Author: Robert L. Hilluard

Publisher:

Published: 2015-08-05

Total Pages: 324

ISBN-13: 9781332216932

Excerpt from Writing for Television and Radio The Mass Media of television and radio are closely related in the development and practice of writing techniques. Indeed, it is usual for television and radio writing to be combined in one course in most colleges and universities. For a number of years good texts and resource books have been available on television writing alone and on radio writing alone. In addition, there are several fine works oriented primarily toward dramatic writing. From the practical point of view, however, relatively few opportunities exist today for the serious television or radio playwright. The jobs available for television and radio writers are most frequently found among the program types which exist on local as well as network levels, including news, sports, talks programs of various kinds, panel-games-audience participation shows, women's and children's programs, music and variety shows, special features and, sometimes, documentaries. Extremely important is the writing of announcements and commercials. Those who wish to write for the mass media, the playwright included, can benefit from a knowledge of the non-dramatic areas. Over a number of years of teaching television and radio writing, I was unable to find a text devoted predominantly to the above "bread-and-butter" aspects of the two media. Consequently, I developed my own teaching materials which, after several years of testing and revision, now make up this book. My purpose is not to slight the play, which I believe to be highest form of writing (about one-fifth of this book is devoted to dramatic writing). My primary aim, however, is to make available to all who are concerned with broadcast writing that which was heretofore unavailable: a book devoted principally to the non-dramatic forms of both television and radio. By concentrating on the practical elements needed to prepare one for a writing job, and on the areas of writing that comprise most of current broadcast fare, I hope that this book may serve as a single, comprehensive work for all who wish to learn some of the basic principles and techniques of the craft, and as a useful reference source for professional writers. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.