Now, why is it that the writers of these novels always come up with better plots than the average television episodes of Trek? The television writers could learn a thing or two from the pros.
Jeroen replied:
My guess is that it has something to do with deadlines. The average novel writer doesn't have the "have it finished by Monday" deadline hanging over his head, so he has a lot more time to think about the plots.
It all depends on how far ahead of time you start writing the script. Shows like BtVS plot out their stories in general usually at least a season in advance (or over the summer they plan out the next season), and most of the time they have an idea of what they will be doing the following season (the Mayor, Buffy's 3rd season big bad, got mentioned in late second season, Dawn got mentioned sometime in the 4th season, etc.). The deadline makes *some* difference, and sometimes it's the fault of the writer for procrastinating, but the biggest deadline problems are often the fault of the producers for not assigning the episode to a writer early enough.
Further, as a novelist you can design the plot the way *you* want it, without having to rewrite it over and over again till about a dozen or so other people on the team all find the plot acceptable.
This is probably the biggest issue. jms of B5 fame said the only reason he went all the way up to the level of producer is so that he could be in a position where other people don't get to re-write his stuff. As I understand it, rewrites by committee have been the norm on ST shows. That can't *possibly* be as good as having one person responsible for all rewrites, like Larry DiTillio in B5's first season, or Joss Whedon or Marti Noxon or Rebecca Rand Kirshner in various seasons of Buffy. Best of all possible worlds is the situation jms had for middle of second season through most of the fifth season of B5, when he wrote *everything*. Of course, he says that his friends tell him he looks like he aged a decade or more during that time... :-)
Jeroen "Babylon 5 Rulez!" van Baardwijk
Reggie "Buffy Rockz" Bautista
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