In this all-new 2025 course, Writing with Intention: Mining Emotional Truth in TV, Film, & Novels, you will receive the same information, education, and access that is offered in network writing fellowships.
Levels 4 and 5 are by submission only.
Submissions will be accepted from January 1 through January 10, 2025. Submit the first ten pages of one of your scripts. (It doesn’t have to be the script you want to work on.)
COURSE STRUCTURE
PHASE 1
Upon purchase of the 6-Week Teleseminar, you will receive story modules. They are your story instructions for the course. You will have access to these modules for one year from date-of-purchase.
PHASE 2
The live online component starts on Tuesday, February 4, at 7:00 pm PST. Each class is approximately two and a half hours in length. During the first part of each class, I will give a short presentation on Writing with Intention. Next, there will be five writers rotating in who will receive feedback. Following that, we will have a working writer as a guest speaker for the last hour of each class. Five writers will have an opportunity to pitch their concept or discuss three problems that they are having with their story and ask for advice.
All live online classes will be recorded. You will receive the recordings the day
after the class.
PHASE 3
You will book a one-on-one session with me to receive direct feedback on your project. The number of sessions you receive will depend on your level.
PARTICIPATION OPTIONS
LEVEL 1
- You will receive the story modules
- You will participate in the six live online classes and receive all recordings
- You will get to turn in a logline and a 2–3 page document that gives a synopsis of your story and includes a half-hour one-on-one consult that you can book up to a year after the class
RATES
| LAUNCH WEEK (1/14–1/21/25) TV & FEATURE |
|
| REGULAR (new participants after 1/22/25) TV & FEATURE |
|
| ALUM (returning students/clients) TV & FEATURE |
LEVEL 2 – ONLY 10 SPOTS AVAILABLE
- You will receive the story modules
- You will participate in the six live online classes and receive all recordings
- You will get to rotate in one time to receive feedback on your concept during the live class
- You will have an opportunity to pitch to or get advice from one of the guest speakers
- This level includes a half-hour one-on-one consult to review your concept and a one-hour coaching session to review your script (there will be a different TV or Feature rate)
RATES
| LAUNCH WEEK (1/14–1/21/25) | |
| TV | |
| FEATURE | |
| REGULAR (new participants after 1/22/25) | |
| TV | |
| FEATURE | |
| ALUM (returning students/clients) | |
| TV | |
| FEATURE |
LEVEL 3 – ONLY 10 SPOTS AVAILABLE
- You will receive the story modules
- You will participate in the six live online classes and receive all recordings
- You will get to rotate in one time to receive feedback on your concept during the live class
- You will have an opportunity to pitch a guest speaker
- This level includes two one-on-one meetings to go over your script. They can be booked up to a year after purchase (there will be a different TV or Feature rate)
RATES
| LAUNCH WEEK (1/14–1/21/25) | |
| TV | |
| FEATURE | |
| REGULAR (new participants after 1/22/25) | |
| TV | |
| FEATURE | |
| ALUM (returning students/clients) | |
| TV | |
| FEATURE |
LEVEL 4 – ONLY 2 SPOTS AVAILABLE – BY SUBMISSION ONLY
Submissions will be accepted from January 1 through January 10, 2025. Submit the first ten pages.
- You will receive the story modules
- You will participate in the six live online classes and receive all recordings
- You will get to rotate in two times to receive feedback on your concept during the live class
- You will have two opportunities to pitch a guest speaker
- This level includes three one-on-one meetings to go over your script. They can be booked up to a year after purchase (there will be a different TV or Feature rate)
RATES
(THERE IS NO LAUNCH WEEK RATE FOR THIS LEVEL. This level is by submission only.)
| TV | |
| FEATURE |
LEVEL 5 – ONLY 2 SPOTS AVAILABLE – SUBMISSION ONLY
Submissions will be accepted from January 1 through January 10, 2025. Submit the first ten pages.
- You will receive the story modules
- You will participate in the six live online classes and receive all recordings
- You will get to rotate in three times to receive feedback on your concept during the live class
- You will have two opportunities to pitch a guest speaker
- This level includes four one-on-one meetings to discuss your script. You can book them up to a year after purchase (there will be a different TV or Feature rate)
RATES
(THERE IS NO LAUNCH WEEK RATE FOR THIS LEVEL. This level is by submission only.)
| TV | |
| FEATURE |
| 2025 GUEST SPEAKERS WILL BE ANNOUNCED IN JANUARY. BELOW ARE LAST YEAR’S 2024 GUEST SPEAKERS. |
| 2024 GUEST SPEAKERS |
 MARK GOFFMAN Mark Goffman is currently executive producer and writer for the NBC series THE IRRATIONAL. Before this, he was an executive producer and writer on the Netflix series THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY. Goffman also executive produced and was a showrunner on the hit series BULL on CBS and SLEEPY HOLLOW on Fox. He served as an executive producer and writer for LIMITLESS on CBS and USA’s WHITE COLLAR. Goffman first started on THE WEST WING, where he wrote for several seasons. Afterward, Goffman ran the writers’ room for Aaron Sorkin’s STUDIO 60 ON THE SUNSET STRIP, also on NBC. Goffman has worked on over 200 hours of scripted television, been nominated for two Writers Guild Awards, and won the Entertainment Industries Council SET Award. An episode he wrote of LAW & ORDER: SVU garnered Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for Mariska Hargitay. Goffman’s feature directorial debut is DUMBSTRUCK, a documentary about ventriloquists, theatrically released by Magnolia Pictures. Goffman began his career as a writer in Brussels for the magazine Commerce in Belgium. He has a Masters in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School, wrote speeches for state and federally elected officials, consulted to the U.S. military, Intelligence, Department of State and White House. Goffman has a B.A. from Emory University in Economics and Philosophy and served as a Masters Thesis Adviser, Fiction Writing Program, at Johns Hopkins University. His first play, ME TOO, has run in Los Angeles and Indianapolis. |
 LINDSAY GOFFMANLindsay is the founder of Gratitude Production, with projects in collaboration with major companies such as Apple, F.X., Amazon Freevee, Perfect Storm, The Roots, Day Zero, Get Lifted, Jon M. Chu, MGM, and Universal Television. Her recent accomplishments include producing “THE COMPANY YOU KEEP,” a series based on a Korean format, which premiered to rave reviews and is certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. Previously, Lindsay championed the hit series THE GOOD DOCTOR after discovering the Korean format early on. The show became ABC’s #1 new series and was awarded the Humanitas Prize. Lindsay actively contributes to various arts and entertainment organizations, mentors the Hollywood Radio and Television Society, serves on the board of the Creative Coalition, and participates in the Media Xchange. Lindsay’s advisory roles include Girls Inc. and One Hope Wine, a purpose-driven community, and she judges at renowned events like the Austin Film Festival and the UCLA Screenwriter Showcase. Her work has been recognized with awards, including the 2022 Anthem Award, and she was nominated for the L.A. Business Journal’s Women Leadership Award in 2023. |
 JAVIER GRILLO MARXUACHJavier “Javi” Grillo-Marxuach is one of the Emmy Award-winning producers of Lost and Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance and is currently Executive Producer of the hit Netflix series The Witcher. His work includes stints as writer/producer on From, Cowboy Bebop, Blood and Treasure, Raising Dion, The 100, Medium, Boomtown, and the original Charmed. An advocate of mentorship and education, Grillo-Marxuach and his family have granted scholarships for writers at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts and the Creative Writing program at Carnegie Mellon University, and he is co-host and co-creator of the Children of Tendu podcast, an educational series for aspiring television writers. Javi is Puerto Rican; his name is pronounced: “HA-VEE-AIR GREE-JOE MARKS-WATCH.” |
 BRANDON MARGOLIS AND BRANDON SONNIERBrandon Margolis and Brandon Sonnier are a writing/producing team who served as Creators/ Showrunners of the BAD BOYS spinoff series L.A.’S FINEST starring Gabrielle Union and Jessica Alba. The Brandons started in the prestigious NBC/Universal Writers On The Verge program. They went on to rise through the ranks for five seasons on Sony/NBC’s hit drama series THE BLACKLIST while developing multiple Cable and Network T.V. pilots. Most recently, the Brandons served as Co-Executive Producers on season 6 of CBS’s SWAT and Executive Producers on season 2 of ALERT on FOX. |
 AUDREY KNOXAudrey Knox is a Literary Manager at Cartel Entertainment. I have clients in film and television, among whom are writers staffed on SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, GINNY & GEORGIA, and P-VALLEY and are writing for Disney, Netflix, Nickelodeon, and Hallmark. I am an Associate Producer of the Tubi feature film CRUSHED, written by my client Heidi Lux. My client Alanna Francis’ feature ALICE, DARLING, recently premiered at TIFF to rave reviews. I have experience in scripted and unscripted television, on-set, production, and writers’ rooms. |
 MATTHEW SALSBERGMatthew Salsberg is a television writer and producer from Montreal, Canada, who resides in Los Angeles. His writing career began in 1998 with “The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo.” From 1999-2001, he was an Executive Story Editor on “Big Wolf On Campus,” for which he was nominated for a Gemini Award (Canadian Emmy) for Best Writing in a Youth Series. He then went on to staff in 2002 to the NBC series “The Jake Effect” and the 2003 CBS Comedy “The Stones.” In 2003, he sold three stories to season 3 of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and the Pilot “Doorman” to NBC with Broadway Video. In 2004, he was a co-producer on “Entourage”. From 2005-2012, he was a producer, supervising producer, co-executive producer, and Executive Producer on “Weeds”. In 2007, he wrote and E.P.’d the pilot “Me and Lee” for Fox. He was under an overall deal at Lionsgate Television from 2009-2012. In 2011, he wrote the pilot “Whales” for Showtime. In 2014, he wrote the pilot “Fantasyland” for Amazon Studios. In 2015, he was the E.P. and pilot writer for HBO’s “Wilderness,” co-created with Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson. In 2017, he was a co-ep on “The Untitled Josh Brolin Project” for WHIP studios. In 2019, he was a Consulting Producer on Showtimes “Kidding”. In 2021/2022, he was a co-executive producer on Matthew Weiner’s Untitled Project for F.X. and sold the pilot “Almost Friends” to Netflix. Additionally, in 2012/2013, he won the World Poker Tour Season 11’s Player of the Year. |
 JIM ADLERJim Adler was born in Miami to a family of Cuban/Honduran immigrants on one side and Mid-Western transplants on the other. He was raised in a bilingual household and spent his childhood summers with family in Honduras. When Jim was 7, his mother moved them to California to live in a new age ashram, part of a religious cult. Having begun college as an electrical engineer, he has a deep interest in science and technology. Jim curates a web group devoted to unusual crime stories, has a passion for espionage, and worries a lot about climate change. He was most recently a Co-EP on THE GOOD DOCTOR (ABC/Sony Pictures T.V.) and worked prior to that on MACGYVER and CASTLE, and he also developed a horror pilot for Starz. He is an active member of the WGA’s Latinx Writers Committee and is fluent in Spanish. |