We dont always think about it in the midst of a twelve-hour Netflix binge-watching

session, but TV showseven the bad onestake a tremendous amount of creative work
!howrunners have to be some of the most organi"ed and #roductive writers on the #lanet
$ften they come u# with the idea for the show and are charged with kee#ing everything
and everyone on the same #age %nd although writing may be their #assion, their
#resence is firmly rooted in the business, #romotional, and technical as#ects of any
#ro&ect 'f theres any &ob thats similar to that of a showrunner, its the freelance writer
(albeit for slightly different salaries)
Weve com#iled a few ti#s from some of the best in the business on how they stay
#roductive*
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3't hel#s that 'm not reading what folks are saying onlineThe best thing to do, as a
showrunner, is to #lease yourself 8aybe the obvious choice is the right one sometimes3
$ne of the beauties of freelancing is the freedom to do whats best, to write how you
think you should write $f course you have to #lease your clients, but you dont always
have to #lease your critics and can stick to artistic #rinci#les regardless of how many
#eo#le run theirs mouths in the comments section
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3The best thing that you can do for yourself is to find that thing that you like to do and try
to turn it into your &ob3
:or some freelancers, its hard to get out of bed in the morning to work on #ro&ects you
absolutely dread $ften, freelancers ex#erience la"iness for that reasonits not that they
dont want to do anythingits that they dont want to do that &ob they dread &ust for
some ;uick cash -armon talks about embracing your la"iness and harnessing it into a
#ositive force by finding those #ro&ects that make you want to get out of bed in the
morning
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3'f youre an N:2 ;uarterback, you watch a lot of games on film, and if youre a comedy
writer you have to watch a lot of game filmyou have to watch comedy, read comedy,
write about comedy .ou have to treat it as seriously as if youre a law student studying
for the bar exam3
$ne of the essential #arts of being a writer is being a serious reader No matter what
genre you #refer, reading voraciously is extremely im#ortant .ou might not need a
degree to writebut you should analy"e the written word &ust like if you were a student
+eading gives you a dee# understand of what works, and your own writing will benefit
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3Theres a rebellious nature to all of us on the creative side !o ' think that often times
that #aradigmatic shift, its as much by accident or ignorance as it is by design 4ecause
you dont know the way the game is su##osed to be #layed you &ust make u# your own
rules3
:reelance writers, like TV showrunners, are in a rare #osition to ex#eriment and ;uestion
the conventions of their work The occasionally swashbuckling nature of freelancing
means you dont always have to answer to the status ;uo? you answer to yourself (and
your editor) Tired of writing in the same style@ :li# it u#side down, turn it inside out,
take it a#art and rebuild it with only the best #ieces
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3' have to really guard and cherish my writing time, because there are so many other
demands on it There are a lot of other areas of interest for me, but writing time is where
everything comes from ' have to make sure to be really careful with it 'ts hard for me3
The life of a freelancer involves necessary self-em#loyment duties that are a hindrance to
the actual writing #rocess +esearch, #itching, answering emails, and maintaining a
website need to get done, but the writing #art is by far the most im#ortant 8ake an effort
to set aside time for each #ro&ect, as well as any #ersonal writing, so that you give each
thing its #ro#er focus and energy