Interview: Kimi Howl Lee on Selling a Show to Hulu

Kimi Howl Lee sold her show $ugar to Hulu, has written for Locke & Key and The Morning Show, and is repped by WME. She's also a BlueCat alumna.

Finding Her Voice

BlueCat: When you submitted to the TV Writing Competition, what were you hoping to get out of it?

Kimi Howl Lee: Honestly? Validation. I had been writing on my own for a while, and I needed someone outside my circle to tell me whether my work was any good. The feedback I got from BlueCat was specific and constructive — it wasn't just "good job" or "needs work." It pointed to actual moments in the script and explained what was working and what wasn't.

BlueCat: How did the competition experience shape your career?

Lee: It gave me confidence to keep going. Breaking into TV is brutal. You send scripts into the void and hear nothing back. Having a competition acknowledge your work — and give you real notes — keeps you writing. And ultimately, that's what it comes down to. You have to keep writing.

On Writing for Streaming

BlueCat: How has writing for streaming platforms changed the craft?

Lee: The biggest shift is that audiences are more sophisticated. They've seen everything. So you can't rely on formula. You have to find new angles on familiar stories. The bar for originality is higher, but that's actually exciting for writers. It means there's room for weirder, more personal stories.

BlueCat: Advice for writers submitting their first pilot?

Lee: Write the show you want to watch. Not the show you think will sell. If you're writing something just because you think it's marketable, it'll read that way. Authenticity is the hardest thing to fake and the easiest thing to spot.