The Screenwriting Life with Meg LeFauve and Lorien McKenna

Monique N. Matthews is many things - a producer, a respected screenwriting professor, a social justice advocate, but mostly, she's a brilliant writer. Dive down the rabbit hole with Monique today, AND make sure to catch her feature "A Holiday In Harlem" TODAY (Sun, Nov 14) on Hallmark!! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the most frequent discussions in our business is the discussion around achieving a work/life balance. Things get personal as Meg, Lorien, and Jeff share their own complicated relationships with this conversation, and how can we stay MINDFUL of the big picture as we pursue our work. OUR FIRST PATREON WORKSHOP IS WED, NOV 17! Sign up here!: https://www.patreon.com/thescreenwritinglife  Learn...

Among many astounding achievements, Nicole Perlman wrote the first Guardians Of The Galaxy film, which many culture critics (and fans) consider to be one of the best franchises in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That film is lauded for it's uniquely irreverent tone and engaging characters, and Nicole offers MANY strategies to get our own writing there. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaph...

WE DID IT. Join Meg and Lorien, and their wonderful audience, as they workshop with three very brave and brilliant writers to get to the core of their story in from the Historic Sanctuary of St. David's Episcopal Church at the 2021 Austin Film Festival for our very first live, in-person show. TO JOIN OUR PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/TheScreenwritingLife Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Sam Bain is one of our industry’s premiere comedy writers, having co-created multiple beloved sitcoms including the UK’s cult hit Peep Show. But today Sam reveals that the most important ingredients for comedy are truth and pain. Buckle up! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Longtime TV vet Sean Presant has an eclectic resume includes features, shorts, and TV in ALL genres from multi-cam sitcoms, to reality competition, to prestige crime shows. So how has Sean managed such an impressively wide variety of work? Is it really possible for us to "pull that off?" Sean talks about the signature themes in our work, how they inform our voice, and how we can discover it oursel...

If anyone knows her way around a writer's room, it's producer Stacy Rukeyser, who has worked at every level from staff writer, to creator/showrunner. Stacy has a fascinating perspective on how the culture of a TV writer's room has both remained steady and changed wildly in her nearly 25 years in the business. Buckle up! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Every writer inevitably faces this painful question somewhere along their journey: "why the hell am I doing this?" Today, we answer that question. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Enjoy the LIVE conversation from the MCX Screenmaker's Conference!  For its seventh edition, the national MCX Screenmakers Conference program of panel sessions, case studies, in focus presentations and insightful conversations will be held online over two jam-packed days on 10 and 11 September, making it accessible to delegates from across the country. The impressive line-up of national and intern...

All great works of art start with ideas, and ideas STILL reign supreme in Hollywood. In today's conversation w/ celebrated writer Matt Lieberman we discuss how to generate high concept ideas, come up with ideas, embrace the importance of a good idea, and even sell feature specs.  Once again, we want to say thanks to our fabulous intern Jess Fisher for helping us put this episode together! Learn mo...

We've had some AMAZING guests on this show, but the truth is, one of our greatest secret weapons is Meg herself! Today, she dives into some of the MANY lingering questions that you all have been posing on the Facebook, and we get into it! If your question wasn't answered today, don't worry, Meg WILL be getting into soon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most of us assume that once a writer sells that spec or books that job or secures representation, they've "made it." Now all they need to do is ride into the sunset and remember to thank their agent when their inevitable Oscar shows up. But of course, much like writer, it's much more complicated than that. Today, Meg and Lorien walk us through THEIR biggest "a-ha" moments after their breaks, what...

We're back! Meg, Lorien, and Jeff have all been traveling, producing, and on set, and oh, do we have UPDATES. Lorien - who is now entering post on the project she SHOWRAN - answers all of your questions from what kinds of writers she's looking for in the room, and what her expectations for them are once they arrive.  THANK YOU to our intern Jess Fisher for producing and cutting this episode! You'v...

FOR MORE CREATE OUT LOUD: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/create-out-loud-with-jennifer-louden/id1559415253 What would it take for you to turn down an offer from JJ Abrams (you know the guy who created Lost among other block-busters)? Ask Meg LeFavue, the Oscar-nominated writer of Inside Out, who had to do just that after committing to her creative calling to become a screenwriter. Meg LeFau...

Writing isn't just about craft and science. It's about translating the highs and lows of being a human being into art, and that journey can be a roller coaster, whether you're an emerging writer or a seasoned pro. Speaking of seasoned pros, today, we ask them those tricky questions: what brings you the most joy about writing, what pisses you off about writing, and what scene do you want to be reme...

Not only is Oscar-nominated writer Vanessa Taylor's resume impressive, it's beautifully varied. Vanessa has written on serialized network TV shows, high-concept prestige premium cable dramas (GOT anybody??), a YA novel adaptation, and even a creature feature love story w/ celebrated filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro (yes, we are talking about The Shape of Water.) But Vanessa sees powerful themes that t...

50 Episodes! How did we get here? Hard work EVERY DAY. Today, we're focusing on the day-to-day, minute-by-minute process of writing. How to we title our documents? How do we comb through our material? How do we edit. All of that gets answered today! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Little Miss Sunshine's script, penned by our guest Michael Arndt, won almost every major industry award, and for good reason. Its warmth, humor, and surefooted commitment to its themes makes it one of the finest scripts written this century. And SO many of those themes show up in Act 1. Michael has become a bit "obsessed" with act 1's lately, because it's our chance to maximize the "rooting intere...

To enter contests, or NOT to enter contests? Do I need to live in LA? What if I'm not your run-of-the mill white dude writer? What if I'm OLDER than my competition? All of these questions are answers, no-holds-barred, in today's episode where we take YOUR questions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's a GREATEST HITS Episode. We've had such amazing guests, that we wanted to curate some of their best moments. Enjoy! 1:20 - John August on Important Rules For Worldbuildling (Ep 35) 6:09 - Marti Noxon on Writing Samples That Will Get You Staffed (Ep 40) 9:05 - Sheila Hanahan Taylor On Rookie Mistakes (Ep 42/43) 17:33 - Kemp Powers on When To “Break The Rules” in Your Writing (Ep 36) 20:15 - An...

Though best known as one of the Emmy Award-winning writer/producers of Lost, Javier Grillo-Marxuach is a prolific writer of television shows, comic books, movies, and the occasional critical essay. He's a master-storyteller, with a deep understanding of character, no matter how "otherworldly" the project. Today we're going to deep dive on longform character development and Javier's philosophies on...

Find yourself asking the question 'Why bother” when it comes to your writing? Creative people are asking that question now more than ever, but bestselling author and world-renowned creativity expert Jen Louden wants you to go deeper and really ask the question, really think about it. On today's show, she walks us through why it's important for us to bother about what really matters, and how asking...

Even though pop culture often draws artists as free-spirited goofballs that "go-with-the-flow" true artistry lies in the art of self-discipline, self-esteem, and BOUNDARIES. The truth of getting work done means being willing to draw boundaries in your own life, around your work, and around your ART. How will you draw boundaries this week? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoi...

This topic comes up ALL the time on our Facebook group, and finally, we have definitive answers, and LOTS of them. How long should my pitch be, what should it look like, what should it actually include. WTF actually is a DECK??? How can avoid nerves for a meeting, what is my responsibility during a general.  A-List producer Sheila Hanahan Taylor has EVERYTHING you need to know! Learn more about yo...

After decades working with writers in this business, Sheila Hanahan Taylor - A-List producer behind many beloved edge-of-your seat genre films like the Final Destination films - has brilliantly assembled a list of common mistakes she sees "rookies" make. And speaking of genre, Sheila brilliantly counters some of those condescending perspectives with her own experiences as to why genre may be the s...