samandjimgotohollywood's Podcast

Okay, it took 6 years since that last post, but we finally got around to podcasting again.  But we chose a new format: inviting aspiring writers to bring their ideas into a virtual writers' room with us to work on their ideas.  It's funny, surprising, and a way for us to help others go to Hollywood, now that we've made it in ourselves!  Check it out, and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Where the #@$% have we been?!  ...Scouting out the new landscapes of business in Hollywood, among other things.

Ageism?  Sexism?  Racism?That's the big listener mail topic this time.  There's more mail, of course, and the inevitable career update (hint:  we're being flown to Seattle!  Woo-hoo!) 

That's a good time for things to happen in a screenplay.In real life, though, it's a good time to do a podcast.  While we're waiting for, well, anything to happen, we do a quick career check-in and answer MORE listener mail. 

That's what they call it when you're up for a staff job......but they haven't called your name yet.  A little career update and lots of listener Q&A, including our thoughts on videogame writing.

Three years of podcasting, forty shows in the can...and finally, we listen to our audience.  This episode:  listener mail, and some overview on what we've learned so far.

At long last, the WGA strike is over.  What does it mean for the future of Hollywood?  More importantly, what does it mean for us?

TV is in BIG trouble.We applied for a WGA program to train future showrunners -- and damned if they didn't accept us...

The WGA strike is all about the Internet...  Why?  Because it's the future -- for all of us.  An inside take on what's going on and our thoughts about where Hollywood is heading.  Get ready:  everything you know is about to change.

Still walking and waiting...An update from the picket lines, some thoughts on the latest contract offer, Sam's mom is finally impressed, and a shout out for help on our new projects.

The second installment of our strike series.The deadline passed.  Now we're on the picket lines.  The latest updates, and why you shouldn't even think about scab work.

The Stephen King pilot is turned in......just in time for a strike.  What it all looks like through the smoke as California burns...

...You might get another podcastOr, in our case, find yourself pondering more career options than you ever expected.  Each with complications you never anticipated, too.PS:  in big bold letters, let us say here and now, WE'RE SORRY it took so freakin' long to get this episode made.  As we'll explain, we've been, well, kinda busy.

A nice place to visit......which is good, cause we sorta live there.  Further reflections on this whole "being on staff" experience as we write our first episode of The Dead Zone and prepare to send it into production.

Finally!Reflections on finally getting to the place we set out to reach so long ago:  the writers' room.

Our journey enters a new phase......or so we hope.  This is a big (and much-delayed) update on developments in our career -- and our personal battles with our own hearts and minds.

Do you need one?Of course.  But when?  And why?  Just what DO they do?

His book sold a million copies...but can we sell one TV show based on it?  Months of hard work are put to the test as we start making the rounds to the networks.

Moving your story to the next level...it ain't easy, but it has to be done.  We've got a few thougths for you that might help, and, as always, a career update.

Perseverance is the key......to getting through the door in Hollywood, despite the rejections.  But getting in isn't the end:  you still have to find inner strength to push ahead.  We talk about some books and experiences with this struggle, and share our own tips.

Talk is cheap...but getting people to listen means investing in your idea. You need to take your time, groom your message and learn to spend your words wisely.  For TV, film or even a podcast, the pitch is crucial.

Yes, it's "A Very Special Episode."No, Sam hasn't gone suicidal on us.  But instead of talking Hollywood, we're asking for your help.  We're plotting a new podcast with skits and song -- hell, it might even be funny.

...and Jim is Half FullWe wish we were talking about a glass, not our uncertain job prospects.  It's staffing season in Hollywood, and there's lots of jobs out there -- or not many at all.  It all depends on how you look at it (and just what's in that glass you're drinking).

Friday April 7thFrom a big studio meeting to our first gig on a panel of experts, it was one helluva ride...

Is the whole idea a contradiction? Can you trust anyone out here, or is jaded cynicism all there is?

It's showtime After all these years, we've finally got the whole package for the first time. We've written our scripts. We have our team in place. Staffing season is coming...

Or are you just deluded? How can you tell? We risked it all to come to Hollywood -- but was that really a smart move? Is facing an American Idol style train wreck the only way to find out?

Reality TV messed up our career ...but became a full-time gig for our friend Dan. So what's it like writing shows that "don't have writers?" And just how fascinating are those celebrities, anyway? Listen up, he'll tell you.

The verdict is in... ...But what is it? And what have we been sentenced to?

Is our pilot dead? Or will the ABC grant clemency? What do we write next? Where does our next paycheck come from? How will we clothe our children? What's for lunch? So many questions hang unresolved...

...TV people and TV plots, that is... A little news on the pilot front, then we address the class struggle on your TV set -- the one that isn't happening. Rich people are BORING! How about more TV characters people can actually relate to? Besides the Cylons?

You'll never write alone At least, not once your script is sold. No script is too good to need notes. Lots and lots of notes...

Hollywood is quite a ride... ...and there's no shortcut to the front of the line. Well, not for us mortals... Our apologies for the long delay with this one.

Our TV pitch finds a buyer... What more is there to say? A lot, actually...

...and on the page We've got some career updates first, and then we tackle a tricky question: what the hell is "voice" in a script?

Bring on the body bags.. ...'cause there's a war of ideas going on, and the casualties are piling up.

You can count on 'em when you pitch A good meeting is about more than picking the right mineral water.

What makes a writer? Writing, of course. And you'd better love the painful, frustrating act of creating for its own sake, 'cause that's what it's all about.

It's crunch time The networks start buying TV ideas in a couple weeks and we're feverishly pumping out more pitches. Which begs the question: what makes a show really work?

There's always a ray of hope... ...but it's usually shining down through a sewer grate.

So you think you've got a great idea for a movie? So did we...

Okay, we're all caught up on how we got here.   Now we're pitching our TV show idea to Showtime, FX, and HBO.

The first of 3 podcasts about giving up our old lives to become writers in Hollywood.   In this episode, we decide to try writing, even though we have it pretty good in Minnesota. Then we got a call...

The second of 3 podcasts about giving up our old lives to become writers in Hollywood.   We land in LA. And while having a job on the Disney studio lot is pretty cool, it ain't easy to starting all over again.

The last episode in our "how we got here" series.   We finally sell a script. Then another. And another...