How do YOU book TV shows?

[The Nickman]

I realise this sounds like a pretty daft question from someone who has played this game over multiple iterations of the franchise, but I just always really struggle with the week-to-week grind of booking TV shows, particularly if you have to book two or more a week (like in a WWE type company).

 

I’ve always tried to use Autobooker to do the “heavy lifting” for TV and I just fill in the card around that, but Autobooker... just sucks. It keeps throwing the same matches at me week after week, show after show and the shows I end up with are quite messy and end up looking pretty awful and my storylines end up just not flowing as well as if I took the actual time to book the show myself.

 

So saying all that... how do YOU guys book week to week TV? How do you choose who faces off in each match, who is in your Main Event, which angles and segments occur where on the card? Do you figure out your Main Event first and book the card around it, or do you sequentially book the card from start to finish, not really knowing where the show will take you until it does?

 

Any and all ideas will be greatly appreciated. I really love the save I’m playing (WWF 2002 transitioning into the brand split), but what’s holding me back bigtime is the weekly booking of Raw and Smackdown. I don’t even have any B Shows because of this reason!

[tzeno]

<p>First off, I usually only use autobooker for B shows- with the occasional manual booking note for specific outcomes. As for my regular shows...</p><p> </p><p>

I *try* to book the next ppv (using my notes) as soon as the previous ppv is ran. My ppv bookings are tied in directly to my active storylines (with the occasional cross-storyline booking). For each tv show, I keep in mind build to the ppv, with only the rare 1-on-1 match between ppv opponents. I otherwise use a mix of tag matches involving singles feud members, singles matches involving people in tag feuds, and occasionally big-name main events (I use the "ringside" booking note to satisfy storyline associations). For 2-hour long shows, I've found a 7-match card with segments keeps my flow pretty solid, making sure to feature my best microphone and most over wrestlers in those segments.</p><p> </p><p>

With remaining matches/segments, I follow these ideas:</p><p> </p><p>

- If the rest of your card is tight, low-rated segments don't hurt (in fact, can help bring a crowd down naturally). I've gotten several lower card wrestlers over by using "Braun Strowman" booking- I hire a local wrestler, and let my powerhouse low carders destroy them.</p><p>

- Tag matches help get lower card wrestlers into higher-rated big matches. Also works with mixed tag matches.</p><p>

- I like putting really talented but unpopular wrestlers in matches with top-guys. I book the lower guy pretty strongly, ultimately with him losing.</p><p>

- When big-name guys offer to put lower card workers over, find multiple "fun" ways of taking advantage. Hugely increased the profile of one of my lower guys (Ranger in Cornellverse SWF) by inserting him into a secondary-title feud, allowing him a victory due to interference. Kept the storyline hot, gave Ranger a huge star-boost.</p><p> </p><p>

Other than that, I just try to fill gaps as I see fit.</p>

[pjs1986]

<p>I recently had a revelation on how to book TV and it's completely changed my TEW playing for the better.</p><p> </p><p>

The key for me is PRE BOOKING. I book one show with my storylines developing and as I click through the results I always click 'Pre Book' and put in the continuation of that segment for the next week. Then, when it comes to that show the majority of my story continuations are already there and I just fill around it. Most of the time I end up with a full show just from responding to the week before.</p><p> </p><p>

For me, this works brilliantly and means I only really have to think about booking that first show and the rest starts to flow really naturally because I'm linking it all up rather than struggling to remember what I did and what I had planned. It also feels realistic to me as shows like Dynamite will always announce next week during this week.</p><p> </p><p>

Hope it helps. It also makes coming back to the game after a week or two away much easier.</p>

[hailthebulldog]

<p>For me, my TV's are formatted pretty similarly.</p><p> </p><p>

Match</p><p>

Angle</p><p>

Match</p><p>

Angle</p><p>

Interview</p><p>

Match</p><p>

Angle</p><p>

Match</p><p>

Angle</p><p> </p><p>

This is USUALLY my format. Obviously, it's not set in stone but it's an easy template for me to start with. Also, the "Interview" is a sitdown interview, like the ones with Mick Foley and Jim Ross. It is different from a promo.</p>

[The Dynamite Sid]

<p>Depends on the company but generally if I'm booking TVs I'm booking WWF/SWF and I treat them the same.</p><p> </p><p>

Make sure that I have big angles and or matches to advance my main event storylines. Make sure I have either a huge angle or a main event calibre match planned for the finale (I like to know what this is ahead of time and it's often something set up on the previous show or at the start of the show it will appear on). Once all the main storylines are booked out I look down the midcard and lower card stories and then book their segments.</p><p> </p><p>

Then I'll take a look at booking analysis and sort by push/perception. I need something for all my main eventers/major stars to do so if any of them aren't in any storylines and haven't been booked yet I need to get them into a match or an angle. Thay might result in changing segments that are already booked and that's fine. It will occasionally mean a lesser storyline, angle or match will get cut for time. If there's any time left over I'll look to the talented lower card guys and throw them into some matches or some interview spots for guys I'm trying to give a push to.</p><p> </p><p>

If I've *still* got time left over after that it usually means I've done a poor job but I'll generally pad things with diva segments and hype packages or just give the extra few minutes to the work horses to let them shine.</p>

[TheShabadoo]

Whenever I book a week to week television show, I try to make each show centered around one major angle. A great real life example is the episode of Smackdown! where Mr. America had to take a lie detector test (May 29, 2003). Basically, there are 4-5 angles, and maybe a match, scattered around the show furthering this story. Then in-between these segments, I have little bits for other feuds being advanced, usually generic segments.

 

But shows where I don't have a major angle my shows usually look like this:

 

Open show with an angle involving the people in the storyline with the most heat (Storyline 1)

Angle With Storyline 2

Match With Storyline 2

Angle With Storyline 3

Match With Storyline 3

Angle With Storyline 4

Match With Storyline 4

Angle with Storyline 5

Match With Storyline 1

Another angle with Storyline 1

 

Its very formulaic, and they are most certainly my least favorite shows to book

[Makhai]

I don't have a set format, it's usually getting in all of my storyline stuff, and then weave in squashes and setup stuff with a decent main-event tag match or w/e until it lets me run. Then I fill out my dark stuff to get people work in. Supercards/PPVs are where I actually care. And it's one of the biggest reasons I can't do a diary. TV is monotony.

[The Lloyd]

This is nice thread, with some great thoughts in it. As a long-time diary writer, who mostly plays sports entertainment feds, this is how I do it... Let's say, I just booked and wrote a PPV like, Backlash... and Judgement Day is next...

 

I'll set my Judgement Day card in stone right after I finish writing Backlash. Things happen on the show and in the game, to 'set up' the following month. Injuries, turns, wins, losses, fun little trivial things etc.

 

The RAW or Smackdown after Backlash, I might already have talked about a match coming up 'next week' while booking the previous week. So The Godfather and Test finally have their big match, but there's not enough room for it on Backlash, so it's NEXT WEEK on RAW... I might have also mentioned that The Rock returns from injury, NEXT WEEK on RAW... That's a match and the opening segment booked already, from things that happened previously. While I'm writing Backlash, I'm constantly adding angles and matches to the next TV show too. So Edge and Christian beat The Hardyz by cheating. So on RAW, The Hardyz are going to demand a re-match, that kind of thing.

 

Keep in mind, you have a lot more wrestlers than you do spots on the card. Someone mentioned 7 matches per TV show (I do 6, just because it's quicker to write a diary with 6). I do 7 or 8 at the PPV. So if you have a standard TV show with say, 4 singles, and 3 tags, you end up using 20 wrestlers by my maths? That's an incredible low amount of guys and girls, when a WWE roster can be what, 60? More? So finding creative ways to use people is a must. Rather than just spamming six-mans and eight-mans on TV. They suck!

 

On TV, I like to make sure I have one incredible Main Event (two top guys, not feuding with each other). Maybe you have plans to push Eddie Guerrero to the next level, and he's an upper mid carder. Maybe you're thinking 'Mania next year, he might face The Rock for the Title... So that can be a TV Main Event six months before it, where Rock wins, but Eddie looks amazing. After that, the rest of the TV show can feature lower card guys.

 

I like using tag wrestlers in singles matches on TV. And singles guys in tags too. I almost always have the other partner as the manager (so Edge is Christian's manager and visa versa. Why wouldn't he be?). Two feuds combining into one tag match. Angle and Big Show are in a feud, so are Undertaker and Kane... So Kane and Big Show vs Angle and Undertaker. You can do a segment where Kane's stable takes Undertaker out before the match), then you've got a handicap match, or a limited involvement from Taker.

 

Creativity is the key to keep it fun. As I said, with using 20 guys in matches you've then got 40 guys to find a home for. Unimportant or Recognisable people don't need to be on TV every week for me, so that maybe leaves 20? I think I use 30-40 guys for a TV show. You can do segments where Rikishi cuts a promo on Bradshaw, telling him he'll see him in the ring next week! Rikishi is on screen, Bradshaw isn't. But he doesn't then need to be in any other segment, because he's been talked about. It keeps him fresh, it gives him a rest, it stops him being over exposed. Once you're nearly done booking the show, if you need a tag match to fill a hole, you can always add the APA vs Too Cool, and have Rikishi's promo be post-match and in the ring, saving Too Cool from a beatdown. That kind of thing.

 

Sorry, I've just rambled on there

[Editor6]

The first thing I do is determine my main event and two main angles. One of them will advance a major storyline; the other usually sets up that show's main event. These are the three segments everything revolves around.

 

Then I look at my storylines and title programs and see what needs emphasizing. Give the tag or midcard champs a defense, hold a contendership match, a confrontation backstage, whatever I didn't do on the last show. This is where I determine what I'm opening the main show with, be it one of these matches (in a less storyline-driven product) or one of the big angles.

 

Then I check to see which of the top guys still aren't booked. They get angles/promos or a short match against a low carder. Maybe two of them get into an argument and they fight later that night or next week. (I do a lot of rearranging of these last two categories as I book the show.)

 

That tends to knock out most of a show. I'll fill in the rest with things like hype videos, adjusting match and segment lengths, or even a throwaway midcard match if there's a lot of time left.

[Monday Night Chores]

Some excellence tips here. I’m just writing my first dynasty and some great things to take on board.

[daddytorgo1]

It depends on the show TBH.

 

Sometimes I go into one knowing what the Main Event is that I need in order to advance storylines, so I book backwards from it, and other times I am advancing storylines more through angles so I'll book those and fill in sort of "non storyline advancing matches" around them.

[mikeyboywonder15]

I've been booking using the 2004 mod, and just finished with Unforgiven. It was a bit hard at first, as tew 2020 is my first one, although I did have a save using the OP landxx mod.

 

So wow, I want to apologize. This is a very long response, but I'm just trying to get my points across, and give some examples.

 

But what others have said is right, pre booking/looking ahead. So I write down a potential match card. I put a bunch of matches down. I had two singles matches that I considered turning into tag matches, but since one of those guys is apart of another storyline I just though of, I crossed those two off. My big plan though, is try to get my potential match cards a month or two ahead. Once Survivor Series is done, I'm starting to look to WrestleMania. When I say that, I mean I'm going to put the matches I want to see on Mania. Like I've been doing, I'll take a break after each event, and book what happens on each show until the next one. So for instance, Batista is my current Intercontinental champion. I had Batista win King of the Ring, which got him an IC title match. I had Evolution "accidentally" cost Orton the title to Jericho. I figure Batista beating Jericho for it will probably give him a huge pop boost, and it did. They just had a triple threat match, and now finally, Orton is getting Batista one on one. So what I'm doing, and have done to this point with that storyline, is book what their feud is going to look like on each Raw leading into each event. Hopefully that made sense, cause I know I said a lot.

 

The biggest thing that has helped I will say, is there are a few long term plans I have. For instance, I just decided recently I want Batista taking the world title from Triple H at Mania, like in real life. Batista is the current IC champ. He's pretty much going to be champ until around Survivor Series, where he's going to lose it. I decided to part ways with Bischoff as the GM, and actually hired Bret Hart. Yeah, I got rid of those negative relationships, so in game it's like they all buried the hatchet. So I have Orton winning the title at Survivor Series. Triple H has been on a roll, so he's gonna feel like he's next in line. Hart throws a swerve, and decided to give Batista a shot at Orton. Triple H is going to accidentally cost Batista the match, but in Batista's mind, he feels Triple H is being greedy, and wants the title for himself. So at the Rumble, Triple H will beat Orton, and Batista will win the Rumble match. I'm going to kind of go from what really happened in real life. So Triple H will try to convince him to go for the WWE title. They'll have a tag match at No Way Out (Batista and Triple H) against honestly, I'm not quite sure who yet. But miscommunications will happen, and soon after Batista declares he's going after Triple H.

 

I have some long term plans for other wrestlers too. It's smart to get pen and paper, or use a word document on your pc. I personally enjoy pen and paper more. I have a book where I write out my match card. I have another where I just write what's happening week to week. For example, I have 5 weeks between Unforgiven and No Mercy. At the top I'll write what match I'm booking for. And I'll do 1/5, 2/5, etc. I'll write out what each wrestler will do that show, or what kind of promo it's going to be. Since doing that, it might take me a few days to write out the lead up for the event, writing for both Raw and SmackDown, and I'll manage to book all those shows in a day or two, depending on how long I play any given day. Doing that I've been able to book shows as quick as 10-15 minutes. Before doing that I could spend an hour or so per show, figuring out where I want to go next. It's best to write it down.

[HarryFandango86]

I do find myself booking *wrestler A attacks wrestler B* over and over again.. which can get somewhat tedious

[gazwefc83]

I have strict storylines turned off, it gives a lot more freedom.

 

I book my shows one month at a time using a 'booking template' spreadsheet, then booking it in-game

 

I use freestyle angles 100% of the time, it makes no sense to be to search through the angles looking for something that fits when freestyles angles are so easy to work with.

 

Template

http://www.mediafire.com/file/rlqahapj9e8goff/Booking+Template.xlsx/file

 

The spreadsheet calculates the angle/match ratio and has drop downs for title belts etc

 

Preview

 

This how I book my shows

[CzarKyle]

First off, I have a vastly different product than you. You're running WWE so the style's probably much more entertainment than mine. BUT here's a puro product example for anyone's that curious.

 

I always have an A & B show per week with 2 events per month. It definitely feels like a grind when I can't think of what to do, but I don't have to run angles in-between my matches due to my product.

 

However, I still run storylines in parallel with the matches and very rarely I'll use an angle outside of a match to display that storyline. My goal here is to emulate 90s AJPW where you see the story, but it's never explicitly told to you. Also I use storylines to remind me who I was favoring at the time if I take a week or two off from TEW.

 

For example, my A-Show (without pre & post-show matches)

Main Event - World Champion's match, 20min

Mid-Card - Tag/Regional/Junior Champion/#1 contender's match, 20min

Mid-Card - Tag/Regional/Junior Champion's match, 20min

Mid-Card - Television Champion's match/Hot Pushes, 20min

Lower-Card - Hot Pushes/Title contenders, 20min

Lower-Card - Developing Talent/Pushes/Title contenders, 20min

Opener - Developing Talent/Early Pushes, whatever time is left usually 11 to 13 min

 

I build all of my cards starting at the main event. This is usually a fatal 3-way with the World Champion winning over strong competition while the #1 contender is at ringside. OR I'll have the world and tag team champions team up in a 3v3 against a major stable or a team of the #1 tag and world contenders. I make sure that the World Champ and #1 Contender never face off in a 1v1 singles on TV, that kind of match is being built for the main event of a major show.

 

Then I work my way down for the mid-card. For example, tag team champs or the #1 tag contenders against a strong team in a 2v2v2 or 2v2. Maybe a 3v3 or 4v4 if they're in stables. I'll normally have whoever's not wrestling at ringside. Like they're scouting the competition. Once again, save the match you're building for the major show. With singles it's roughly the same with the World Champion, but using the minor belts instead.

 

Then in the middle of the show I like to use the TV title as a palette cleanser. I'll have old champs and young talent trade this pointless title around. I like to keep this reserved for those guys that are on a hot push or guys I'd like to sustain because their pop is exceeding their talent levels and I need their work rate to catch up before moving into more important matches.

 

Lower-card gets whoever is on a push or starting their journey to #1 contender. This is a bit of a treadmill and you'll grind thru a lot of lesser talent. Or if there's some guys with great chemistry out there and aren't anywhere near a title contention scenario, I'll throw them together for a decent rating.

 

Opener is where I can have a short match that normally comes out anywhere from 5 to 13min. I'll always use this spot for early pushes, squashes, and explosive-ring style. Or If I really need to, I can split this up for 2 important angles. Usually before the season finale I get a little nervous with injuries so I'll use those angles to get some guys through without having to risk injury.

 

Pre-show is for developing unrecognizable talent and the post-show is for recognizable talent that still needs a match and doesn't cause a big hit in pop either way.

 

Finally, since it's puro I keep all matches at 20min unless it's a "remainder" like the main-card opener. I don't have to cram my cards full of matches, but right now this is the sweet spot for my fed. Been getting 85 to 100 lately if I build things right.

 

Oh, and the B-Show is very simple. I alternate between 3-way and 2v2 matches at 12min apiece as long as 1 of the wrestlers is recognizable. It's a perfect testing ground. Just don't book anyone important to lose in a B-Show. Most of my major talent doesn't appear on the B-show.

[The Nickman]

Some really good and useful stuff here, guys. Thanks heaps

 

Using Pre Booking to book the next show while I’m currently booking is a really good idea I need to get on board with. As it stands right now I only usually use Pre Booking to book my PPVs, but I can see some really strong uses here.

[Slash-LN]

I used to run two two hour shows a week and that got tedious so I cut down to two one hour shows.

I use angles to book my story lines. And then I add matches in between. It's pretty formulaic.

 

Angle

Match

Match

Angle

Match

Match

Angle

Match

 

I've been using my younger wrestlers that need to hone their skills in the pre-show by putting them against workers that are going to be in angles or not featured at all on the main show.

 

So if Magnum TA is feuding with Barry Windham and I'm just having Magnum cut a promo on Barry during the main show I'll have Barry wrestle a young guy on the pre-show, say Bob Holly.

 

The matches on the main show are done with people that aren't in feuds and jobbers that have skill but aren't over and can use the boost from having good matches. Ric Flair just got done with a year of being in the top spot and feuding with Ricky Steamboat, Dusty Rhodes and Magnum TA so I'm taking a break from using him in feuds. So I'll use him in my main event against a young guy like Eddie Guerrero.

 

If I book a show without any angles then I tend to use a formula of 8 minute matches with two minute non-match time so a 10 minute segment and that will usually look like this

 

Tag Match

Women's Match

Men's Singles Match

Tag Match

Women's Match

Men's Singles Match

 

Those will be for B-Shows that are only meant to develop ring skills.

 

I used to do a lot of really involved booking and it took the fun out of it.

 

Simplifying everything makes booking go by a lot quicker and I can now book a month worth of the game in the same amount of time that it used to take to book a week.

[Woodsmeister]

Bumping this as some really good advise.

 

I tend to do very similar to most and have a spreadsheet with most of my months PPVs laid out, I usually play as SWF.

 

I set my big PPV matches and work backwards PPVs first and then plugging in tv matches/angled to either further stories, set up next weeks shows.

 

A lot of main events are tag/six man/eight man matches they tell better stories and save your single matches for PPVs or special tv main events.

 

I now group my title challengers in 8 people storylines as so although my focus is Golden vs Scythe, Rogue, Remo and Valiant, Gilmore, Crippler and Morgan are all in the title picture, Golden is the dominant champion, they all want the belt, others have individual stories and will swap and change over the coming months.

 

Same for upper card with Starr, ZWB, Unleashed, Atomic, Davids, Brown, Lau and James all in a storyline either mixing it up with The top eight in tv main events or feuding for the North American title.

 

Tag Teams and lower carders have their own so it’s like mini leagues that can last around 4-6 months then move around depending on where I want people to end up.

 

Works well for me and helps me enjoy the game more

[OkBooker]

I divide two-hour shows as Hour 1 and Hour 2, and tell one major story with a set-up, an escalation and a pay-off/cliffhanger at the end to set-up the next week. I put matches relevant to my storylines in between.

[CQI13]

From the 2010 thread, this is a template Remianen posted. You'll need to use the new system instead of card placement, but I think it translates well for a 2 hour show.

 

Main Event - Major Star

Upper Midcard - Star

Midcard - Well Known

Lower Midcard - Recognizable

Opener/Enhancement Talent - Unknown

 

Seg 1 - Strong match (or angle, with ratio of 80% or lower), usually featuring an upper midcarder who is not in a storyline

 

Seg 2 - Short undercard match (lower mid vs ET/opener)

 

Seg 3 - Short undercard match (lower mid vs lower mid)

 

Seg 4 - Strong angle, usually featuring a main eventer who is not in a storyline

 

Seg 5 - Midcard match

 

Seg 6 - Midcard tag match (often with title implications, though NOT a #1 contenders match)

 

Seg 7 - Weak angle, usually featuring some midcarders

 

Seg 8 - Strong midcard match (often involving the midcard champ in some way)

 

Seg 9 - Midcard match with storyline implications (upper mid vs mid)

 

Seg 10 - Strong angle featuring main eventers currently in a storyline (but often not currently booked to work the show)

 

Seg 11 - Semi main event

 

Seg 12 - Strong angle featuring main eventers currently in a storyline (pre-match interviews are common themes)

 

Seg 13 - Main event, often a main eventer vs strong upper midcarder or main eventer vs main eventer

 

Seg 14 (optional) - Post-match kerfluffle/schmozz/goings on

[Self]

This is an example of my spreadsheet. Every few months, I'll set up one of these, and my session of 'playing TEW' will be filling it out, and just using the game as reference. It's a big jigsaw. I'm trying to tell stories, have high scoring main events, and follow my various rules. But once it's (mostly) filled out it makes actually booking the show a lot easier for me.

 

 

Each column is a week. In my current game (CGC in 2000) I have two TV shows on Sundays. A 30 minute B-show; CGC WrestleCarnival, for the kids in the afternoon, and a 60 minute A-show; Title Bout Wrestling in the night for the adults. WrestleCarnival tapes 4-at-a-time, while Title Bout tapes 2-at-a-time. Hence the thick borders. I put the roster underneath it, to chart how often everyone is being used.

 

In this game., I have the following rules.

 

Title Bout Wrestling needs...

1) A title fight on every episode (coloured in gold)

2) A strong main event (usually listed in row 5... or marked in bold)

3) Four stories that advance on every show (even if just a promo)

4) One, and only one, tag match

5) Each top wrestler working once, and only once, per taping. No over-exposure, and I want the rookies especially to be able to concentrate and put maximum effort into one thing, rather than half-effort two.

 

... and WrestleCarnival needs...

1) A Comedy match on every episode (purple)

2) As small a roster appearing across the 4 episodes as I can

 

The above also shows the Ultimate Showdown Series, my G-1 ripoff which is a whole other headache to plot out. It's in turquoise.

 

I tend to focus on the matches when it comes to pre-planning. This promotion, this era, most of the angles are quick interviews. 2 minutes for Guy 1 to explain why Guy 2 needs a beating. 6 minutes for the DeColt Family to do their schtick. I do attack angles so rarely (and they go in the grey Row 9) that I don't need to plan them out to avoid over-doing it. I have one in this 3 month slice (cell I9). And I typically end each show with head matchmaker Whipper Spencer Marks presenting next week's Title Bout challengers, which again, is 2-3 minutes and has zero fighting.

 

Once it's all planned out, there's never any pressure of a blank booking screen. My weekly decisions are all about match order and what goofy little talky bits to throw in.

[kito333]

I love starting the show with a hot angle. I grew up watching those old Raw's where all the people involved in the main event angle would take up the first 20 minutes of the show. I then like to have a big main event level match right afterwards. A lot of times it'll be my good workers who can really put on a show in the ring. Then I have all my mid card guys in segments and matches with the occasional angle to boost up the ratings. And of course end with my main even match that normally has an interview segment right before the match to hype up the crowd.

[The Nickman]

I love starting the show with a hot angle. I grew up watching those old Raw's where all the people involved in the main event angle would take up the first 20 minutes of the show. I then like to have a big main event level match right afterwards. A lot of times it'll be my good workers who can really put on a show in the ring. Then I have all my mid card guys in segments and matches with the occasional angle to boost up the ratings. And of course end with my main even match that normally has an interview segment right before the match to hype up the crowd.

Yeah, I do that too. My first segment is almost always a good angle that either sets up the Main Event or deals with whatever the biggest story in the company/brand is at the moment.

 

From there I then generally fill the rest of the card with Match/Angle/Angle/Match/Angle/Angle etc and at the end if I need more angles I slot them in between two angles somewhere else.

[soundsofsilver]

I treat mine more like an actual sport with rankings. Wins move you up, losses move you down. I book TV shows where the top 8 guys in the rankings go up against guys 9-16 in the rankings, while PPVs are more like #4 vs. #5 or whatever. I do this with each division (main, cruiserweight, tag, women's, women's tag). And then just fill in with promos from the top talents that aren't on the card. It goes pretty quickly this way, and is more or less how I've booked all the way going back to TNM7 days.

[AceCodey]

I primarily book SE so I tend to focus heavily on storylines when it comes to booking my TV:

 

The first part of each of these storyline titles is an abbreviation for what the story is building to. 'HHS' in this example is my PPV Halloween Horror Show, all the storylines with the HHS tag involve a match happening at the PPV. The 'TV' tag is for storylines that don't have a particular match, but are mostly smaller little stories for my undercarders.

 

All of the storylines are also ranked in importance, denoted by the numbers assigned to them.

 

So when I come to book my show I simply work my way down the list, continuing each storyline until I have booked my entire show. This method actually makes it so I can run two 2-hour A Shows and never really run out of things to book.