Success Stories
Success: Bill Ratner to Publish Debut Poetry Collection
Recent student Bill Ratner's debut poetry collection, To Decorate a Casket, will be published in May, 2021. Of his experience in the Writers' Program, Bill says, "The knowledge I gained in my UCLA Extension courses from these two master poets, Kim Dower and Suzanne...
Success: Annelouise Mahoney to Publish Debut Picture Book
Former student Annelousie Mahoney will have her debut picture book published in April, 2021. About the experience, she says, “Julus and Macy: A Very Brave Night is my first book. It had a lot of rejections and many more revisions, so holding a copy of my book is...
Success: Ruth LeFaive’s Short Story Successes
Former student Ruth LeFaive is having a string of successes with her work. Ruth says, “One of my stories was recently a winner of the CRAFT 2020 Flash Fiction Contest and will be published at CRAFT this coming April. This winter my work also placed 2nd in Fractured...
Success: Thomas Reyes Writing on New Animated Fox Series
Television Writing Certificate alum Thomas Reyes is a staff writer on the new animated sitcom The Great North, airing Sundays on Fox at 8:30pm after The Simpsons. Of his experience with the series and in the Writers' Program Thomas says, "I’ve been writing on it for...
Success: Laura Tenenbaum’s Article Published in TIME
Student Laura Tenenbaum recently had an article she developed in a Writers' Program course published in TIME. She says of the experience, "I was the senior science editor for NASA's Global Climate Change website for a decade, but I was stripped of my duties and barred...
Success: Charlotte Offsay to Publish Debut Picture Book
Former student Charlotte Offsay is about to have her first picture book published, with more on the way. She shares, “I am excited to share that my debut picture book, The Big Beach Cleanup, will be published by Albert Whitman on March 1, 2021. The Big Beach Cleanup...
Success: Kristin Griffith Publishes Debut Memoir
Former student Kristin Griffith recently published her debut memoir. “Publishing my first full-length book, Rush: Memoir of a Gay Sorority Girl, has been a dream of mine for almost 10 years and it just released on paperback and eBook versions! Taking place in college,...
Announcing the 2020 James Kirkwood Award Winners
Although 2020 didn’t allow for in-person gatherings, we want to honor the recipients of the 2020 James Kirkwood Literary Prize. The James Kirkwood Literary Prize is named for the late Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning author James Kirkwood, one of the Writers’...
Feature Articles
Shakespeare in Education: WP Edition
How Shakespeare is taught is often a minefield for educators. Not only is there the language barrier, where it can become increasingly difficult the further we get from the Elizabethan era to understand their way of speaking, there’s the conundrum of just how to...
Writing Prompts for Spring
If you follow us on Twitter or Facebook, you may have noticed we post daily writing prompts to get those writing muscles flexing on the regular. As Spring is a time for renewal and new growth, we thought we’d share a few prompts on the blog to celebrate this wonderful...
Upcoming Writers’ Program Events
While we’re still being cautious of everyone’s health and safety, the Writers’ Program wouldn’t be who we are if we weren’t creating opportunities for writers to learn, connect, and build community. Here are a few of our upcoming virtual events for spring &...
Fun Facts About Some Great Writers
By Alexis Harmon American short story writer Cynthia Ozick once said "I read in order to write. I read out of obsession with writing". This is true for many writers – we spend just as much time (if not more) reading and studying the work of the greats as we do...
Five Black Women Authors Being Adapted for Film/TV (and Three Who Should Be)
February and March are important months of recognition for black female-identifying people. While to road to equity in writing, especially for film, is one which we have a long way yet to travel, we wanted to highlight several black women writers whose works are...
It’s Been a YEAR
March 16, 2020 was a landmark day for the Writers’ Program, and a lot of folks. We had already transitioned the last few weeks of Winter quarter classes to online, and had just prepared for staff to alternate weeks working remotely and working on site. What we thought...
Five COVID-Friendly Places to Write in Los Angeles (and Elsewhere)
Although there is a light at the end of the pandemic tunnel for US residents, it is still a precarious time for folks to gather inside, and even outdoors. And it may be some time before such gatherings are deemed safe, particularly for those with certain health...
Writers Studio: Home Edition Recap
Recently, we held our annual Writers Studio for the first time in a virtual format. The Studio is a long-running event, meeting at the crossroads of intensive, intimate class offerings and a writers’ conference. Typically held in February, it was our final event in...