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Writing Pad Holiday Fest

Benny Boy Brewing Dec 12 (1 Friday Evening)6:00pm - 8:00pm

64 Spots Left

Craving some holiday cheer? Join us for Writing Pad’s Holiday Fest! Don your duds, swill hand-crafted cider or beer (or non-alcoholic apple cider) and schmooze with fellow writers, network, and make some new literary friends at Benny Boy Brewery’s Outdoor Beer Garden in Lincoln Heights (Los Angeles) on Friday, December 12th from 6-8 PM. What better way to close out the year, talk shop and party? Cash bar/BBQ by Shourai BBQ Pop Up available. RSVP HERE NOW (spots are limited)! It’s 21+ so bring ID’s.

Instructors attending:
Cheryl Meyer (6 Movies Sold, 9 TV Shows)
Erika Schickel (2 Memoirs, LA Times)
Jack Kukoda (Co-EP, Netflix, SUPERSTORE, COMMUNITY)
Nina Fiore (Co-EP, THE HANDMAID’S TALE, 4 Pilots)

Cheryl Meyer

6 Movies Sold, 9 TV Shows

Cheryl Meyer is a film and television writer, crafting bold, genre-driven stories that captivate audiences. Over the past four years, she has had three feature films produced, sold another and was commissioned to adapt a children's horror book series, The Popchuck Chronicles, into 2 screenplays for a production company. As the co-writer of the Hulu Original CARVED—which soared to #1 internationally on the Hulu/Disney+ platform following its October 2024 release—Cheryl has solidified her place in the world of horror storytelling. CARVED took home top honors at Nightmares Film Festival and was an Official Selection at Screamfest and the VHS Vancouver Horror Show. Notably, she had two feature films screening at VHS simultaneously, with her dystopian horror ALL THE LOST ONES winning Best Narrative Feature Film and Best Writing. Her debut feature, THE LAST MARK, was a TIFF Industry Select in 2021, while her horror screenplay INVALID—currently in development—was featured on the Wscripted Cannes Screenplay List (2022). She is an alum of prestigious labs including TIFF Talent Lab, Athena Film Festival, SeriesFest Pitch-a-Thon, Stowe Story Lab, and Diversity Showrunner Bootcamp. In 2024, she was named one of Playback’s 10 to Watch. She's written on nine TV shows for Amazon, CBBC, and animated shows for Nickelodeon, Disney and Canadian networks. Cheryl was executive story editor for MY PERFECT LANDING, THE PARKER ANDERSONS/AMELIA PARKER and Co-Producer for Amazon's BEYOND BLACK BEAUTY. MORE

Erika Schickel

2 Memoirs, LA Times

Erika Schickel is the author of The Big Hurt (Hachette Books, 2021) and You’re Not the Boss of Me: Adventures of a Modern Mom (Kensington Books, 2007). Her reviews, opinions and reporting have appeared in The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Review of Books, Tin House, Salon, the LA Weekly, Bust Magazine and elsewhere. She has taught memoir and essay. MORE

“She gave us useful writing assignments, suggested books, lead a dynamic and enjoyable class. Class was first rate!”
“Erika was incredibly SMART, thoughtful, insightful, compassionate, cool and funny. The structure of the class was great with a master class at top, then writing exercises, followed by our pages.”
“I have truly enjoyed Erika’s memoir class. I’ve been a writer for 23 years and I still learned something new every week!”
“Erika's class was exactly what I needed. I loved her clear directives on how to build a work that others may want to read and craft a narrative that is relevant, creative, and authentic. She is no-nonsense, inspirational and the kind of kick in the ass I personally needed to keep working on something that I've wanted to articulate for years. She's also wonderfully insightful and caring. I loved working with her so very much.”
“She really understands writing and expresses her knowledge very well. Erika did an excellent job covering the elements and structure of a memoir.”
“Her feedback is really great. She makes herself available for craft questions throughout and the lessons she gives are really informative and helpful. You really feel like she is pulling for you and giving you the tools to create the best project possible.”
“She gave us useful writing exercises, very thorough and kind critiques of our work, and suggested readings. Erika was great!”
“Erika's Resistance Smackdown is like a shot of B12 into your writing patterns. It's totally energizing and inspiring.”
“Erika is phenomenal! She clearly explained the reasons why we resist writing, gave us a lot of great ideas to combat them and shared her own personal experiences to drive home her powerful points. I enjoyed how interactive and engaging this class was. Erika is both compassionate and calls us out on our excuses/BS so we can become our best writer selves.”
“Erika has a wide breadth of useful information for writing memoir. She gives vivid and helpful examples from her own experience as a writer and her process with candor and honesty. She gave good notes for edits and strengthening my material.”
“Erika distilled the craft of memoir in a way that was so digestible, identifiable, and replicable for me. I've taken memoir classes before, and she helped me see and understand things in a way that I haven't before. This class was so practical, too - do your daily pages, let's check in about your writing life, etc. I would leave class and see the things she was saying/pointing out in things I was reading. I liked that she incorporated writing exercises. I needed someone to be like, "Here's a thing, go! See what happens!"”
“She listened, paced the class well, provided a good list of reference books, answered every question, had an engaging, clear and caring communication style. She was a fun and natural teaching approach.”
“Erika broke down the craft of memoir so clearly and in a way that felt useful. Her teaching of craft translated the abstract idea of writing a book into tangible methods for actually getting the work done. LOVED HER!!! Also, I appreciate the balance of craft lesson with workshopping, so that our critical thinking is informed by a lesson.”
“Erika's exercises and overall vibe were incredibly interesting. I took away so much that I can apply every day. She was outstanding!”
“Erika was very open and supportive. She encouraged sharing, questions, and created a very safe space. My class was fun, informative, and it made me want to check out other Writing Pad classes.”
“Erika is a good listener and gives great feedback. She's so respectful of each person's journey/situation and she's very encouraging. When she criticizes something, it's always constructive. She's so smart and has a lot of credibility. This term she faced a personal tragedy with the wildfires in LA, but she was on point during class - a consummate professional. She inspires me to keep pushing forward.”
“Erika was engaging, interesting, and authentic. She shared great anecdotes and experiences. I would recommend her class to anyone interested in memoir writing.”
“Erika shared a ton of wisdom during our five weeks and is clearly a very talented writer. I found myself laughing out loud a lot during her class. She gave detailed feedback to students during workshopping and was encouraging and kind to everyone. She frequently referenced and recommended various memoirs and books on writing which I’ve found really useful.”
“Erika is a great listener, and I really enjoyed her quick wit and sense of humor. I also appreciated how she gave detailed line-by-line edits—something not all classes I’ve taken offer. I valued the PowerPoints, the quotes, the book references, the thoughtful explanations, and her in-depth responses to student questions. Her constructive feedback on our pieces was incredibly helpful. I also enjoyed reading her book and appreciated having the opportunity to ask her questions about it during class.”
“Erika is smart and knows her stuff. She is encouraging and really knows how to foster great discussion. Her feedback is always valuable. I highly recommend her classes.”
“Erika is amazing and everybody should have the pleasure of taking a class with her. She is phenomenal as a teacher - giving tips and advice on her writing journey that are helpful for those of us writing memoirs. Her feedback on our writing is invaluable.”
“Erika gives thoughtful and actionable feedback. You can tell she spends time on our pieces before class and that she's attentive throughout the workshopping.”
“Erika gives thoughtful, insightful feedback on the pages we share, and the way she frames her comments sparks deeper discussion and learning.”
“She was concise and respectful of our personal writing styles and helped us explore our personal skills with remarkable clarity and open-mindedness. If anyone wants to work on their memoir, I suggest Erika.”

Jack Kukoda

Co-EP of Netflix's Murderville, Superstore, Community

Jack Kukoda is the Co-Executive Producer on Netflix's Murderville starring Will Arnett. He has also written on NBC's Superstore, FX's Wilfred, Cartoon Network/Adult Swim's China, IL, Adult Swim's Mr. Pickles, and NBC's Community. He wrote on Movie 43 and also was a writer on Onion SportsDome and the Onion News Network.

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“He's terrific about giving insightful and deeply helpful notes in a way that's neither harsh nor pandering. I always knew that if I was off-course, I could count on Jack to call it out in a respectful way and then get a conversation going in the class that would inspire & motivate me.”
“My last class with Jack Kukoda was FANTASTIC!!! I can’t praise him enough for guiding my ideas and attempts at writing a script to a MUCH stronger and more professional script.”
“His ability to give quick, smart pitches/feedback on a variety of different concepts impressed me. He also taught me new verbiage I hadn't heard of before, and I've even worked in writer's rooms. A+ experience all-round.”
“He was very supportive of each person's material, encouraging, and honest about the state of the industry. He created a positive space for class discussion and was generous with his time.”
“Jack was extremely encouraging. He set the tone for a very supportive atmosphere among the students. He gave EXCELLENT feedback. He was very down-to-earth and approachable.”
“I think Jack was good about finding things that weren't working without making it seem like your idea was bad. He validated your overall idea by finding stuff that could make it more clear.”
“He was such a good listener, he gave honest feedback that made everyone's projects better. He is very bright, with a witty sense of humor. However, he was so good at morphing into whoever's comedy voice he needed to at any time.”
“Jack is incredibly upbeat and encouraging. He provided amazing samples, references, and pitches that elevated all of our projects. He also shared writing exercises that helped us go deeper into our characters. Jack is an amazing teacher!”
“He gave honest feedback to push us. I felt like he held me to a high standard and his examples were so helpful.”

Jeff Bernstein

NPR's Unfictional, Writing Pad Co-Founder

Jeff Bernstein is an artist, writer, and Co-Founder of Writing Pad. You can check out one of his stories on NPR's Unfictional (00:23:18). Jeff has a BA in Art History and French from the University of Pennsylvania and an MFA in Painting from the San Francisco Art Institute. MORE

Marilyn Friedman

NY Times (2X), Writing Pad Co-Founder, San Francisco Chronicle, Salon

Marilyn is a freelance journalist and the Co-Founder of Writing Pad, an award-winning creative writing school whose instructors are writers from the top TV shows and publications and has existed in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Online since 2005. Her essays, stories, and op-ed’s have been published in the NY Times (1), NY Times (2), Salon.com (1), Salon.com (2), Narratively, The Frisky, and the San Francisco Chronicle. She is currently working on a pilot and a memoir about her experiences as a swing dancer. She has taught writing for fifteen years, including classes at Pixar, Walt Disney Studios, The Writing Salon, and the Southern California Writers Conference. Her poetry has been published in Pearl, Squaw Valley Review, California Quarterly, Karamu, and The Great American Poetry Show and has written articles on love and dating for Match.com. Marilyn has a BA in English and Writing from University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and a Master’s Degree from Boston University. MORE

“I wanted to reach out and say thank you for everything you do setting up and administrating these classes! I’ve been telling my writer friends and strangers at meetups about Writing Pad ‘cause I’ve had such a great experience. I’ve learned so much and gotten to work with incredible writers. And I’m so proud of the scripts I’ve written in this program — especially this last one, which was so challenging and scary to write.”
“Not to be dramatic, but Writing Pad has changed my life as an artist. It’s true – I came into the Certificate Program as an actress who wanted to learn how to write decent material for herself. I was tired of receiving the same casting breakdowns for a Latina character that was stereotypical or flat. I had no idea that in the process of writing my first pilot that I would find my purpose and an entire network of people who want to help me succeed. I need and love Writing Pad. To me, Writing Pad is a community of writers and outstanding people that I will call my dear friends and my home for the rest of my hopefully long career as both a writer and an actress.”
“I'm getting my first short story published this coming Thursday in one of my favorite literary magazines. This is directly a result of my classes at Writing Pad, particularly the one on short story publishing. Publishing short stories and the wild wild world of literary magazines is something that has absolutely not been covered in my masters' program, so all of my knowledge of that comes directly from your classes. Dominica Phetteplace really helped me figure out how and where to submit. I truly cannot speak highly enough of the Writing Pad classes, as they really built the base for my writing. Writing Pad fosters a constructively critical environment where writers can both feel safe sharing their work and know that they're receiving feedback that will help take them to the next level.”
“In all my myriad of Writing Pad classes, I've yet to take one that didn't get the engines revved and rolling on projects. Writing can be a lonely business, so these incredible, practical, inspiring teachers and classes have been vital lifelines to useful feedback, to accountability and good deadlines, to a sense of fellowship, and most of all a way into your pages. I call Writing Pad Flow State University.”
“Thank you so much for offering these classes. They have all been wonderful and so helpful in guiding me towards improving my ability to write for tv, and present myself in the best possible light. I know it is very difficult to get noticed in this competitive market, however, you are giving me a chance to compete because of the classes you are providing. I have the highest praises for you, and all of the instructors at Writing Pad. Thank you, again!!!”

Nina Fiore

(Co-EP, The Handmaid’s Tale, 4 pilots)

Nina Fiore is an Emmy-nominated writer and Co-EP on Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale (all seasons) where she collaborates with writing partner, John Herrera. Nina and John wrote on Bloom, a new show for Netflix that will be coming soon. She and John have also worked on USA’s The Purge, Syfy’s Nightflyers, Blood Drive, Alphas, and Eureka. Additionally, Nina and John have sold their pilots Players and Dante’s Inferno (the latter co-written with Ethan Reiff & Cyrus Voris) to CW and Freeform, respectively, and an adaptation of Melissa Lenhardt’s genre-bending, feminist western novel, Heresy, with MGM. Nina also co-wrote the movie Nancy Drew and The Hidden Staircase for Warner Brothers and is currently adapting a true-life feature story about the latter days of the Bosnian-Serb conflict of the 1990’s. Before becoming a TV writer, Nina was a script coordinator and writer’s assistant on Eureka, Sleeper Cell, The L Word. Born in the Bronx to a Puerto Rican mother and a Sicilian father, Nina spent most of her formative years surrounded by an excess of personality. MORE

“Nina gave useful feedback on my beat sheet and clearly knows a lot of great and valuable information on TV writing. She was also often funny.”
“Nina is very compassionate, kind, empathetic, and thoughtful. Being a working writer, she comes with experience and insight that is very beneficial. She is very approachable and pays attention to each student as they share their ideas.”
“She was amazing at keeping things positive and providing great feedback. She always made sure we were comfortable with feedback and notes.”
“Nina knows how to get to the heart of a concept and makes great suggestions to elevate it, without ego. She knows the writer might take a different approach. Also, she has been incredibly open with her own experiences. She's very encouraging.”
“BRILLIANT! Nina is best ever at breaking things down and communicating it to you effectively. I learned more from her than I have from all the other projects I've done.”
“Both John & Nina were so great at sharing their own real world experiences and being open and honest about the entire experience of making a great pitch & pitch deck and what it is like to be in the room. I learned so much about how to improve and move forward with my project. They give great insight, suggestions, and ideas. I'd love to learn more from them in the future.”
“Nina has an amazing ability to get you out of your head and your story onto a complete beat sheet in 5 weeks! She knew where the cracks and weaknesses were, and gave smart coaching on how to fix them. She's just awesome!”
“They clearly broke down the basic elements of what are needed in a pitch deck, then modeled what it would be like to present one. John and Nina also listened thoughtfully to all pitches/decks presented and offered excellent feedback and suggestions in a very positive and encouraging manner.”
“She is exceptional at honing in on elements of your story that need addressing. I didn’t agree with her suggestions all the time but absolutely agreed and appreciated the element itself being pointed out.”
“The whole experience was wonderful: the material they so generously gave us before and during class, the opportunity to pitch to them, and their feedback - it was all invaluable.”
“She helped me figure out what questions I needed to answer to make the show work and how to be able to do that on my own if I hit speed bumps along the way.”
“John & Nina provided a lot of great input on my pilot that will help me immensely. They were direct while also being kind.”
“Nina is awesome! She taught us how to write a pilot from beat sheet to outline to script. It was an amazing process. I feel I had tremendous growth in this class. I am extremely grateful for Nina, her teaching style, and Writing Pad. ”
“Nina was highly supportive and taught us the important keys to success. She gave us clear strategies to dig deep and fix the issues in our scripts at the beat sheet level. Her class norms created a welcoming environment and she encouraged us to support each other in constructive ways. I have already recommended this class to friends and will continue to do so.”
“Nina & her writing partner John really care and give great feedback and constructive insight. Your writing will grow so strong!”
“This class is just what it needs to be. They gave us what we needed to make a stand out pitch. ”
“Nina's approach to beat sheets helps you build a better script from the very beginning. She took something that is obligatory -- the beat sheet -- and showed us how it can be the best thing you can do for your story.”

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