WGA Field Trip

So the other day, in an effort to enjoy the freaky, global-warming spring weather of 90F in LA in mid-March, I actually left the Wave Cave and made a field trip that has long been in the offing. I and a friend went to the WGA Foundation Library. Angelenos know exactly where it is: on Fairfax, right across from CBS and the Grove. I have driven past it a million times and tut-tutted myself that I should go check it out. Rouge Wavers – I finally did.

The WGA is like the Emerald City to me; an almost sacred, magical place. I imagine earning my points, becoming a member and enjoying all the benefits of recognition, respect and health insurance. I imagine having my picture up on the walls by the other writers, or having my script pages bound in leather with gilt lettering. Some fine day.

The library is small but absolutely fantastic. You have to get a locker in a very tiny locker room to store your backpack or purse; the only thing allowed in with you is your laptop, pen and paper, basically. The librarians are very helpful and even have a candy dish of “lucky brads” which they encourage you to help yourself to. The brads are donated from produced scripts so of course the Wave-inatrix had to scoop up some. When I visited there were about four writers working – again this is not a big library, people. But the collection of scripts – feature and television – is really something to see. Row upon row. In the television section I saw everything from Welcome Back Kotter to Seinfeld to The West Wing, Ugly Betty and Lost. They have everything. Ditto the feature film section. The scripts are filed alphabetically and it is just amazing to see every script from just about every feature film you can imagine.

There is a computer station at which you can look up just about any script or movie and if you’d like to see the movie, you jot down the number, give that to the librarian and you are then seated at another computer with headphones behind a glass partition where you can view the movie. So you could go to the WGA, read the shooting script for AMERICAN BEAUTY and then watch the movie. And this is not to mention that the library also has shelves and shelves of books and magazines on the topic of entertainment writing; everything from plays to scripts to television specs.

The WGA publishes what is in my opinion the best magazine on screenwriting called Written By. Stacks of the magazine lie near the bulletin board and visitors may take an issue or two. One helpful librarian, upon answering some of my questions about the TV script collection told me that he knows which are the best TV spec scripts to be writing right now and he can tell this from the number of writers that request them. He is a barometer for what’s hot and what’s not in the TV spec world. According to him,

Good Comedy Spec Shows:
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
30 Rock
How I Met Your Mother

Bad Comedy Spec Shows:
Ugly Betty
Earl
The Office

Good Drama Spec Shows:
Heroes
Dexter
The Riches

Interesting information. From the horse’s mouth. More or less. At any rate, if you live in the LA area, I strongly urge you to make a pilgrimage to the Mecca for writers in Hollywood – the WGA Foundation Library. If you live out of town, perhaps you can put it on your list for an upcoming visit.

The library is open Monday through Friday from 11am to 5pm and Thursdays 11am to 8pm. The last Friday of every month is closed to the public so be aware of that.

The library can be reached at 323-782-4544 and the web address is: www.wgfoundation.org

So head on down, Rouge Wavers, to the thrilling and solemn shrine of great writing and take in the mini-tour, feast your eyes on some amazing scripts and don’t forget to grab some lucky brads. And don’t forget your laptop; someday your scripts may just be on one of those bookshelves.

Can You Actually Write There?

Yes. I have friends who like to go write at the WGA Foundation Library but I am also told the Santa Monica Library makes for excellent writing and there is also the Office, in Santa Monica. The Office is pretty fancy-schmancy and you do have to have a membership but for kicks, check the website: www.theofficeonline.com

I am told that at the Office you can rub elbows with A-list writers. Plus you can drink coffee while you write – beverages are prohibited at the WGA Foundation Library. I keep saying “Foundation” between WGA and library because the librarian stressed that the WGA does not actually own the library – the library was a donation and guilds cannot accept such large donations and – boy she went off on a tangent. So okay, nice librarian lady.

Here’s an article from Written By about cafés in Los Angeles that make good writing spaces:

http://www.wga.org/writtenby/writtenbysub.aspx?id=1532

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