Paula Yoo - Writer/Co-Producer of SyFy's Eureka

Paula Yoo has one of the coolest jobs on the planet – she’s a writer and co-producer for the SyFy Channel’s hit show, Eureka. The show is currently in the offseason, but will return for an Xmas episode in December and Season 4.5 next year. Paula has also written for NBC’s West Wing and Fox’s Tru Calling (yes, she wrote for the Dushku).

BG: How did you get the Eureka gig?
PY: My agents and manager set up meetings for me with various TV network executives and showrunners for potential jobs. This is a very common practice in the industry. So they arranged for some meetings with the Eureka folks, and that’s how I got the job! I feel very lucky to be on such a wonderful show – I love the characters and the sci-fi elements. I also think our actors and production crew are amazing. I am grateful to work with such talented writers – I learn a lot from their veteran writing experience, too.

BG: How do you decide who writes what and does everybody make a contribution to each episode?
PY: Every show works differently. In general, writers sit in a writers’ room and pitch ideas and discuss character arcs for the series. Eventually, writers are assigned certain episodes to write. In the end, it’s a total 100 percent team effort and everyone contributes to the entire process of putting an episode on the air. It’s a really fun job!

BG: How many episodes of Tru Calling did you write? Were you disappointed (like the rest of us) that it ended so abruptly?
PY: I was lucky enough to co-write one episode with Stephanie Williams and Scott Shepherd. (“The Getaway” Story by Scott Shepherd and Teleplay by Stephanie Williams & Paula Yoo). And yes, I was very bummed the show ended because I thought it introduced a lot of really cool areas of mythology to explore near the end of the first season and the start of the second season. Still, it was a fun show to write for – as a Buffy fan, who knew I’d be writing for the awesome Eliza Dushku?

BG: As a sci-fi writer, when is it okay to fudge on the science part?
PY: Whenever I write anything involving science, I try to be as accurate as possible. Ultimately, the story is the most important focus. If I do take any liberties with the science, I try to make sure that the general laws of science still apply. The actual liberties are poetic and fictional licenses where I can make up something. And when I do make up something, I try to keep it within a rational realm where it’s conceivable that this type of technology could possibly happen in the future. I’m always amazed at what our real-life scientists are capable of right now – the advances they’re making in science and technology seem like science fiction but these advances actually exist! It’s an exciting time for science and technology!

BG: Do you have a preferred gaming console? What games are your favorites?
PY: I’m not officially a gamer. I’m usually too busy writing. I know I’m about to date myself, but when the first Tomb Raider and original Metal Gear Solid came out on Playstation 1, I was BLOWN AWAY. I had no idea video games could have such intricate and exciting movie plots. I would play Tomb Raider and MGS for HOURS. Now those games seem so basic compared to the incredible advances they’ve made in gaming since then! But I still love those classic games. I also really loved Tao Feng, this cool fighting game by the guys who did Mortal Kombat. I tend to like fighting games or puzzle/journey games like Zelda and Tomb Raider. I like Halo but it makes me too dizzy so I can’t play it. We have a Wii, Playstation 2, XBox, GameCube, and I am addicted to Solitaire and Tetris on my iPhone.

BG: One last question, Star Trek or Star Wars…or BSG?
PY: Star Trek. I love Star Wars and of course I love BSG. But always, hands down, Star Trek. I love them ALL – original Star Trek and Next Gen AND DS9 AND Voyager AND Enterprise.

Outside of Eureka, Paula is also an author. Her debut novel, Good Enough, isn’t sci-fi, but it is hilarious and inspiring. She also shreds on the violin and has taught her cat, Oreo (who has more followers than I do), how to tweet. Check out Paula online at www.paulayoo.com or follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/paulayoo, where she sometimes tweets about hijinks from the writers’ room at Eureka.

Author - Michele Hale

Michele is an indie author and publisher from Austin, Texas. She loves roller derby, tattoos and science fiction. She is the founder of Cowgirlie Publishing and is currently working on a three-book sci-fi series due out in 2011.

website: www.michelejhale.com
twitter: www.twitter.com/michelejhale