107 - Jami O'Brien (Creator / Showrunner of N0S4A2)

TV Writer Podcast - Audio

This week, host Gray Jones interviews Jami O'Brien, creator & showrunner of "N0S4A2" on AMC.

This episode is sponsored by Pilar Alessandra of onthepage.tv. Pilar is offering TV Writer Podcast listeners a 10% discount on any of her services. To get your 10% off, reach out to her directly and tell her Gray sent you!

In this episode, Jami has great tips for the writers room, improving your writing, winning in interviews, adapting pre-existing material, and general career advice.

Jami O'Brien Bio:

Jami O'Brien created and showruns "NOS4A2" for AMC. Previously, she’s written for "Fear the Walking Dead," "Hell on Wheels," "Big Love," and "Flesh and Bone," which was nominated for a Writer’s Guild Award. Jami has an MFA in Playwriting from the Yale School of Drama.

INDEX TO THE EPISODE:

1:06 - Interview start, mention her show “N0S4A2.”

2:00 - Her back story - writing as a kid, Yale playwriting, and eventually moving to LA because of a friend who was a TV writer.

5:18 - Her first LA job, assisting a manager, learning about the industry.

7:11 - When she first started trying to write for TV, got a writing assistant job thanks to one of her Yale professors who was a show runner. Resisted writing a spec, but when she finally did, got good traction from it and landed an agent. Still did not get staffed right away, but after several interviews she was staffed on “Lie To Me.”

12:38 - What it was like to finally write on staff.

14:10 - Talks about her next couple of shows, “The Deep End,” “Big Love,” and a longer stint on “Hell on Wheels.” Describes great lessons she learned from the showrunners and another writer who was a mentor, which helped her scripts to be rewritten less and less.

19:32 - Sponsor break.

20:37 - How she got an overall deal at AMC, got attached to the “N0S4A2” project, and was co-EP on “Fear the Walking Dead.”

23:06 - Her process in how she adapted the book “N0S4A2” into a series, and doing a mini writer’s room.

25:53 - Being a part of the Showrunner Training Program.

30:39 - What it was like to build a staff and run a show for the first time. Some discussion about mini writers rooms.

34:28 - What is she looking for when she interviews new writers? Looking for a voice, a point of view, and something unique. Must stand out from the bulk of scripts which are pretty good.

37:19 - What she looks for in interviews.

38:17 - Where her show is at with respect to Coronavirus.

39:13 - How she feels about the current TV landscape.

41:06 - Advice to younger self.

42:52 - Mistakes she sees newer writers making.

Follow Jami on Twitter: @jami_obrien

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