Writing Classes & Advanced Writing Workshop

Please Note: There are no workshops available at this time.

WRITE.PERIOD

If your passion is to write movies, TV, books, short fiction or just about anything else, WRITE.PERIOD is for you! Learn the secrets of film and television structure, how to work with an illustrator to tell a graphic story, the differences between crafting novels and screenplays, and much more!

WRITE.PERIOD Introductory Class:

Designed for those who want to begin a career in writing, but who don’t know where or how to start.

Whether your muse is urging you to write television, features, novels, plays, short fiction or comic books, the basics of how to tell a story are the same: Characters in conflict.

You’ll learn how to:

• Create memorable characters.
• Insure that your characters actively drive the action of the story instead of being passively manipulated by the plot.
• Create exciting situations that reflect their inner conflicts and turmoil.
• Build toward a resolution and an ending that’s both unexpected and satisfying to your audience.

By the end of the course, you’ll understand the rules of the writing game. Applicants will submit a half page précis of their planned project, and, by the end of five weeks, will be well on their way to a finished work.

WRITE.PERIOD Advanced Workshop:

Designed for those who have mastered the basics.

If your passion is to write a screenplay, teleplay, stage play, or other media that requires acting, you’ll learn how to:

• Write dialogue designed to be spoken instead of read.
• Reveal your characters through their words and actions.
• Give your leads the kind of meaty parts that name actors and stars look for.

We’ll do readings of students’ works, in a supportive and constructive atmosphere. You’ll also learn techniques for keeping production costs down while not compromising your vision.

If your desire is to write novels, short fiction, comics, or anything else in which the characters live on the page instead of the stage, you’ll learn:

• How to create vivid internal lives for them.
• How to create memorable settings in which characters can grow and interact.
• The differences in pacing between short and long fiction.
• The ways to pace a comic book or graphic novel so that the story’s revelations and climaxes fall on the proper pages.
• How to work with an artist to visualize your creation, and much more.

Both courses are designed to work in tandem with Marc and Elaine Zicree’s SUPERMENTORS program, which gives you the nuts and bolts of pursuing a career in Hollywood, once your script has been honed and polished. For more information, see: www.supermentors.com or call (323) 363-1259.

Course Fees and Schedules

Each course costs $500.00 for five weeks, and will be limited to five students each, to insure that each person’s work will receive individual attention.

WRITE.PERIOD Introductory Class
Begins Monday, March 6th, 2006.
Ends April 3rd, 2006.

WRITE.PERIOD Advanced Workshop
Begins Wednesday, March 8th, 2006.
Ends April 5th, 2006.

Classes are held in Woodland Hills, CA. Payment required in advance.

For Registration and Further Information:
Call (818) 703-8524 or (818) 298-9601,
or email

About Michael Reaves

Michael Reaves is one of the industry’s legends. Over a thirty year career, he’s done it all:

TELEVISION: Written, storyedited and produced nearly four hundred television scripts, including Star Trek: The Next Generation, Sliders, Batman: The Animated Series, The Twilight Zone, Gargoyles, and many more. Won an Emmy and nominated for a second Emmy, an ASIFA Award, and a Writers Guild Award.

NOVELS: Sold two dozen novels, including Dragonworld (“An exquisite experience!” - The Indianapolis Star), Night Hunter (“The Best Horror Novel Of 1995” - The Portland Oregonian), and Darth Maul, Shadow Hunter (three weeks on The New York Times’ bestsellers list). He’s been nominated for a Prometheus Award and the British Fantasy Award.

MOVIES: Four movies produced, including: Batman: Mask Of The Phantasm (“Two thumbs up!” - Siskel & Ebert), Batman: Mystery Of The Batwoman (“A classic Batman story” - aintitcool.com), and Full Eclipse (“All the elements of horror”- amazon.com).

COMIC BOOKS: Comics published by DC Comics and Eclipse Comics. His graphic novel, The Irregulars, from Dark Horse Comics, has been optioned by Unity Productions (City Of Ghosts, The Cruelest Winter, Den Of Lions).

SHORT STORIES: Short fiction published in Fantasy And Science Fiction Magazine, Heavy Metal, and The Century’s Best Horror Fiction, among others.

ALSO: computer games, webisodes, and more. Neil Gaiman, (bestselling author of Anansi Boys), says: “Michael Reaves is as at home in science fiction or fantasy as he is in horror, he’s dangerously smart, and most of all, he understands stories.”

Reaves is now bringing that experience and knowledge to WRITE.PERIOD, a five week course on the art and craft of writing. Guest speakers include Steven-Elliot Altman, TV and movie producer (The Controllers) and bestselling author (Deprivers), Garfield and Judith Reeves-Stevens, TV producers (Star Trek: Enterprise) and bestselling authors (Quicksilver), and more!

For Registration and Further Information:
Call (818) 703-8524 or (818) 298-9601,
or email