WRITE HARD,
WRITE OFTEN
Writing a great script takes time and more rewrites than any writer anticipates.
And yes, the barriers to breaking into the business aren't imagined. The most successful writers are unrelenting -- constantly pushing, learning + improving. Best piece of advice? Keep writing.
Below are some helpful resources to help writers on their journey.
Podcasts
by Meg LeFauve + Lorien McKenna
THE NO FILM SCHOOL PODCAST
THE Q & A
by Jeff Goldsmith
WRITE ON by FINAL DRAFT
SCRIPTNOTES
by John August + Craig Mazin
Books
by Stephen King
by Linda Seger
by Christopher Vogler
Alan A. Armer
by Eileen Cook
by Syd Field
by Jordan E. Rosenfeld
by Robert McKee
by Blake Snyder
by Brene Brown
by Ed Catcall
by Elizabeth Gilbert
by Mary Karr
by Mark Forsyth
Writing Labs, Fellowships + Competitions
Elevating and developing screenplays by writers of South Asian descent
Academy Nicholls Fellowship (Film)
Award (5) $35k fellowships for new screenwriters
Austin Film Festival Screenplay and Teleplay Competition (Film, TV)
Screenplay + Teleplay Awards
Invitation for 12 non-professional feature writers for weeklong feature program
Black List x WIF Episodic Lab (TV)
Invitation for 6-8 non-professional under-represented gender writers for 4-week program
Black List x TRW Collection (Theater)
To publish and license, at minimum, six plays annually found on Blacklist
Black List x TUBI "To Be Commissioned" Initiative (Film)
To discover five feature scripts for Tubi to purchase, develop + greenlight
Blue Sky TV Scriptwriting Fellowship (TV)
Fellowship grants for TV scripts set between 2045 - 2100 achieving lives that reflect our better selves.
CannesFilms Unlimited: Residency for Features (Film)
Writing residency in France for feature films set in Europe
CannesSeries Unlimited: Residency for Writing Series (TV)
Writing residency in France for television scripts set in Europe
Cassian Elwes Independent Screenwriting Fellowship at Sundance Festival (Film)
Paid trip to Sundance Festival for one screenwriter with Producer Cassian Elwes
Cape New Writers Fellowship (TV)
Fellowship for emerging Asian and Pacific Islanders writers
Circle of Confusion Writers Discovery Fellowship (TV)
6-month fellowship for diverse voices to develop a TV pilot
Coletta Preacely-Garcia Diversity Fellowship (TV, Film)
Mentorship + 1 year program for screenwriter of TV pilot or feature film
Disney Entertainment Television DET Program (TV)
1-year writing, staffing + mentorship program for diverse background
Film Independent Episodic Lab (TV)
Mentorship for 6-8 long-form episodic writers
Film Independent Screenwriting Lab (Film)
2-week workshop + mentoring for feature fiction screenplay
FOX Entertainment Writers Incubator (TV)
3-month program for diverse and unique voices
The Georgia List (TV, Film)
Writers with ties to Georgia submit for $10k grant + mentorships
The Greenlights Challenge (Film)
$5k option for original, character-drive, high-concept, elevated horror / thriller / sci-fi feature screenplay
Humanitas New Voices Fellowship (TV, Film)
6-month mentorship for emerging screenwriters exploring human condition
Inevitable Foundation Accelerate Fellowship (TV, Film)
$40k Grants to empower mid-level disabled screenwriters
ISA Fast Track Fellowship (TV, Film)
Fellowship + agent support for television + feature film writers
JumpStart Writing Competition (TV, Film)
Competition for TV pilots and Film scripts in all genre
6-month training fellowship for emerging Television writers
Michael Collyer Memorial Fellowship (Film)
1-year fellowship for emerging screenwriter under 25
MGM + The Black List Feature Partnership (Film)
New voices in feature film development
Native American TV Writers Lab (TV)
Intensive TV scriptwriting workshop for Native Americans
NBCUniversal Launch TV Writers Program (TV)
8-month writing program + workshop for new voices in Television
Nickelodeon Writing Program (TV)
1-year comedy television writing development program
NMLA/NHMC Latino Television Program (TV)
8-week intensive writers' lab for television series writers
NRDC Rewrite the Future Fellowship x The Black List (Film)
Award $20k to three scripts that offer new perspective on climate change
Paramount Writers Mentoring Program (TV)
Mentoring 8-month program for TV writers of diverse background
Mentorship + hands on making of short film
RoadMap Writers / Various Competitions (Film, TV)
Various mentorships, grants, fellowships in TV and Film
Sesame Workshop Writers Room (TV)
Writing room fellowship
Sloan Student Grand Jury and Discovery Prizes (TV, Film)
$20k prize for feature film or TV script integrating science / technology
Sundance Episodic Storytelling Lab (TV)
6-day program to workshop TV pilot
Sundance Screenwriters Lab (Film)
Program for feature film writers
Sundance Institute Comedy Fellowship (Film)
Program for comedy feature writers
Sundance Institute Horror Fellowship (Film)
Program for under-represented writers of a horror feature film
Sundance Screenwriters Intensive (Film)
Program for under-represented writers of fiction feature film
1-year mentorship support for film writers
Universal Writers Program (TV)
1-year paid lab for new & experienced TV writers
Warner Brothers Television Workshop (TV)
TV Program open to 8-participants
Warner Brothers Discovery Access Writers Program (TV)
TV series staffing program for under-represented writers
WeScreenplay Diverse Voices Screenwriting Lab (Film)
Virtual Lab for under-represented voices
Sundance Women Writing Programs (TV, Film)
Various fellowships for women artists
Woolly Mammoth x Black List Playwriting Commission (Theater)
$10k commission for new play
Various fellowships for women in TV and film
The Writers Lab NY / Europe / UK (TV, Film)
4-day workshop for women and nonbinary writers over 40 in TV and Film
Websites + News + Blogs
The BlackList (Database for writers to be discovered + coverage services)
Bulletproof Screenwriting (Script Database + Blog + Coverage Services)
Coverfly (Database for new writers + Aggregator of writing competitions)
Deadline (Industry News)
Dear Producer (Blog)
Decider (Industry News + Blog)
Filmmaker Magazine (Magazine + Blog)
The Hollywood Reporter (Industry News)
Indie Wire (Industry News)
InkSet (Database for writers to be discovered)
MasterClass (Classes + Blog)
My Movie Scripts (Script database)
The Norman Lear Center at USC (Study of entertainment, media + society)
Page Craft (Workshops + Coaching + Blog)
Pipeline Artists (Workshops + Events + Competitions + Blog)
The PlayList (Industry News)
Reel Authors (Blog + Writing Tips)
Roadmap Writers (Classes + Coverage + Coaching)
The Script Lab (Script Database + Writing Competition Lists)
Sundance Collab (Classes + videos + mentorships for writers / filmmakers)
Variety (Industry News)
WScripted (For Women & Non-Binary Database + Competitions )
WGA / Writers Guild of America (General + Hollywood resources)