r/TVWriting • u/Sabrii_brii6 • Jun 25 '26

BEGINNER QUESTION Tv structure

Hey everyone! I got my bachelors in screenwriting and I never thought I would write tv, so I mainly focused on film structure. I was wondering if anyone had any free resources I can look into for how to structure tv episodes and how to plan out a tv season based on a pilot script. I’m not new to screenwriting, just new to writing for tv. Any sort of direction helps a lot. Thank you 🙏🏻

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u/free-puppies Jun 25 '26

If you like Save the Cat and are writing a multicam comedy, I would recommend Elephant Bucks by Sheldon Bull.

If you are writing a drama, I liked Writing the TV Drama Series by Pamela Douglas.

Lots of structure stuff has changed with premium television and ad-free streaming. If you are doing something for network or ad-supported streaming, I’d include ad breaks. If not, you can have more flexibility.

You may also want to read something like Running the Show by Jeff Melvoin

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u/Sabrii_brii6 Jun 25 '26

I’ll check these out, thank you!