I was poking around Facebook and joined a group to help Alex, an actor studying at USC, to get a principal role on General Hospital. I've written a couple of commentaries (published in Teen Voices Magazine) about the bad raps that soaps often get. I've been a GH fan for about 4 years and used to be embarrassed that I watched a soap. I've done a little research into the business and the majority of soap watchers are not housewives as many think. Viewers are college educated men (yes, men!) and women. Soaps aren't full of sex and questionable morals (as many probably think they are). Soaps such as GH and All My Children have led the way in introducing viewers to hot-button issues such as HIV (Robin Scorpio, GH), lesbianism (Bianca Montgomery, AMC) and rape (Elizabeth Webber, GH). I plan to write a spec script for GH and a soap is a completely different medium than primetime. A soap is a never-ending movie with endless possibilities for creative thinking.
A slew of big actors starred on soaps. Courtney Cox-Arquette, Lindsay Lohan, John Stamos, Eva Longoria and Josh Dumal all broke into TV through soaps. The now cancelled The O.C. is a primetime soap as is Desperate Housewives.
I know that I get those looks when I say I want to write a soap. I used to care but now I smile and say "yes, that's right." I've even converted my dad to show a little interest in this new avenue for my writing career. :)
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