This week I find myself wrestling with stakes. Not the Buffy the Vampire kind. That would be much more fun. Swish! Slice! Problem solved.

No. The demon I’m facing is a writer’s favourite note. Are the stakes high enough?

This is a completely legitimate note. And very important to ask before sending your little lamb (aka a screenplay) to the wolves (aka agents and sundry readers). But in return, I must ask: Have we become so desensitized that we need a person’s life on the line to feel a journey is worth watching?

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Writers love to debate which is the hardest genre to write. In fact, the hardest genre to write is the one you have no talent for. But let’s play the game.

Drama is hard because it’s slow and ya gotta make me care about stuff that’s already happening in my own sad life. I mean, why would I pay for that? Cue the sweeping visuals and dramatic music.

Horror is tough because…wait…it’s not that hard. Blood, guts, sex, and not much plot or character. Essentially a scary porn movie.

Now comedy. Comedy is hard. Not just because everyone has an opinion about the funny. Balancing character arcs, jokes, meaningful moments, and a relevant plot takes real focus. Think juggler with sharp objects on a unicycle breathing fire.

But if I went purely by the number of times a genre crashes and burns, then the gold medal of difficulty would have to go to Thrillers.

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