Free ebook on TV writing: "Valuable Lessons"

RCR · 07-29-2008, 01:27 AM

There's a Freebie ebook available - "Valuable Lessons: How I Made (and lost) seven million dollars writing for over a hundred shows you never heard of" by Andrew Nicholls.

This is a pdf (288 pages). A really funny, well written memoir by a TV writer. He claims he couldn't find a publisher for it. I don't know why. It was so funny, informative, well written, that I read it in two sittings.

The authors' website is horrible. They must have used every hint in "1001 Ways to Create a Messy Website" when they set it up.

The link to the ebook is:

http://www.nichollsvickers.com/architectural_009.htm

Click on the grey oblong titled "Valuable Lessons the book" to get the pdf.

The pdf is muddy and faded to the extent it won't convert to txt. So, you've got to read it as it is. I read it on my desktop computer.

But, if there's any would-be TV writers amongst you - this is the place to start. You'll learn heaps about the real world of TV writing and have a lot of laughs along the way.

kilohertz53 · 07-29-2008, 05:30 PM

Thanks for the link, RCR!

Man, you're not kidding about the webpage design! Even with your explicit instructions, it took me a couple of minutes to find the download link for the book.

daffy4u · 07-29-2008, 06:40 PM

Thanks RCR! For anyone else looking, the gray box is what you need to click.

carld · 08-04-2008, 02:55 AM

I didn't even get a gray box in Firefox, just the words. But, thanks for the link. I'll see how PGNRead handles the conversion to the Kindle.

JSWolf · 08-13-2008, 10:29 AM

The site is a real mess. It wants Apple Quicktime install as a browser plugin. And for that, I say... STAY AWAY! Any site that needs Apple Quicktime is a mess.

radius · 08-16-2008, 05:29 PM

On the other hand, the book itself was fascinating to me.

The ironic thing is, the author complains about all kinds of bad TV writing, when the examples he gives from his own shows seem cliched and unfunny to me.

07-29-2008, 01:27 AM	#1
RCR Addict Posts: 334 Karma: 992487 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: 2 x Sony 505, iPad, Samsung 7 Tablet, ASUS Transformer, Nexus 7	Free ebook on TV writing: "Valuable Lessons" There's a Freebie ebook available - "Valuable Lessons: How I Made (and lost) seven million dollars writing for over a hundred shows you never heard of" by Andrew Nicholls. This is a pdf (288 pages). A really funny, well written memoir by a TV writer. He claims he couldn't find a publisher for it. I don't know why. It was so funny, informative, well written, that I read it in two sittings. The authors' website is horrible. They must have used every hint in "1001 Ways to Create a Messy Website" when they set it up. The link to the ebook is: http://www.nichollsvickers.com/architectural_009.htm Click on the grey oblong titled "Valuable Lessons the book" to get the pdf. The pdf is muddy and faded to the extent it won't convert to txt. So, you've got to read it as it is. I read it on my desktop computer. But, if there's any would-be TV writers amongst you - this is the place to start. You'll learn heaps about the real world of TV writing and have a lot of laughs along the way.

07-29-2008, 06:40 PM	#3
daffy4u I'm Super Kindle-icious Posts: 6,734 Karma: 2434103 Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Long Drive, Calinadia Candafornia Device: KDXG, KT, Oasis	Thanks RCR! For anyone else looking, the gray box is what you need to click. Last edited by daffy4u; 03-02-2009 at 02:33 AM.

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07-29-2008, 05:30 PM	#2
kilohertz53 Zealot Posts: 141 Karma: 671 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Harwichport, MA Device: Sony PRS-500, Sony PRS-350, Augen "The Book"	Thanks for the link, RCR! Man, you're not kidding about the webpage design! Even with your explicit instructions, it took me a couple of minutes to find the download link for the book.

08-04-2008, 02:55 AM	#4
carld Wizard Posts: 2,698 Karma: 4748723 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: Kindle Paperwhite	I didn't even get a gray box in Firefox, just the words. But, thanks for the link. I'll see how PGNRead handles the conversion to the Kindle.

08-13-2008, 10:29 AM	#5
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,970 Karma: 128903378 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	The site is a real mess. It wants Apple Quicktime install as a browser plugin. And for that, I say... STAY AWAY! Any site that needs Apple Quicktime is a mess.

08-16-2008, 05:29 PM	#6
radius Lector minore Posts: 649 Karma: 1738720 Join Date: Jan 2008 Device: Aura One, Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e, Google Pixel Slate	On the other hand, the book itself was fascinating to me. The ironic thing is, the author complains about all kinds of bad TV writing, when the examples he gives from his own shows seem cliched and unfunny to me.