Do you have a novel, memoir piece, short story, or essay you’ve long dreamed about getting adapted for the screen? Learn how to adapt it yourself! Screenwriting (a capital-A “Art,” despite its Hollywoody reputation) requires a finely-tuned, fluent, and propulsive sense of visual unfolding—but with practice, it’s actually uniquely accessible among the writing modes.
In “ADAPTATION FASCINATION,” writers from all corners of the creative & genre map come together to consider a pre-existing story of theirs for film/TV adaptation, and learn how to transform their source material per the requirements of (and new choices available through!) this cinematic medium. With hands-on guidance from Lauren, you’ll start seeing your story anew through the periscope of cinematic possibility.
Lauren frequently works with published authors interested in adapting their own work, teaching them the profound differences between writing for the fiction/memoir/non-fiction realms, and writing for the screen, but while helping them find their own voice within the tradition.
This process can be exhilarating. The differences between scriptwriting and our other creative writing modes are at once thrilling in the narrowing of diction and descriptors, and expansive in their epic narrative tug. Once we understand the core of what makes a screenplay great, we start to see what we can take with us in our screenplay adaptation (and what we must let go of!). Suddenly, we’re in possession of an entirely new creative lane as writers—and a fresh life for our story, better than we might have ever imagined possible.
One-on-one support:
Each student will meet one-one-one with Lauren at least once during the course, to crystalize their script idea, and get hands-on guidance. Additionally, Lauren is available for Zoom “office hours” across the 3 weeks, to help students through any struggles, troubleshoot, and buoy confidence!