Project X update

Well. Project X has only gone out to a couple of people so far. I got a call the other day from a producer at a major prodco to say she loves it and wants to do it but has to run it by her boss first.

I'm not holding my breath. Because there is a major obstacle in the way. About 8 years ago this same prodco produced something with a vaguely similar premise. It wasn't well received.

Now I can argue that the concept and tone are entirely different, that the TV audience has moved on from those times, that the previous project was in the wrong time slot --- you name it. It probably won't do any good. Failure casts a long shadow.

But the good news is that someone likes it. And you never know.

What it has done though is unlock a memory that I had completely forgotten about.

9 years ago I had a meeting with the producer who got that original series commissioned, just a couple of days after she had met the writer. I recall her saying something very telling to me that set alarm bells ringing.

She said, in very unworried terms, that the writer, after pitching the idea admitted he didn't have much in the way of story to go along with the idea because that wasn't really his forte.

HUH?

I don't know how many episodes of that series the writer was involved in, but could that be the reason for it bombing, right there? Maybe?

If the creator doesn't have a strong story sense of where the series is heading then how the heck can anyone else?

I was in my writer short pants back then, so though I knew something was amiss here I didn't say anything. I was too busy weaseling for a gig on the show. Which in the event was never even offered. Maybe not such a bad thing as it turns out.

Anyway, next week I'll tell my agents to put Project X out to a few more, telling them to read it quickly because major prodco is interested. Nothing like a bit of healthy competition. Gotta work it baaaaby!