In early 2004, I made contact with an ambitious young woman looking to put together her own television series based on a vision and leading of hers. While she was very much aware of the positions needed to produce a show, she did not know the definition of one of the most fundamental building blocks of any show, whether live-action or animation. This cornerstone is best known as the series bible, but sometimes is called a writer’s guide. For consistency, I will refer to it as a series bible, because more than just writers use it. While I’ve had mention of it elsewhere, the series bible has never been fully explained before in my columns. Journey with me as I define a series bible and its various applications in the formation and production of an animated series.
A series bible contains a listing of all the major characters and locations, with narrative descriptions of each and its importance to the series universe. The depth of these descriptions varies by both the style of the series, size of the cast and number of locations, and the genre. A series about real-life kids in the everyday world (think RECESS, PEPPER ANN, or ED, EDD, AND EDDY) requires less to be described than an action-adventure show set in today’s world with superhero characters, regular kids with advanced technology, or in a future time or world (THE KIDS NEXT DOOR, STATIC SHOCK, XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN).
The main purpose of this series bible is to make sure that all the writers assigned on a show stay within the rules when pitching and writing stories in order to maintain the tone and feel of the show. It also provides a list for the conceptual artists to work from in order to begin designing the major characters and locations, artwork which then often can be included in the series bible and also used to pitch the show to potential producers. Even if the show is being pitched in-house versus shopping it around to various studios, the same thing applies. There must be some guide to know what the most essential elements in a series are.
Which brings me to another series bible related definition– the “mini-bible.” Defined as a condensed version of the larger series bible, this is often what gets “left behind” after meeting with prospective producers so they can think over whether or not they want to buy your show, since decisions are rarely made on the spot. Usually this is because whomever you meet with has to sell his or her superiors on the idea too. Often the mini-bible includes early conceptual art for key characters and locations, sometimes not; this will depend in part on who you are pitching to and how important it is for them to see artwork with the pitch (which producers usually do, from what I’ve gathered from my work experience and other interviews).
Bear in mind that a series bible is meant to be organic, to grow and change as more about the characters and their interactions are learned through how they naturally come out on the page. Such changes, however, cannot be arbitrarily made by writers; they must still ask the producers if the changes can be made (because someone else may very well be working on an episode that makes this item a known series fact!), and if so approved, the story editors or producers either amend the bible or make a note of it for all future episodes, depending on the stage of production.
For those readers working on original concepts, I recommend — once you have the series bible down in a format you feel comfortable with — either registering your series bible with the Writers Guild of America or copyrighting it, both if you can. Legal protection potential aside, it makes for a good sensible paper trail to show when you completed something. Bear in mind I’m not an attorney and not qualified to give advice specific to your situation. I am, however, strongly encouraging you to look into and consider your options.
Whether you are envisioning your own world with its own unique and wondrous stories to tell, or trying to learn how to operate in someone else’s universe, the series bible should remain your first and foremost road map.