not the ggwriters

GGWriters: sounds of episode 609 dialogue tweaks floating out of the upstairs offices today… only 24 days till S6 premiere! (September 14)

Ever wanted to know what goes on in the Gossip Girl writers’ room? We’ve got the scoop straight from executive producer Joshua Safran! Check out our Q&A with him below:

Q: How long does it take for you to come up with an episode?

A: It takes us about eight days to break the episode. Breaking is when you sit in a room and you all together come up with a story. You come up with every beat of the story so that the writer can go off with what we call a “beat sheet,” which has every beat of the story in it, which they then flush out into an outline and then write a script from. The process of outlining and writing the episode takes another few days.

Q: Do the story lines ever come from real experiences in the writers’ lives?

A: In every episode there’s something from personal from our lives. Let’s say we’re talking about this Dan, Blair and Chuck, triangle. When you talk about that [with the other writers], you talk about what it was like when you were in high school and you and your best friend had a crush on the same person. Then you think about wanting to stay best friends but also knowing you’re going after the same goal. It really brings up all these stories from your own life and that really forms every episode. Even the stuff that seems outlandish and twisted is coming from some real place that one of us has talked about. Sometimes the stories are even more twisted in real life than it is on this show.

What story line would you create if you were a Gossip Girl writer? Leave a comment below! And continue the conversation about the episodes in our message boards!

signaturescarf:

Character Descriptions

from GG and other series. From the Pilot script:

A FACE pressed against the glass. One of the most beautiful faces you’ve ever seen. But the first thing you notice is the soulfulness behind this girl’s gaze. Meet –

 SERENA VAN DER WOODSEN, 17.

BLAIR WALDORF, 17.

Pretty. But will never feel beautiful enough. The sink runs. She wipes saliva from her lips. Rinses with mouthwash. A ritual. Checks her SIDEKICK on the counter.

 Her eyes narrow. She inhales sharply. A siren has just sounded in this girl’s soul. She exits into –

NATE ARCHIBALD, 17.

 Handsome.  Most popular guy on the Upper East Side. External confidence hides the fact that deep down, he senses that he doesn’t deserve any of it — or maybe even want it.  He’s with his father - HOWIE “THE CAPTAIN” ARCHIBALD.  Always with a SCOTCH in hand.  And some other ADULTS.

CHUCK BASS, 17.  Future Senator or cautionary tale.  With two girls in tow, KATY and ISABEL, 17. Rosencrantz and Guilderstern in Jimmy Choos.  Drinks in hand.

DAN, 17, will be fine when he gets to college. That is little consolation today. JENNY, 15, isn’t waiting for college. Wants to be popular now.

mentions of Blair’s bulimia cut from the pilot…

Read the original 1x01 script here.

Looks like Dan Steele is outlining another episode!

Which one could it be ?

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Gossip Girl ep.507 outline writing soundtrack: The Civil Wars, Mat Kearney, Motopony, Keane, Augustana, The National, Tapes n’ Tapes, et al #

I’m not sure if we can assume new GG writer Dan Steele is the head writer for the 7th episode, but at least we know one of his contributions and some of his influences.

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Looks like the writers are still busy working on season 5 ! Hopefully it’s more a success than the last seasons!

July 5, 2011:

Hello everyone from sunny and sweltering NYC! We are having our first tone meetings of Season 5 today! #

A tone mtg is when the writer sits down with the Dir, DP, UPM, Prods & more and go over the tone of every scene so everyone’s on the same pg #

Q: I’m assuming this is an episode by episode thing, not a more general season or arch thing?
A: We do it every episode! 

Filming starts real soon now!

June 18, 2011:

Okay, anyone have questions on a GG writer’s process? We were all just discussing how different-but-same we are. #

Q: How long does it take to go from completed script for an episode to on set filming it?
A: In the beginning, about 2-3 weeks before shooting. As the season goes on, it gets closer and closer… 

Q: How do you approach writing the different characters (Blair/Serena/Chuck/etc)?
A: Part of a writer’s job on a show is to learn the voices of the characters so they just flow. Everyone’s pretty good with it here 

Q: Do you all have a general goal for the episode and then the writer of the episode fills in the dialogue? Or is it vice versa?
A: All the writers discuss the episode together, then when it’s ready, the writer of that episode goes out to write it. 

Q: you guys are confusing me. You keep saying you’re writing stuff… but not? How… what’s going on?
A: Writer’s Room hours are for brainstorming together. After room ends for the day, whoever’s up writes. (Basically). 

The last answer explains so much.