Every title other than EP and Showrunner means… writer. It means they write episodes. Sure, the lower titles on the totem pole don’t write as many episodes as more senior writers. But all in all, they just write. Even the Story Editor = writer. Also, not to be forgotten. The WGA requires shows to commission a few freelance writers during the season. So some people are writing for the show who aren’t on the staff.
What does this all mean? This means watching the opening credits of your favorite show each week and checking to see who’s listed as the writer of that episode and checking their title. You’ll begin to notice who gets repeat episodes, who is tagged on with other writers on an episode (sometimes they are a team of writers who were hired that way, sometimes not), and who seems to be some random person that doesn’t fit into the list of writers you’ve compiled.
Yes, some titles read Producer. No, they don’t produce anything. They write. They’ve just been on the staff long enough to receive a producer credit. Again, until a writer reaches Executive Producer status, he/she simply writes his/her given episodes. Some EP’s are title only. They may be a Creator who has nothing to do with the day-to-day running of the show but there would be no show without him/her. Other EP’s are the Shonda Rhimes of the world. They make the show happen. They take the meetings with the network week to week to get notes and discuss the full production of the show (though, by now I’m sure Shonda answers to no one). Believe me, the staff writer ain’t seeing much of the Network… unless the Network does a popup visit to the Writers Room (been there, done that. SURPRISE!).
The most important title of them all is Writing Assistant. Why? Because it’s the hardest of the jobs to attain AND it’s the pipeline to the actual staff. If you’re so lucky to become a writer’s assistant, and you take brilliant notes, make brilliant coffee, and never f*ck up a lunch order, you may be trusted to assist on an actual script. If your writing doesn’t suck, you may have just landed yourself an actual staff writer position for the next season. However, this isn’t an annual turnover expectation. You can be a writing assistant FOR YEARS before you get bumped up to staff or bumped out for the next assistant. You never know. The Writers Room is a fickle place.
How do you become a writer’s assistant? Well… do you know any Showrunners, Producers, Network execs? Yep, it’s a who-you-know game as usual. But for real this time. It’s a coveted spot and someone’s niece’s cousin is in line…park it at the back and wait your turn…and hopefully, you’ll actually get a turn.
Here’s the list of titles for those who care:
Staff Writer
Story Editor
Executive Story Editor
Co-Producer
Producer
Supervising Producer
Co-Executive Producer
Executive Producer
Showrunner