Screenwriting Blog | Final Draft®

Karin Maxey

After seeing her first big screen movie 007: License to Kill at age six, Karin naturally became obsessed with writing action-infused stories. The next time she’d see Benicio del Toro was in person, at the 68th Cannes Film Festival—he was there for the Sicario red carpet, she was there for her first produced short film in the basement of the Palais…same-same. In between, Karin earned a Creative Writing Degree and landed management at Echo Lake Entertainment. Her scripts have been a Big Break Top 3 finalist, HollyShorts Film Fest Official Selection, and a multi-Screencraft competitions semi-finalist. Karin is also a screenplay editor who delights in the process of polishing writers' work for submission. You can find her at www.writergirlkarin.com.

History of TV: Mo to the E, It's 'Moesha'

March 4, 2021

It’s been a few weeks since we took a fond look back at a comedy show, and Moesha was one that bridged dramatic subjects with humor beautifully in a sitcom package. One that was also UPN’s biggest success. Grammy Award®-winning R&B singer Brandy ...

History of TV: Paging Dr. Ross Back to the 'ER'

February 25, 2021

Whether you watched it back in the day or not, you knew the show: ER. NBC’s undeniable ‘90s hit ran a marathon 15 seasons, becoming the epitome of that decade’s “must-see TV” and paving the way for many a medical show to come (you’re welcome, Dr. Gre...

History of TV: ‘Empire’ State of Mind

February 18, 2021

Everything about Fox’s Empire feels at once familiar and totally, brazenly new. The musical drama aired from 2015 to just last year, but in light of 2020 being so... 2020, it already feels like the show ended a lifetime ago. Empire’s popularity snowb...

History of TV: No Objections To the Zaniness of Legal Dramedy 'Ally McBeal'

February 11, 2021

There was The Practice and then there was Ally McBeal. The story is that Fox originally conceived the whimsical legal dramedy as a way to keep female viewership firmly planted on the couch after that other ‘90s schmaltz-fest (and I say that with love...

History of TV: To Boldly Live on 'Deep Space Nine'

February 4, 2021

When Commander Benjamin Sisko commenced the Deep Space Nine station log on stardate 46388.2, we were introduced to one of the grittiest entries in the Star Trek canon. Star Trek: The Next Generation was ending, and it was welcoming its successor in t...

History of TV: How ‘Boy Meets World’ Tackled Coming-of-Age, Comedy Style

January 28, 2021

All of the shows on ABC’s popular family-themed block of Friday night programming that ran from 1989 to 2000 were spectacularly ‘90s in aesthetic. Watching for the teased hair, neon color-blocking and Walkmans (the pre-iPod, iPod) alone is worthwhile...

History of TV: Politics and Olivia Pope Define Shondaland Hit ‘Scandal’

January 21, 2021

I resisted watching Scandal when it originally aired. I’m not into politics. But the premise is screenwriting genius — not really surprising coming from its creator, acclaimed showrunner Shonda Rhimes. Scandal is about a former White House communicat...

History of TV: 'Family Matters' Gave Us Wholesome Comedy...And Urkel

January 14, 2021

Family Matters will most likely go down in history for its breakout character Steve Urkel (played by Jaleel White), but it offered plenty more in terms of laughs and screenwriting takeaways for sitcom writers. As one of the longest running American s...

History of TV: Breaking Down Murder Mystery Network Classic ‘Castle’

January 7, 2021

Castle was the epitome of network prime time television when it aired. Light and frothy murder that was easy on the eyes with a sexy cast who solved the case in 44 minutes or less, and offered a side of wit and romance. The ABC crime/comedy/drama hit...