Matthew Weiner - Writing Process

Writing Process

A March 2012 New York Times article by Dave Itzkoff described Weiner's writing process for Mad Men. Weiner said "here's about a three-week rumination period, which involves a lot of napping, a lot of holding books. Whether I'm reading them or not, I cannot say." Itzkoff writes that Weiner ruminates on his own life during this period and " with series consultants like Bob Levinson, a veteran ad man of the '60s, and the real-life history that might have an impact" on the series' characters. "Then he gathers his writers, who are each assigned to bring in 10 story ideas; Mr. Weiner acknowledged that he shoots down many of these pitches. From what survives, an outline is generated, a script is assigned, and when it comes in from his writers, Mr. Weiner rewrites it." "If I change less than 80 percent of it, I will leave their name on it by themselves," Weiner said, adding "I would never want my name on something that I did not write most of. Part of television is you get rewritten."