Features Programs
Expectations for all participants in Harvardwood Writing Programs are as follows:
TIME COMMITMENT FOR ALL GROUPS:
As with all Harvardwood writing groups, there is a high expectation of preparation and writing done outside of the meetings (approx. 15-20 hours per week) as well as a strict attendance policy, so please make sure that you can commit fully before applying. Keep in mind that dual commitments to other writing programs (like the Harvardwood TV Modules) can become very hard to maintain. Participants are required to give constructive feedback to fellow writers in each session, so there is an expectation that you will have read applicable work prior to each meeting. You will be expected to attend the weekly meetings with no more than 2 absences.
GENERAL PROGRAM DESCRIPTION:
Prerequisites: Must be a full member of Harvardwood (Friends of Harvardwood are eligible to participate in NYC and Boston Programs).
Each writer should expect to: pitch his or her story to the group; finalize a thorough outline from beginning to end; and turn in pages in predetermined blocks (by act, sequence, or scene, etc). Like previous years, the group will strive for a "writers room" format, and will aim to give focused attention to the projects of 2-3 members every week, thereby staggering group submissions and allowing for better productivity and pacing.
ELIGIBILITY:
- All participants must be Harvardwood Full Members
- All participants must submit the program fee before the first meeting
HARVARDWOOD FEATURE WRITING INTENSIVE (applications currently closed)
Introducing the Harvardwood Feature Writing Intensive Spring 2023
Have you been working on a feature film idea and just can’t seem to get the project off the ground? Or did you start your feature only to find yourself shut down by writers block? Perhaps you even have a draft but feel you need to revisit the project. Introducing the Harvardwood Feature Writing Intensive, where you can work with other Harvardwood members over 10 weeks to get to a strong and completed 1st draft of your script (or a similar milestone of your choosing).
Applications will open on February 6th. Please note – you will need to include the first ten pages of a sample script in PDF format. This can be an excerpt from a pilot, spec script, feature, webisode, short, or stage play.
Deadline for Applications: February 24th, 2023
Notification of acceptance: March 15th, 2023
Modules begin: The week of March 20th, 2023
Meetings will begin in the week of March 20th and run until early June. The number of module groups will depend on enrollment. If accepted, you will meet in the evening once a week for 3 hours, either virtually or in-person or possibly in a hybrid format. There will be between 4-7 other Harvardwood writers in your group.
The goal of this intensive module is to follow a structured program where clear deadlines help meet your goal. Guest speakers will be offered virtually as part of the Intensive and will be scheduled on days outside of the regular meeting sessions. Each group will be led by a facilitator who has either a professional and/or academic background in script writing.
The Features Intensive may also include:
- Table reads of selected scenes from your script
- An opportunity to pitch your feature to managers or agents, once completed.
The Intensive will focus on these key aspects of screenplay development:
- Developing a strong act structure
- Conveying a solid theme or themes
- Creating characters that have depth, agency, and arc
- Building a beat sheet to chart the escalation of conflict
- Strategies for weaving multiple storylines
- Writing realistic dialogue that captures the essence of your characters
- Developing a strong and memorable opening and ending.
Expectations: This Intensive is for those who are serious about writing and are willing to not only work on and present their own projects, but to also review the work of others as part of weekly critiques and discussion.
Who can apply: Full members only. Ideally applicants should be in the greater LA area, but exceptions will be made depending on interest in virtual modules. If you're passionate about this opportunity, we encourage you to apply!
Program fee: If accepted, the fee will be $100 prior to your first meeting.
BOSTON WRITERS PROGRAM (applications open now!)
Strengthen your TV pilot and feature film writing skills in the Boston Harvardwood Writers Program! This group meets Tuesdays at 7:30 pm, twice per month (October to May) on Zoom to workshop scripts by participants. Priority will be given to Boston-area writers; there may be opportunities for in-person gatherings as the program progresses. We welcome Harvard College undergraduates!
We will be hosting an in-person information session at the Harvard Science Center (in the first floor Cafe seating area) on Tuesday, October 3, at 7pm. Come by to meet fellow writers and learn about our workshop!
The workshops will begin on Tuesday, October 24. Applications are due by October 10 and can be submitted using this form.
For questions, feel free to reach out to workshop co-directors Heather Faris and Sarah Zeiser ([email protected]).
Who can apply: Full members and friends of Harvardwood
Program fee: If accepted, the feel will be $80 for the year
Harvard students on financial aid should contact [email protected] for a discounted fee.
NEW YORK FEATURES WRITING GROUP (applications currently closed)
The Fall 2022 module will focus on Feature Screenwriting, and the Spring 2023 module will feature Television Writing. Members of all experience levels are encouraged to apply.
While the goal is to launch in-person groups, we understand that due to COVID some members may be unwilling or unable to meet in person. We’ll be exploring hybrid formats and hope to accommodate everyone who seeks to strengthen the film and television Harvard community in New York. Please fill out our Application to indicate interest in in-person or hybrid.
Who can apply: Full members and friends of Harvardwood
Program fee: If accepted, the fee will be $50 prior to your first meeting.
VIRTUAL FEATURES WRITING GROUP (applications currently closed)
Members of all experience levels are encouraged to apply. This is an online group.
Who can apply: Full members and friends of Harvardwood
Program fee: If accepted, the fee will be $50 prior to your first meeting.
LA FEATURES GROUP (applications currently closed)
The group will meet via Zoom 1-2 times a month with the goal of advancing participants' projects from idea, to outline, to finished, feature-length screenplay. This year, all Harvardwood members are eligible, regardless of location.
Who can apply: Full members only
Program fee: If accepted, the fee will be $50 prior to your first meeting.
Writers' Resources
General
Books on Writing
Blogs, Videos, & Podcasts
Harvardwood Videos
Links to Other Resources
Features
Books on Screenwriting
Programs and Competitions
Television
Books on TV Writing
Loglines
Industry Standards
TV Spec Writing
Pitching
TV Series Bibles
Competitions & Festivals
Diversity Fellowships & Writers' Programs
Browse all book recommendations in our Amazon store below!
General
Books on Writing
- The Artist's Way* by Julia Camon
- The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell
- The Art of Dramatic Writing by Lajos Egri
- The Now Habit* by Neil A. Fiore
- Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg
- On Writing by Stephen King
- Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
- Writing from the Inside Out* by Dennis Palumbo
- The War of Art* by Steven Pressfield
- Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story by Jerry Weissman
Plus a Harvardwood special—book recommendations for writers/directors offered by Paris Barclay !
*Particularly helpful for writer's block and/or procrastination
Purchasing these books on Amazon? Shop AmazonSmile to support Harvardwood!
Blogs, Videos, & Podcasts
- BBC Writers Room Interviews
- Creative Screenwriting (magazine) - Editor Jeff Goldsmith conducts carefully researched and thoughtful interviews with some of today's top Feature and TV writers in front of a live audience.
- Go Into the Story by Scott Myers, official screenwriting blog of The Black List
- On Story - by the Austin Film Festival
- Podcasts by Jen Grisanti Consultancy, Inc. - An outstanding series of interviews with today's working writers. Jen uses her experience as a TV exec and her in-depth knowledge of the industry to ask insightful questions that really bring out the best in her guests.
- Scriptnotes - John August and Craig Mazin discuss screenwriting and things that are interesting to screenwriters, everything from the craft to the business to the best ways to actually get yourself writing.
- WordPlay - Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio's blog, a great series of articles on writing and the industry.
Harvardwood Videos*
Links to Other Resources
- BBC Writer's Lab
- The Black List (founded by Franklin Leonard AB '00)
- Writers Guild of America Resources
- UCB's LA Diversity Program
Features
Books on Screenwriting
- How to Make It in Hollywood by Linda Buzzell
- Adventures in the Screen Trade: A Personal View of Hollywood & Screenwriting by William Goldman
- Screenwriting: The Sequence Approach by Paul Gulino (see Paul's Harvardwood lecture)
- Bambi vs. Godzilla: On the Nature, Purpose, and Practice of the Movie Business by David Mamet
- Good in a Room: How to Sell Yourself (and Your Ideas) and Win Over Any Audience by Stephanie Palmer
Purchasing these books on Amazon? Shop AmazonSmile to support Harvardwood!
Programs and Competitions
- Academy Nicholl Fellowship
- Austin Film Festival
- Film Independent Screenwriting Lab
- Final Draft Big Break Contest
- Harvardwood Writers Competition
- Slamdance Screenplay Competition
- Sundance Screenwriters Lab
- Universal Pictures' Emerging Writers Fellowship
- The Guide to Screenwriting Contests
Screenplays
Television
Books on TV Writing
- Desperate Networks by Bill Carter
- Writing the Television Drama Series by Pam Douglas
- Small Screen, Big Picture: A Writer's Guide to the TV Business by Chad Gervich
- The Hidden Tools of Comedy by Steve Kaplan
- Making a Good Script Great by Linda Seger
- Comedy Writing for Late-Night TV by Joe Toplyn AB '75, MBA '79
- Writing for Episodic Television: From Freelance to Showrunner edited by John Wirth and Jeff Melvoin AB '75
Purchasing these books on Amazon? Shop AmazonSmile to support Harvardwood!
Loglines
- How to Write a Logline by Christopher Lockhart - "I WROTE A 120 PAGE SCRIPT BUT CAN’T WRITE A LOGLINE: THE CONSTRUCTION OF A LOGLINE"
- Writing the TV Spec & Pilot Scripts by Jen Grisanti - How can you write a memorable spec script that helps get you staffed? Why is it so hard to write a TV pilot script that not only gets you noticed, but could sell?
Industry Standards
- WGA Writer & Producer levels / titles
- In order of seniority:
- Executive producer / Showrunner
- Co-executive producer
- Supervising producer
- Coordinating producer (for reality / documentary)
- Producer
- Co-producer
- Consulting producer
- Associate producer (for reality / documentary)
- Segment producer (for reality / documentary)
- Executive Story Editor
- Story Editor
- Staff Writer
- Freelance
TV Spec Writing
- What's Hot & What's Not: Drama 2014 & Comedy 2014
Pitching
- "How to Survive Pilot Season" - The Hollywood Reporter
- Tips from the HWP—TV Modules Program
TV Series Bibles (PDF Downloads)
Competitions & Festivals
Diversity Fellowships & Writers' Programs
- CBS Diversity Institute & Writers Mentoring Program
- Coalition for Asian Pacifics in Entertainment New Writers Fellowship
- Disney | ABC Writing Program
- NALIP Diverse Women in Media Initiative
- National Hispanic Media Coalition TV Writers Program
- NBC Writers on the Verge
- Nickelodeon Writing Program
- Slamdance Screenplay Competition
- Sundance Episode Storytelling Lab
- Sundance Institute | YouTube New Voices Lab
- WB Writers' Workshop
- WhoHaHa TV
View The Black List's Writers Calendar for competition & festival deadlines.
Harvardwood Writers Program
Launched in 2005, the Harvardwood Writers Program (HWP) offers ongoing workshops for film and television writers in LA, New York, Boston, Washington D.C., and more. HWP groups meet regularly to discuss and critique original material and to hear from experienced guest speakers in different fields (see here for a list of previous speakers).
Below, you'll find more information about the TV Writing Modules, Feature Writing Program, and our annual Writers Competition.
In recent years, participants in the Harvardwood Writers Program and Competition have seen unprecedented success with pilot sales to ABC, the CW, Showtime, Sony, Spike, Syfy, and TV Land, in addition to blind script deals at ABC and Warner Bros. Harvardwood writers have been staffed on Agent Carter (ABC), American Dad (Fox), Community (NBC), Covert Affairs (USA), Family Guy (FOX), The Flash (CW), The Good Wife (CBS), Gotham (Fox), How to Get Away with Murder (ABC), Jane the Virgin (CW), Justified (FX), The Newsroom (HBO), Perception (TNT), Sleepy Hollow (Fox), State of Affairs (NBC), and The Tomorrow People (CW). Among our feature film writers, successes include the theatrical releases of Jamesy Boy and Unfriended, as well as OddLot Entertainment’s optioning of Septillion to One; previous HWC feature category winner Capture is in post production with Circle of Confusion producing. Participants have also secured representation at Apostle, Benderspink, Brant Rose Agency, CAA, Circle of Confusion, Echo Lake, Gersh, ICM, Management 360, Original Artists, WME, and others.
Harvardwood is especially proud that our programs are dramatically more diverse in terms of race and gender than the current entertainment landscape, according to the stats in the “2015 Hollywood Diversity Report” conducted by UCLA’s Bunche Center. Please consider donating to the Harvardwood Writers Program, so we can continue to support new, thoughtful and diverse voices in the arts.
Finally—writers, want to connect with one another? Join the Harvardwood Writers' Directory.
Special Competitions
Harvardwood Writers Competition
Held every summer and open to all Harvardwood members worldwide. Each winner receives a cash prize and a one-on-one mentorship with an industry VIP. View past HWC winners!
Most Staffable TV Writers List
Held in conjunction with the Harvardwood Writers Competition and open to participants of the HWP - TV Modules program from the previous fall and spring. View past writers who made the Most Staffable list!
TV & Features Showcases [on hiatus]
Held in late spring and open to members who have completed the HWP Features or TV Modules program the previous fall.
Current Writing Modules
Los Angeles
- FEATURE SCREENWRITING - Contact: Nick Baker
- TV WRITING - Contact: Joey Siara and Todd Bartels
- ACTORS READING WRITERS GROUP
New York
- FEATURE SCREENWRITING - Fall 2021 - Apply Here!
- TV WRITING - [on hiatus]
Boston
- FEATURE SCREENWRITING - Contact: Sarah Zeiser & Heather Faris
PLEASE NOTE: Only Full Members and registered Friends of Harvardwood (on a case-by-case basis) can submit their finished work to the Harvardwood Script Menu and for consideration in the Harvardwood Writers' Showcases each Spring. If you are an Affiliate and wish to upgrade to Full Member status, please click here. If you are new to Harvardwood and wish to join, please register as a Full Member, Affiliate, or Friend of Harvardwood.
As a Full Member, you'll be able to receive the weekly and monthly newsletters, make unlimited postings on the website, view postings in your area(s) of interest, access all other areas of the Harvardwood website, and receive preferred access and free or discounted admission to programs and events.
Previous HWP Speakers
FILM
- Meredith Bagby ’95 (exec, Dreamworks)
- Stacy Cohen ’89 (producer, DREAMER)
- Alex Franklin ’96 (exec, The Weinstein Co)
- Sean O’Keefe ’95 (KING TUT)
- Keir Pearson ’89 (HOTEL RWANDA)
- Peter Rader ’82 (WATERWORLD)
- Jeff Schaffer ’91 (EUROTRIP)
- Josh Simon ’00 (exec, Disney)
- Massy Tadjedin ‘99 (THE JACKET)
- Nicky Weinstock '91 (Red Hour Films)
- Ed Zwick '74 (GLORY, LEGENDS OF THE FALL, THE LAST SAMURAI, BLOOD DIAMOND)
TV DRAMA
- Zadoc Angell (Manager, Echo Lake)
- Neal Baer GSE ’79 (LAW & ORDER: SVU)
- Samuel D. Baum '98 (LIE TO ME, COCKED)
- Peter Blake ’91 (HOUSE)
- Terence Carter (Exec, Fox)
- Carlton Cuse ’81 (LOST)
- Jeff Davis (CRIMINAL MINDS, TEEN WOLF)
- Dawn DeNoon (LAW & ORDER: SVU)
- Grainne Godfree '03 (THE FLASH, LEGENDS OF TOMORROW)
- Mark Goffmann (THE BEAST, WEST WING, SLEEPY HOLLOW)
- Abram Hatch ’96 (exec, Darren Star Prods.)
- Melinda Hsu Taylor (LOST)
- Glenn Kessler ‘92 (RHD/LA)
- Todd A. Kessler ’94 (THE SOPRANOS, PROVIDENCE)
- Jeff Melvoin (EP, ARMY WIVES)
- Adam Perlman '04 (BILLIONS, THE GOOD WIFE, THE NEWSROOM)
- Amy Retzinger ’95 (agent, Gersh)
- Sam Shaw '99 (MANHATTAN)
- Tom Smuts (CLOSE TO HOME)
- Thania St. John (EUREKA)
- Sarah Watson (PARENTHOOD)
- Nicky Weinstock (exec, Apatow, Fox)
TV COMEDY
- Andy Cadiff '77 (Director, Hot in Cleveland, Spin City, Young & Hungry)
- Megan Amram '10 (Writer, Parks & Rec, Silicon Valley)
- Nell Scovell '82 (Writer & Creator/Executive Producer, Sabrina, The Teenage Witch, The Muppets Show)
- Kristin Newman (Writer & Executive Producer, That '70s Show, How I Met Your Mother)
- Colleen McGuinness '99 (Writer & Producer, About a Boy, 30 Rock)
- Carolyn Cassidy ’99 (exec, NBC)
- Vali Chandrasekaran ’03 (MY NAME IS EARL)
- Danny Chun ’03 (THE SIMPSONS, THE OFFICE)
- Jason Gelles ’96 (EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND)
- Aisha Muharrar '06 (PARKS & REC)
- Dan O’Keefe ’90 (THE DREW CAREY SHOW, SEINFELD)
- Mike Reiss ’81 (THE SIMPSONS)
- Patric Verrone '81 (FUTURAMA, Former President of WGA West)
- Matt Warburton ’02 (THE SIMPSONS)
- Adam Fratto (Harvardwood Board)
- Cort Cass (ABC Comedy)
- David Garrett (LIVING WITH FRAN)
- Steve Tompkins '88 (THE SIMPSONS, THE CRITIC, EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND)
- Harris Goldberg (NUMB)
- Allen Zipper (FAMILY TOOLS, GEORGE LOPEZ SHOW)