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UCLA Extension Writers' Program is a unit within UCLA Extension, the not-for-profit and self-supporting community outreach arm of the University of California, Los Angeles. Located in the Westwood Village area of Los Angeles, the UCLA Extension Writers' Program offers approximately 400 annual open-enrollment screenwriting and creative writing courses for all levels of writers. Courses are available online and on the UCLA campuses in downtown Los Angeles and Woodland Hills. All courses are approved by the UCLA Academic Senate. [1]
The Regents of the University of California established University Extension in 1891. [2] A permanent Extension office was opened in Los Angeles in 1917. Extension moved to the UCLA campus in 1948, and subsequently to its location at Gayley and LeConte in 1971. The UCLA Extension Writers' Program was established in 1966.
Dr. Linda Venis served as the Director of the Writers' Program from August 1986 until June 2016, when she retired. [3] In October 2016, Charles Jensen was hired to head up the Program.
The Writers' Program offers approximately 400 annual onsite and online courses [4] including beginning, intermediate, and advanced-level courses in fiction, memoir, personal essay, poetry, playwriting, editing, publishing, and screenwriting. Courses are taught by a roster of more than 200 published or produced writing professionals.
Students may choose from five certificate programs (Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Feature Film Writing, Television Writing and Film and TV Comprehensive) for a structured course of study, as well as four specializations for a focused approach to a specific topic. The James Kirkwood Literary Prize was established in 1991 in memory of James Kirkwood to honor the literary achievements of new generations of fiction writers. The UCLA Extension Screenplay Competition replaced the Diane Thomas Screenwriting Award in 2006.
In 2014, the Writers' Program established the Allegra Johnson Prize, a merit-based award with a prize of $5,000. The award is given to a promising novelist or memoirist in alternating years, providing both formal recognition of their talent and financial resources to support them as they complete their manuscripts.
In 2013, Gotham Books published two books that were edited by then-Writers' Program Director Linda Venis and written by Writers' Program instructors. The books are Cut to the Chase: Writing Feature Films with the Pros at UCLA Extension Writers' Program [5] and Inside the Room: Writing Television with the Pros at UCLA Extension Writers' Program. [6]
Writers' Program instructors are professional writers. Some of the Program's notable instructors have included:
Many of UCLA Extension Writers' Program students have published or produced work after leaving the program, including: [7]
The Hopwood Awards are a major scholarship program at the University of Michigan, founded by Avery Hopwood.
James Kirkwood Jr. was an American playwright, author and actor. In 1976 he received the Tony Award, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical, and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for the Broadway hit A Chorus Line.
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The Michener Center for Writers is a Masters of Fine Arts program in fiction, poetry, playwriting, and screenwriting at the University of Texas at Austin. It is widely regarded as one of the top creative writing programs in the world. Bret Anthony Johnston is the current director of the program. Previously, James Magnuson ran the program for more than 20 years. UT Resident English Department faculty include Elizabeth McCracken, Edward Carey, Roger Reeves, and Michener Center faculty include Amy Hempel, Joanna Klink and rotating guest faculty.
Gotham Writers Workshop, established in 1993, offers classes in creative writing and business writing, along with writing conferences and one-on-one services, including consults on publishing guidance with literary agents.
Lou Mathews is an American writer, novelist, journalist, playwright and short story writer based in Los Angeles. He was born in Glendale, California, earned his B.A. degree from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 1973, and his M.F.A. from Vermont College in 1987. His novel, L.A. Breakdown (1999), was noted by the Los Angeles Times as a "Best Book" of 1999. L.A. Breakdown is a novel describing the street racing scene in Los Angeles circa 1967. His novel Shaky Town was published in 2021.
PEN Center USA was a branch of PEN, an international literary and human rights organization. It was one of two PEN International Centers in the United States, the other being the PEN America in New York City. On March 1, 2018, PEN Center USA unified under the PEN America umbrella as the PEN America Los Angeles office. PEN Center USA was founded in 1943 and incorporated as a nonprofit association in 1981. Much of PEN Center USA's programming continues out of the PEN America Los Angeles office, including the Emerging Voices Fellowship, PEN In the Community writing residencies and guest speaker program, and the PEN Presents conversation series.
Robin Russin is an American screenwriter, director, playwright, author and educator.
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UCLA Extension is a public continuing education institution headquartered in Westwood, Los Angeles, on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles. Classes are held at UCLA, in Downtown Los Angeles, and other locations throughout Los Angeles County.
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