30 Second Interview with…..Jane Espenson

James Lipton and the Actors Studio did it for fun with the actors…..Now, I’m doing it for fun with the writers.

Jane Espenson is a writing machine. Not only did she write and work on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, one of my favorite TV shows of the nineties (and I’m not afraid to admit it), but she also helped me out and shed light on where the word ‘frak’ originated. Yes, according to Jane, frak is a Battlestar Galactica phrase; and by the amount of times ‘frak’ has arisen in these interviews as a writers favorite curse word, I’d say we have quite a few Battlestar fans here.

So, who is American script writer and television producer, Jane Espenson?

Born in Ames, Iowa in 1964, Telly loving Jane first chased her dream of becoming a writer at the age of 13 after realising army medical TV show M*A*S*H accepted spec scripts. Even though she was still in junior high, and without the promise of a dime, she scribbled out a draft episode….. Still yet to be submitted.

Years later, while Jane was studying computer science and linguistics at University of California, Berkeley, she decided to try her luck at writing again. This time her target was Star Trek: The Next Generation. As part of a script submission program open to amateur writers, and which Jane refers to as the “last open door of show business”, she submitted several spec scripts.

In 1992, Jane landed a position with the Disney Writing Fellowship. From here, she worked on a number of sitcoms. These included ABC’s comedy Dinosaurs and Touchstone Television‘s short-lived Monty.

Now in her early thirties, Jane moved to TV’s Ellen as both writer and producer. However, after only a year, she decided she needed something different to comedy. Dramatic writing caught her attention and she applied to Mutant Enemy Productions for a position on the hit show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

spike — Spike: Jane's favorite Buffy character.

Joining season three, Jane remained until the shows climactic end five years later. These five years saw her promoted from both writer and executive story editor to co-executive producer and in 2003, Jane shared the Hugo Award for Best Short Dramatic Presentation with co-writer Drew Godard for writing the episode “Conversations with Dead People“.

All in all, Jane wrote 23 episodes for Buffy, starting with “Band Candy“, and finishing with Buffy’s penultimate episode, “End of Days“; and was the only staff writer to be credited on more than five episodes in a single season.

2005 saw Jane editing BenBella Books Finding Serenity: Anti-Heroes, Lost Shepherds and Space Hookers in Joss Whedon’s Firefly. And in 2009, co-wrote several comic book stories for Tales of the Slayers, Tales of the Vampires and Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight, the one-shots Jonathan and Reunion and the limited series Haunted.

Having already wrote a third season episode, and co-writing another, Battlestar Galactica welcomed Jane in 2008 as co-executive producer. She worked on every episode for the fourth series and wrote webisodes, and in 2010 moved over to Battlestars spin-off series Caprica, where she was co-executive producer and took on show runner duties midway through the first season.

She left Battlestar with a Streamy Awards after winning Best Writing for a Dramatic Web Series for Battlestar Galactica: The Face of the Enemy

In 2010, after claiming to be a fan of Torchwood, in particular the third series, “Children of Earth“, Jane joined creator, Russell T Davies, for Torchwood: Miracle Day, writing episodes 3, 5, 7 and co-writing episode 8 with Ryan Scott. Both writers also collaborated on the webseries, Torchwood: Web of Lies, starring Eliza Dushku.

Jane co-wrote and produced her first independent original web series with co-creator Brad Bell, entitled Husbands, which revolves around the life of two newly married gay men and premiered at http://husbandstheseries.com on Sept. 13, 2011.

Even though Jane has written episodes for dramas The O.C., Jake in Progress, and Gilmore Girls, she is without a doubt, best known for writing science fiction and fantasy. TV shows such as Battlestar Galactica, Game of Thrones, Torchwood, Angel, Dollshouse, Warehouse 13, and Once Upon a Time have all received her magic touch and are a force to be reckoned with in the ratings.

Jane is currently working as a consulting producer and writer on the ABC‘s series Once Upon a Time.

So, what did the woman who invented the name of the drink “Zima” while working for a marketing firm make of our questions?

1. What is your favorite word? Bubble

2. What is your least favorite word? Bitch

3. What turns you on? Wordplay

4. What turns you off? Waiting

5. What sound do you love? Peeping

6. What sound do you hate? Peeing

7. What is your favorite curse word? Frak

8. What profession other than yours would you like to attempt? Zookeeper

9. What profession would you not like to do? Assassin

10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates? ”One more time around.”

So, what was your favorite Buffy character? What was/is your favorite Espenson show?

Contact Information

For more information regarding Jane Espenson, please check out her Website, Facebook, twitter

If you want more of me, I can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Linkedin

8 responses to “30 Second Interview with…..Jane Espenson”

Holly Sweany

February 8, 2012

I am forever a Buffy fan and Spike definitely my favorite character. Glad when Spike showed up on Angel.
Husbands is hysterical, if you haven’t watched it you should. As for my favorite Show that currently would be Once Upon A Time. loved Caprica, not sure what happened, although a character I loved was killed off in a way that seemed out of sequence or just odd (Barnabas).
Warehouse 13 is on my always watch list.
Now that I think of it I am a fan of all the shows mentioned. Hey wait, is there such a thing as an Espensonite? LOL.
P.S. Also enjoy the writing sprints on Twitter!

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1. Donna Newton
  
  February 9, 2012
  
  I took my daughter to see ‘Spike’ at a convention. She was only 4 and ended up on stage with him. Have some fabulous photos. I will have to dig them out.
  
  I think Jane has witten, created, and worked on nearly every favorite show of mine…. but I’m not envious….MUCH! 🙂
  
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Tameri Etherton

February 8, 2012

Whoa, she’s a rockstar! So many of the shows she’s worked on are my favorites and you have her on your blog. You’re a rockstar, too! I don’t know how you do it, but you get the best people for this gig.

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1. Donna Newton
  
  February 9, 2012
  
  You’re telling me! She kept chatting to me via email. I can honestly say she is one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.
  
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Karen McFarland

February 9, 2012

Well you know what a skedish chicken I am when it comes to this vampire, ghost, paranormal thing. lol But I did see the Gilmore girls and some episodes of the O.C. So I might not be all the retarded Donna. 🙂

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Donna Newton

February 9, 2012

I loved the O.C.! I have them on DVD, well all apart from season one. That disappeared on me. I’ve never seen the Gilmore Girls though. I imagine it was good. I am looking forward to the UK airing Once Upon a Time. That looks right up my street.

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Coleen Patrick

February 9, 2012

Loved Buffy! I think Spike was my fave though. I liked his complicated relationship with Buffy.
And Gilmore Girls is a show I can watch endlessly in reruns, something about those quirky small town characters!

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1. Donna Newton
  
  February 9, 2012
  
  There was something very sexy about Spike. I just love bad boys turned good. (I’m not admitting to being a Vampire Diaries fan, but I loved Damon the moment I laid eyes on him – when all my friends were gushing over Stefan) 🙂
  
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