l.a. writers' lab shop

videos

get-out-of-your-head

get out of your head - $10

In this fast-paced one-hour workshop, we’re going on a creative thrill ride through the world of our characters. We’re letting go of all those preconceived notions we had of our characters, so that the truth of them can be revealed.
Running Time62 minutes

create-a-story

how to create a story - $10

In this one-hour video, I'll walk you through the process of building a story. Through lecture and discussion, two actors improvise scenes based on a premise suggested by the audience. A story evolves and three pivotal scenes are created that become the bones of a compelling story arc.
Running time: 60 minutes

unlock

unlock the story within - $25

Through a series of stream-of-consciousness writing exercises and one-on-one work with writers to illustrate the principles, my Unlock the Story Within workshop will take you to the heart of your story, and help you to clarify what you are attempting to express.
Running time: 127 minutes

surrender

surrender - $10

A clear understanding of SURRENDER is critical to writing a story with a compelling Third Act. In this 60-minute workshop, through lecture, writing exercises and one-on-one work to illustrate the principles, we will explore how your protagonist must die to their old identity in order to be reborn.
Running Time63 minutes

finding-the-core

finding the core of your story - $10

Whether you're writing a novel, memoir or screenplay, at the heart of your story lies a dilemma for your protagonist. In this one-hour workshop, through exercises and discussion, you will discover and clarify the central struggle. Remember that character suggests plot. When you connect to your protagonist's dilemma, plot emerges naturally and in the most surprising ways.
Running Time64 minutes

dark-night

dark night of the soul - $10

The dark night of the soul is possibly the most thrilling part of the protagonist’s journey. It’s where you clutch your sweetheart’s hand in the movie theater and wonder to yourself how on earth the hero is ever going to be free. Join me for this one-hour workshop that will help you connect to and clarify the dark night of the soul for your novel, memoir, or screenplay.
Running Time64 minutes.

audio

cinematic-1

make it cinematic 1 - $5

In this one-hour workshop, we will explore Five Techniques that will instantly make your storytelling more cinematic.
Running Time: 60 minutes
Download available for 30 days after purchase.

cinematic-2

make it cinematic 2 - $5

In this one-hour workshop, we will explore Three Characteristics of Cliffhangers, and you will learn how to write plot twists that reveal character so that your story builds in meaning.
Running Time: 60 minutes
Download available for 30 days after purchase.

story-structure

story structure - $10

By marrying the wildness of your imagination to the rigor of story structure this workshop allows you to structure your story in an organic way. Listen to the workshop over and over again and you will notice your story gradually coming to life.
Running Time: 55 minutes
Download available for 30 days after purchase.

first-ten-pages

first ten pages - $5

The biggest challenge in any screenplay is the beginning. How do you establish the world, set up your characters, introduce your theme, create suspense, dramatize exposition, and make it all appear effortless? This workshop is geared toward screenwriters but is also applicable to novelists and memoirists.
Running Time: 60 minutes
Download available for 30 days after purchase.

hero-transformed

the hero transformed - $5

In this workshop, we will explore the transformation of your protagonist. What have they come to understand that they didn’t before? How do they relate differently to the people around them at the end of the story?
Running Time: 55 minutes
Download available for 30 days after purchase.

antagonists

create compelling antagonists - $5

Without worthy antagonists, your protagonist will never transform. We will explore:
1) how to make your antagonists dynamic and unforgettable
2) how your antagonists’ desires perfectly mirror your protagonist’s
3) how your antagonists are a function of your story’s dramatic question
Running Time: 60 minutes
Download available for 30 days after purchase.

dilemma

dilemma: the source of your story - $5

The purpose of story is to reveal a transformation, a change or shift in perception. In this one hour workshop, you’ll find the most effective way to tell your story and explore your theme through a dilemma “resolved” in that transformation.
Running Time: 60 minutes
Download available for 30 days after purchase.

free stuff

Intro Novel

intro to the 90-day novel - FREE

Join me now to begin the process of getting the story from your imagination to the page, and complete the first draft of your novel or memoir in 90 days.
Running Time: 85 minutes

intro to the 90DS image

intro to the 90-day screenplay - FREE

In this workshop we do a deep dive in the 3 Core Elements necessary to create a powerful outline. You will leave this class with a clear understanding of what your story is about, and the engine that is driving your narrative.
Running Time: 91 minutes

IntroMemoirImage

intro to the 90-day memoir and Q&A - FREE

Join me now to begin the process of getting the story from your imagination to the page, and complete the first draft of your memoir in 90 days.
Running Time: 82 minutes

Billy Ray Product Image

Billy Ray interview - FREE

Join me for an interview and Q&A with Billy Ray, perhaps best known for writing the screenplay to the 2012 blockbuster The Hunger Games, and his Academy Award-nominated screenplay for Captain Phillips.
Running Time: 50 minutes

Jessica Sharzer Product Image

Jessica Sharzer interview - FREE

Join me for an interview and Q&A with Jessica Sharzer, screenwriter of A Simple Favor and exec-producer/writer of American Horror Story.
Running Time: 61 minutes

gregg-hurwitz

Gregg Hurwitz interview - FREE

Join me for a Q&A with New York Times and international bestselling author Gregg Hurwitz (Orphan X Series and more).
Running Time: 35 minutes

MENU