Welcome!
www.austinscreenwriters.org is the
website of the Austin Screenwriters Group.

Though we're open to all levels of experience in the ASG, we hope our members take advantage of the many opportunities for self-education on screenwriting technique, formatting, and professionalism. We have some great bookstores right here in Austin, chief among them our meeting host: BookPeople. Following are a list of useful books and a list of links to screenwriting classes in the Austin area.

Classes in Screenwriting

A common request related to education in screenwriting is "Are there any classes offered in Austin?" Here are some offered both through groups and individuals you might check out. (If you know of more to add here, please let Wendy Wheeler know at scripts@wendy-wheeler.com.)

• www.bonnieorr.com - Private classes offered by award-winning and multiply-optioned Bonnie Orr, who also has a PhD and graduated from the graduate-level professional screenwriting program at UCLA.
• www.firstlookscript.com - A script reading service by Nancy Smith, the ASG scheduler, with a long history in reading and critiquing screenplays. She offers discounts to ASG members!
• www.scriptdoctor911.com - Private classes offered by Aubrey Horton, another member on the ASG listserv, who has an MFA, graduated from UCLA film school, and is a script doctor.
• www.scriptguy2.com -- Classes offered regularly by David Peterson, story analyst for a number of Hollywood producers, attorneys, agents, and others. His clients have included MGM/UA, 20th-Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, etc.
• www.thescreenplayworkshop.org -- Free classes as well as multi-week classes on script structure offered by Jill Chamberlain, award-winning filmmaker and professional screenwriter whose work has been seen in theaters across the U.S. and at over 80 film festivals on three continents.
• Upstart -- the arts group in Bastrop often has classes with award-winning screenwriter Sidney Brammer.
• University of Texas Informal Classes - offered through the Texas Union, there's usually a Hollywood Screenwriting course. Their website is sometimes hard to figure out: click on "catalog" courses in the links on the right, then choose "Liberal Arts" in the pull-down menu and click the LIST button.
• Austin Community College - often has a class or two on screenwriting. Click on "Instructional Areas" and then select "Creative Writing" to see what's on the current course schedule.
• Writers League of Texas - has occasionally offered special screenwriting weekend retreats.

For self-teaching, here are some of the top screenwriting and writerly craft books our group has discovered. You can find or order almost all of these at Bookpeople, the generous folks who host the ASG Saturday meetings.

1. The Comic Toolbox by John Vorhaus

2. How to Write a Movie in 21 Days by Viki King

3. Making a Good Script Great by Linda Seger

4. Creating Unforgettable Characters by Linda Seger

5. The Whole Picture by Richard Walter

6. Screenwriting: The Art, Craft and Business of Film and Television Writing by Richard Walter

7. The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler

8. The Screenwriter's Bible by Dave Trottier

9. The Hollywood Creative Directory or Spec Screenplay Sales Directory

10. The Writer's Complete Crime Reference Book by Martin Roth

11. Story Sense by Paul Lucey

12. Screenplay, The Foundations of Screenwriting: A Step by Step Guide from Concept to Finished Script by Syd Field (known as Mr. Structure)

13. The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron

14. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

15. Zen and the Art of Screenwriting by William Froug

16. The Art of Dramatic Writing by Lojos Egri

17. The Poetics by Aristotle

18. Letters to A Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

19. Screenwriting from the Soul by Richard W. Krevolin

20. Story, by Robert McKee