Modern TV Writers Have a Tough Job

This morning I was frying eggs and sausage, getting them ready to be placed on the bread sizzling in the adjacent pan.  While cooking, I was watching Dr. Who, Season 3 Episode 10 (marvelous stuff).  I love the Doctor's view of humanity.

As I cooked and watched TV on my MS Surface, it occurred to me that the modern television writer faces a dual disadvantage that no previous writer in their profession has had to contend with.  Thirty-five years ago, there were really only 3 network stations creating story content.  Then came along cable, and throughout the 90's, more and more stations began creating original shows.  The competition for consumer viewing time spiked.

However, consider what writers face today.  There are not only the myriad of channels providing new content.... thanks to Netflix, the present writer must also contend with his or her predecessors.

I have many seasons of Dr. Who left to watch.  After that, Breaking Bad will probably be next. "Old" shows take up a great portion of the viewing time I have available.

I am even consciously avoiding shows like Game of Thrones and Once Upon A Time until the shows end - that way I can watch them straight through uninterrupted.  As one of my friends quipped on Facebook this morning.

On a side note, Netflix has also started to release its own original content... but unlike shows of the past, they have abandoned the week to week model and release a "season's" worth of shows at once.

We are living in interesting entertainment times....

Where do you think we are headed?