters ("Save the Cat" for TV). This is the structural template that aspiring and professional TV writers have been looking for. A clear, practical, step-by-step method to write a pilot that adheres to Hollywood standards.

How to write a TV pilot has never been easier. Writing a pilot begins here.

This book first introduces you to the key formats, genres and terminology of modern TV shows, then details the major signpost beats of a teleplay and the crucial characteristics that must be present in each act, using specific examples from our new "Golden Age of Television."

Story TV Drama has been endorsed by many INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS in Hollywood,

"Story TV Drama is a handy, practical guide that walks writers through the process of creating a compelling TV drama. Using examples from some of the most respected shows on television, writers will learn to master the form from outline to Fade Out. I wish I'd had this book when I was first starting out!"
— Hilary Weisman Graham, Writer, Bones (Fox), Orange is the New Black (Netflix)

“I plan to use Calvisi's process on our upcoming show in development at Starz."
— Kirkland Morris, Producer, Tomorrow, Today (STARZ)

"An excellent resource.”
— M-L Erlbach, Writer, Masters of Sex (Showtime)

“This book blows all others out of the water! There’s no other TV writing book that offers this level of detail when it comes to how to structure a one-hour television drama pilot.”
— Larry Reitzer, Writer, Melissa & Joey, Just Shoot Me!, Ugly Betty

“I’ve worked in film and television for years and I can say for certain that there is nothing else like Calvisi’s book anywhere out there. His system is truly unique and breaks TV pilot structure down step-by-step, using very specific examples from some of the great pilots of recent years.”
— Fritz Manger, Producer, A Deadly Adoption with Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig

"I've turned to Calvisi for notes on several scripts in the past, and this new book is well-timed as the industry makes a huge shift toward television. This is a fantastic primer in developing a rock-solid one-hour TV pilot. I recommend this book to writers as the foundation in creating excellent story structure.”
— Richard J. Bosner, Producer, Fruitvale Station, Other People, The Wannabe

"Calvisi has a firm grasp on the nature of the one-hour drama for television. I have little doubt that by following his guidelines and doing your homework, he can lead you to create a great pilot of your own!"
— Jenny Frankfurt, Literary Manager, High Street Management

“The bottom line is, don’t learn the hard way like I did. Use Dan’s book instead.”
— Joe Nimziki, Creator of upcoming Sony TV series Kreskin ; Director, The Howling, Outer Limits ; Senior Executive, New Line Cinema, Sony Pictures

"Daniel Calvisi does an expert job of breaking down the structure of television pilots in a way that's not only easy to understand, but can be easily applied to one's own work. He uses references that are current and offers clear, succinct advice. If you're thinking of writing a TV pilot, read this book first!"
— Christine Conradt, Writer/Producer/Director of 50 Lifetime network movies, The Bride He Bought Online, Stalked at 17

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Tv

156 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 24, 2016

Reviews

[Amirhossein · Rating 3 out of 5]

کتاب بیشتر مصداق محوره. چندتا از سریال‌هایی که به لحاظ فیلمنامه‌ای خیلی خوبن رو انتخاب کرده و برداشته اونا رو تحلیل کرده و یه سری نکته روی ساختارهاشون گفته.
در کل دید خوبی نسبت به ساختار سریال‌ها می‌ده.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniel takes the aspiring television writer through the important steps for specifically creating a television pilot by examining several popular television shows of the last few years. Daniel explains the difference between procedurals and serial TV shows and how each pilot should be laid out. How premise pilots and 3rd episode pilots are set up. No matter what kind of show being created the pilot should focus heavily on the main character, because stories are character driven. Next, he asks questions like what kind of character is going to drive the television show. He then gives us a character sheet defining their skills, misbehaviors, internal goals, and a list of other important characteristics. This sheet is not necessarily as detailed as a book author might use to fully flush out a character. Daniel then uses this sheet to point out major traits found in characters from like Walter White from Breaking Bad, Frank from House of Cards, and Rick from The Walking Dead. The second most important aspect to a show, after the characters is the theme and how theme drives the show. Daniel then moves into the basic story map used by all television shows and examines the A, B, and C story act by act. He shows this over and over again in many different television pilots. Most of these shows are currently streaming so the reader could watch the pilot and follow along and see how the important story beats are and keep the viewer returning. He lays out the story maps uses in such television shows as True Detective, The Walking Dead, Mad Men, Game of Thrones, and Breaking Bad ending with a blank story map for an aspiring writer to use as a model.

[Kendall Grey]

I read this book for my Writing for Television class. It was short, to the point, and clearly laid out the steps to writing a one-hour TV pilot. The examples provided were very helpful. I will definitely be referring to this book when I write my next script.

[Rochelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5*

[Olivia Caciuleanu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and sweet.

[Mina Arefidoost · Rating 5 out of 5]

بسیار کوتاه و روان و عالی

[De Jarous · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was detailed, concise, easily understandable, and what I expected. Having read and understood many books on writing feature films, I decided to also learn writing for TV. This book translated well. Calvisi maps out enough of the top shows on today so as to be sure that you've seen at least one of them, if not all. Most importantly, after having detailed what defines the parts of a story, Calvisi details what happens beat-for-beat, and with page numbers. If you're like me and study multiple books of the same, which makes for good research, this is a great addition to the pile.

[Rangifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I aim to revisit this book every time I'm about to tackle a new pilot draft or major re-write. It serves as an excellent primer and reference to keep nearby on exactly what makes a pilot great. It does NOT making writing for television any easier, lol! That challenge is still entirely up to you. But it does take some of the guesswork out of the story beats that need to be hit and how to put it all together.

[Caspar Vega · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful.

[Kate Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Useful and too the point.

This is a quick book to read. It gets straight to the point, breaking down and mapping the standard beats of a one hour tv pilot with several examples.

[The · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only book you'll ever need on the structure of a TV Pilot. *****

[Mar Eh · Rating 5 out of 5]

خیلی موشکافانه و با ذکر مثال میگه چرا ما از فلان سریال خوشمون میاد
سریال خوب جدای از محتوا یک مهندسی فرم تمام عیاره

[Ammar Rehmani · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the only book on tv that I have found. And despite being really short is extermely insightful. Having read over numerous books on screenwriting. This is the most useful book (atleast for me, may be because I have basic understanding after having read books on story and screenwritng)

[Mujahid Khan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book for understanding the groundwork that turns into a great tv series. Most of the book revolves around dissecting some popular shows such as Breaking Bad, Mad men etc.
Read it if you want to write for tv.

[Zachary Pareizs · Rating 4 out of 5]

The step by step structure component of the book is a little clunky, but that might just come with difficulty in subject material. An in-depth and pleasant read. If anything, it was lovely getting to revisit some of my favorite pilots.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good stuff.

Lots of info. Could be delivered with more callbacks. Author seems to have a good idea of how it works. Done an above average job of formatting. Lots of examples.

[Nocturnally Tacit · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute must for anyone interested in screenwriting.

[Justin Nickels · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good structural breakdown of pilot episodes for writers

[Elianor M.A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actually useful and relevant TV breakdowns.

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great resources for writers in all stages of their careers. Beginners will finally have that development roadmap they've been looking for, and experienced writers will gain a dissection of what works and what doesn't in today's most popular shows. One thing this book has that others do NOT is a section of case studies and beat sheets which demystify the structure and beats of shows like Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Scandal, The Walking Dead, and more. I can't recommend this book enough--if for no other reason that it will help show you were your pilot fails to stack up against the best of the best.