"10 Rules on How Not to Wreck a Soap Opera" by Douglas Marland

BeaconboofBeaconboof Posts: 2,374
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Douglas Marland was a soap opera writer for several American daytime soaps, who passed away in 1993. He left behind this instruction guide for producers on how not to wreck a show.

http://www.welovesoaps.net/2008/09/douglas-marland-how-not-to-wreck-show.html
How Not To Wreck A Show
* Watch the show.

* Learn the history of the show. You would be surprised at the ideas that you can get from the back story of your characters.

* Read the fan mail. The very characters that are not thrilling to you may be the audience's favorites.

* Be objective. When I wrote As the World Turns the first thing I said was, what is pleasing the audience? You have to put your own personal likes and dislikes aside and develop the characters that the audience wants to see.

* Talk to everyone; writers and actors especially. There may be something in a character's history that will work beautifully for you, and who would know better than the actor who has been playing the role?

* Don't change a core character. You can certainly give them edges they didn't have before, or give them a logical reason to change their behavior. But when the audience says, "He would never do that," then you have failed.

* Build new characters slowly. Everyone knows that it takes six months to a year for an audience to care about a new character. Tie them in to existing characters. Don't shove them down the viewers' throats.

* If you feel staff changes are in order, look within the organization first. P&G [Procter & Gamble] does a lot of promoting from within. Almost all of our producers worked their way up from staff positions, and that means they know the show.

* Don't fire anyone for six months. I feel very deeply that you should look at the show's canvas before you do anything.

* Good soap opera is good storytelling. It's very simple.
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  • thejoyof_patthejoyof_pat Posts: 30,674
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    All perfect rules :D
  • OldnjadedOldnjaded Posts: 89,126
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    All perfect rules :D

    Indeed. All the current soap EPs should be forced at gunpoint to read these rules 100 times until they get the message. >:(
  • jude007jude007 Posts: 2,227
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    My 11th rule would be:

    Under no circumstances employ Stuart Blackburn to be a Series Producer!!:p
  • thejoyof_patthejoyof_pat Posts: 30,674
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    Oldnjaded wrote: »
    Indeed. All the current soap EPs should be forced at gunpoint to read these rules 100 times until they get the message. >:(

    I think Kate Oates has it pretty right. :D

    Rule 12:

    Never couple cot death and baby swapping.

    Oh maybe that should be the first rule :confused::D
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 77
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    Or Phil Collinson, he managed to ruin Coronation Street
  • CreamteaCreamtea Posts: 14,682
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    I think the Build New Characters Slowly one definitely applies over here. There's nothing worse than shoving new characters down the audiences throats when they have just arrived to try and make us care about their plights (cough, Stella, cough).
  • thejoyof_patthejoyof_pat Posts: 30,674
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    Creamtea wrote: »
    I think the Build New Characters Slowly one definitely applies over here. There's nothing worse than shoving new characters down the audiences throats when they have just arrived to try and make us care about their plights (cough, Stella, cough).

    woah! I think you need to come through to the back and talk about this.
  • desperate housedesperate house Posts: 3,176
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    Could someone, please tattoo this list in red on to the chest of all soap producers in the UK but especially Stuart Blackburn who has managed to bring to its knees not one but TWO well loved soaps.

    Failing that, can Blackburn be employed by the BBC to produce EastEnders?
  • TheGraduate2012TheGraduate2012 Posts: 14,822
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    All excellent rules, all of which are routinely broken by all the producers of the Big 4 soaps.
  • surfiesurfie Posts: 5,754
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    I would say with the fan mail point raised, a series producer should go too overboard taking fans views into account. A character may be popular but overused, needing either a break of axing.

    I think most can think of an actor in a soap that although popular needs an extended break - or axing - as they are just going around in circles characterwise.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 8,749
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    He's got it pretty much spot on.
  • David the WavidDavid the Wavid Posts: 2,319
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    Thanks for posting this thread. I'm tired of reading comments here about character consistency and continuity not mattering because they're 'only soaps'. The same rules apply to any good ongoing drama.
  • wavlovrwavlovr Posts: 3,741
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    Good post.
    Can someone please send this to Stuart Blackburn at Granada studios please.
  • lulu glulu g Posts: 52,620
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    Yep, it's pretty basic stuff that any good producer should know, and yet ...
  • tuppencehapennytuppencehapenny Posts: 4,239
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    Thanks for posting this thread. I'm tired of reading comments here about character consistency and continuity not mattering because they're 'only soaps'. The same rules apply to any good ongoing drama.

    You're right. It does matter. Though I think many of us here have complained about inconsistencies in characters, such as the behaviour of Tina at the moment in Corrie. The audience seems to understand better what a character simply would not do.
  • Ed R.MarleyEd R.Marley Posts: 9,130
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    Another couple of rules I would add are:

    Follow a story through to the end, even if it's garbage. I'm talking about Billy Mitchell, post-thief extraordinare.

    Try and add a bit of the real world to the soaps. I know that they are catering for a mainly white audience in the sticks, but they could at least add a few characters that reflect the mainly city environments that they are based in. Would it kill to have maybe an Eastern European character, or a black guy who doesn't talk like Ray Winstone?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,303
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    Beaconboof wrote: »
    Douglas Marland was a soap opera writer for several American daytime soaps, who passed away in 1993. He left behind this instruction guide for producers on how not to wreck a show.

    http://www.welovesoaps.net/2008/09/douglas-marland-how-not-to-wreck-show.html

    Wait hire someone from within the team? Lorraine Newman?????? Ahhhhh

    And don't fire anyone for 6 mths??? What?? EE just fired a whole loada people and is a whole lot better as a result.

    And most hilarious of all - give new characters connections on the show. According to half the wannabe producers on DS they'd introduce whole new families who have NO connections to anyone and who never interact with any of them... Oops!
  • BeaconboofBeaconboof Posts: 2,374
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    Totem_Bern wrote: »
    Wait hire someone from within the team? Lorraine Newman?????? Ahhhhh

    And don't fire anyone for 6 mths??? What?? EE just fired a whole loada people and is a whole lot better as a result.

    And most hilarious of all - give new characters connections on the show. According to half the wannabe producers on DS they'd introduce whole new families who have NO connections to anyone and who never interact with any of them... Oops!

    He's not saying ONLY hire someone from within, he's saying look from within the team before you go to outsiders, as they will know the show and how it operates.

    The not firing anyone for six months makes perfect sense if you're a new producer on the show. As opposed to making your mark immediately, it's more important to play out the current stories to a natural end instead of abruptly and then if the characters who may not work haven't generated interest by that time, it's fine to let them go. It's called common sense.
  • BeaconboofBeaconboof Posts: 2,374
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    Try and add a bit of the real world to the soaps. I know that they are catering for a mainly white audience in the sticks, but they could at least add a few characters that reflect the mainly city environments that they are based in. Would it kill to have maybe an Eastern European character, or a black guy who doesn't talk like Ray Winstone?

    I think EE especially stopped existing in reality by the turn of the millennium.
  • The RhydlerThe Rhydler Posts: 4,494
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    Any chance she released him and the car didn't contain him?
  • Cal_Scream2Cal_Scream2 Posts: 6,733
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    2 of the rules I don't agree with - look within the organization (well EE did that and look what happened with Lorraine Newman) and don't axe anyone for 6 months (why? bad characters are bad characters).

    Great rules, man clearly knew what he was on about though, despite my objections to 2 of the rules.
  • BeaconboofBeaconboof Posts: 2,374
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    Bump.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,372
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    Do not let Bryan Kirkwood anywhere near it.
  • 0...00...0 Posts: 21,111
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    Interesting and I'd agree with those. What fascinates me is that there is a general consensus amongst fans of what works and what doesn't viz the Soap Mistakes thread.

    So why do soaps get it wrong so often? What do they see differently that we do?
    Ok, there will be unforseen circumstances, eg the Ferreiras could have been really good if the original story had played out, but the actor playing the Dad had visa problems.

    But that doesn't explain all the other cock ups!
  • kitkat1971kitkat1971 Posts: 39,175
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    Oldnjaded wrote: »
    Indeed. All the current soap EPs should be forced at gunpoint to read these rules 100 times until they get the message. >:(

    Shouldn't they just. Especially Stuart Blackburn and Oliver Kent who is royally f+++ing up Casualty and Holby City at the moment.
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