Newspapers can learn terrific lessons from ‘Dr. Horrible’

It’s said that necessity breeds innovation.

During the three-month writer’s strike, Joss Whedon and Co. decided that, if they couldn’t write for others, they’d write for themselves. And produce it. And release it.

They created “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” a 40-minute, three-part super-villian musical-comedy. (Whedon fans are familiar with “Once More, With Feeling,” the musical episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Fans also know that Whedon doesn’t accept “No”: After “Buffy,” and later its spinoff, “Angel,” were canceled, both series continued as graphic novels.)

The writer’s strike ended in February. Filming for “Dr. Horrible” started in March, the same month the series Web site launched. The trailer showed up June 25. The first episode of “Dr. Horrible” — starring Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion and Felicia Day — debuts July 15. (Part two debuts July 17, part three on July 19.) The entire process — brilliant idea to writing to casting and costumes to filming to effects to editing to marketing and promotion — took less than six months. (Low-budget marketing has embraced social media with Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and YouTube and an online comic book. Fans are also encouraged to post banners and buttons on their own sites and social network pages.)

But it doesn’t end there. “Dr. Horrible” will be available online — free — until midnight July 20. Then the series will be sold on iTunes and DVD (complete with “extras,” of course, and musical commentaries). The “sold” part will help Whedon and Co. pay the crew and recoup costs. And there’s already talk of a sequel.

Necessity breeds innovation. What are we waiting for?