Learn Quinta Brunson's $5 Bill Writing Technique

Man, I love Abbot Elementary so much. It's sweet and encouraging, and it shows how you can tackle big ideas with comedy and make the world a better place.

Oh yeah, and it's a Philly show, so you know it always has my support.

The way you get a great TV show is through great writing, and this show has that more than most. It really proves why you need incredibly strong characters to sell any pilot and prove that the show has legs.

So, how do you get all those voices to sound unique and special?

During a panel at The Paley Center for Media, Abbott Elementary creator Quinta Brunson shared a simple trick she learned from Larry Wilmore that helped her characters feel alive.

She calls it the $5 Bill Test.

Let's dive in and learn it together.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

The $5 Bill Test

Okay, so this was so simple, but it sort of also blew my mind. I have been working on a larger ensemble idea, and I really needed this to help me get my mind right.

So here's the whole thing...

If a $5 bill is lying on the floor, every single character in your cast must pick it up and react to it completely differently.

So, how do the people in your story do it?

The cash is the perfect catalyst to showcase who these people are and how they view the world. We want to know how they view the money and what it means in their life.

As soon as they interact with it, we should know them.

Are they sneaky? Do they look for its owner? Does it surprise them? Do they feel like they deserve it?

It's all there for you to mine.

If two people in your script do the same thing with that money, one of them is taking up valuable real estate on the page.

Could be a darling to kill, or they may need a makeover.

How Abbott Elementary Picks Up Cash

Abbott has the best ensemble on TV. There are so many characters, but Brunson took the time to show how each of them is unique in how they view the lost money.

• Janine: Picks it up and is deeply stressed. She launches a full-blown crusade to hunt down its rightful owner.
• Ava: Pockets it and asks zero questions.
• Melissa: Assumes it's a trap or a scam.
• Barbara smiles quietly and accepts it as a subtle blessing from the Almighty.
• Gregory: Refuses to touch it because physical currency is a germ factory.
• Jacob: Launches into an earnest lecture on the horrors of late-stage capitalism.
• Mr. Johnson: Says he helped print that exact bill back when he worked a gig at the U.S. Mint.

Notice how none of these reactions require a 10-page backstory? You just get laughs, but you know who the person is and why they're doing what they're doing.

It's all in the action.

How to Use This in Your Next Rewrite

How do your characters view the world? Even if you're writing a drama and not a sitcom or any genre movie, you can use this tool.

Find your voice in the characters and make them all unique.

When your characters possess worldviews distinct enough to clash over a stray piece of paper, the dialogue should come naturally after that.

Next time you’re stuck sitting across from a blank page wondering why a scene feels flat, drop a five-dollar bill on the floor and see who picks it up.

Let me know what you think in the comments.