Have you written a novel that readers say “would make a great movie”? Do you have a story idea that keeps playing out like scenes in your head rather than flowing as traditional prose? Many writers discover they have naturally cinematic stories but lack the technical skills to translate their vision into screenplay format. This intensive 4-week course is designed specifically for prose writers ready to adapt their existing work or develop new projects for the visual medium. You’ll learn to transform narrative descriptions into compelling action lines, convert internal monologue into visual storytelling, and structure your story using the proven three-act screenplay format that keeps audiences engaged from fade-in to fade-out.
But here’s the unexpected bonus: learning to “write for the camera” will revolutionize your prose writing too. When you master the art of showing character through action rather than exposition, of building tension through what characters do rather than what they think, and of creating atmosphere through carefully chosen visual details, your novels and short stories become infinitely more engaging. Participants consistently report that their prose becomes tighter, more dynamic, and more emotionally compelling after learning screenwriting techniques. You’ll develop a writer’s superpower: the ability to make readers feel like they’re watching your story unfold rather than simply reading about it.
Over four weeks, you’ll develop the first act of a screenplay—whether adapting existing work or developing something new—while simultaneously strengthening your prose toolkit. The course combines on-demand lectures covering essential screenwriting principles with live weekly workshops where you’ll receive feedback on your developing script and participate in exercises designed to sharpen your visual storytelling skills across all mediums.
Format: Live online workshop with supplemental weekly on-demand lectures
Duration: 4 weeks
When: Tuesdays 7-9pm, ET (July 8-29)
Price: $75 members, $100 non-members
Sponsored by PennWriters – Full Course Syllabus Available
Ready to Stop Circling and Start Rewriting?
If you've got a draft and a diagnostic full of red flags, you don't need more coffee and willpower. You need a plan, a structure, and a room full of writers doing the work alongside you.
The Screenplay & TV Pilot Rewrite Workshop runs July 11 through September 26, 2026 — twelve Saturdays, 2:00 PM ET, live on Zoom. Small group. Real feedback on your actual pages, every week. A six-phase framework that moves from structural diagnosis all the way through line-level polish.
You'll leave with a rewritten script. Not a half-finished revision. A rewritten script. Registration is now open.
Ready to Build Dialogue That Actually Works?
All of this is easier said than done. (Yes, pun intended.) Which is why we do it together, live, with your actual characters.
Build-A-Dialogue is a free three-hour workshop — Saturday, June 6th, 2:00–5:00 PM ET, live on Zoom. No theory lectures. No homework. Just writing.
Hour 1: Voice. Hour 2: Subtext. Hour 3: Conflict. You'll leave with completed exercises, a Character Voice Sheet you can reference for your entire manuscript, and a Subtext Diagnostic for testing any scene in your current work. Registration now open.