The Advanced Scriptwriting Course

Price: NZ$ 1295 / £ 795 / R 8995

CREATIVE WRITING

Advanced Scriptwriting Course

Write a Full-Length Script Under the Guidance of an Expert Scriptwriter

A practical course focused entirely on writing and editing your script

The challenging Advanced Scriptwriting Course offers 12 months of expert mentoring and support. The course is structured entirely around the script that you will write and develop in response to feedback. Additional reading is required, depending on the medium you choose to specialise in.

**Please note that this course is only open to graduates of our Scriptwriting Course who attained a minimum average of 70%.

This Course Gives You...

Expert, Individual Feedback

Get prompt, honest, detailed feedback on every assignment from an award-winning writer. We focus on your unique writing strengths.

No Peer Reviews!

You will only be assessed by your tutor, a leader in their field. No more guessing and wondering how to write; you'll be guided line by line.

No Automated Marking

We use traditional methods of assessing work, as editors at publishing houses would. No generic feedback!

A Flexible Schedule

Work wherever and whenever you want. You can easily fit our courses around work and other commitments.

Relevant, Usable Content

Easy-to-digest course notes that capture a lifetime of writing experience, ready for you to apply to your own writing.

Ongoing Assessment

Your writing is assessed continuously as your course progresses.

An Immersive Experience That Takes You From Concept to a Polished Final Script

Master the art of scriptwriting over 12 months

In this course, you will learn how to:

pitch your ideas to industry professionals
create comprehensive character bibles
write a full script for a TV series pilot, a feature film or a stage play

Students must complete one of the following options:

1. Feature Film

Initial two-page pitch document
Character bible
Script outline
First draft: 90 to 120-page script
Second draft

2. TV Series

Initial two-page pitch document
Character bible
Pilot outline
First draft of pilot script: either 24′ or 48′ format
Final draft of pilot script

3. Stage Play

Initial two-page pitch document
Character bible
Script outline
First draft: 100-page script
Second draft

‘Thank you so much for the course. It has truly been an inspiring and superb experience from start to finish. Karen Jeynes has been a wonderful mentor and a great inspiration for me. She is definitely one in a million.’

Riette du Plessis, Scriptwriting Course Graduate

Course Overview

Start your course at any time – applications open all year round.

COURSE FEE

Price includes GST/VAT

Other currencies will be converted at time of invoice

NUMBER OF ASSIGNMENTS

12 The assignments vary in length.

NUMBER OF MODULES

12 These modules include around 20 pages of course notes.

COURSE DURATION

12 Work at your own pace – up to a maximum of 12 months.

START DATE: ANYTIME

Working with an individual tutor means you can start the course at any time.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

Basic writing skills are essential. Computer skills, e-mail and Internet access required.
Applicants must be graduates of the Scriptwriting Course.

Our Graduate Students' Successes

We are proud of our graduates who have achieved success. Here are a few among dozens of our creative writing success stories.

Martin Steyn

Martin Steyn completed the Write a Novel Course. He had his first novel, 'Donkerspoor' ('Dark Traces'), published by Lapa in 2014. The book was an instant success and bestseller, and had to be re-printed. His second book, 'Skuldig' ('Guilty'), received even greater acclaim. Since then, he has written two more novels.

Gareth Ward

Gareth Ward's novel that he worked on during the course went on to win multiple awards. 'The Traitor and the Thief', a rip-roaring young adult steampunk adventure, won the 2016 Storylines Tessa Duder Award, the 2018 Sir Julius Vogel Award for Best Youth Novel, a 2018 Storylines Notable Book Award, and was a finalist in two categories at The New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults. Gareth has this to say about studying with The Writers College: 'Hand on heart, there is no way I would have been published without Alex’s guidance.'

Trish Nicholson

Trish Nicholson, a former Short Story Course graduate, keeps notching up successes on the writing front. Trish won first prize in the Flash500 competition, with four stories shortlisted during that year. She won first prize in the 'shorter story' at the Winchester Writers' Conference in the UK, as well as runner-up in the ‘short story’ category. Two of her stories were commended in the South Island Writers' Association competition. A finalist in both the H.E. Bates Short Story Competition and the Neil Gunn Writing Competition, Trish is one of our most successful creative writing graduates yet.

Suzanne Maine

Suzanne Main completed the Basics of Creative Writing Course. Her children's novel, 'How I Alienated my Grandma', won the 2014 Storylines Tom Fitzgibbon Award.

Andy Evans

Andy Evans completed the Basics of Creative Writing Course and the Literary Short and Flash Fiction Course. He had his first short story, 'The Wooden Hills', published in 'Takahē' magazine. He placed third in the NZ Writers College Short Story Competition with his story 'Gravity'.

Taemumu Richardson

Taemumu Richardson was shortlisted in the Writers' Forum Short Story Competition. This is a big achievement as this competition draws a huge number of entries globally. She was also shortlisted for the Flash500 flash fiction competition, longlisted in the NZ Writers College Short Story Competition and received an honourable mention in the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future contest. Tae had a story published in the literary magazine 'Takahē'.

Megan Frith

Megan Frith completed our Short Story Course and our Novel Writing Course. Her short story ‘Scars‘ came first in the 2014 Page & Blackmore Short Story Competition. She went on to place third in the 2015 Page & Blackmore Short Story Competition for her short story titled ‘Till Death‘. Recently, two of her stories were published in 'Horizons 2', an anthology compiled by the Top of the South branch of the NZ Society of Authors.

Required Textbooks

Please note that these textbooks must be bought or borrowed SEPARATELY and IN ADDITION to the tuition fees on this page.

For all students:

Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need by Blake Snyder

For students wanting to write a comedy or drama series for television:

Writing the Pilot by William Rabkin
OR
The TV Showrunner’s Roadmap by Neil Landau

For students wanting to write a stage play:

The Architecture of Drama: Plot, Character, Theme, Genre and Style by David Letwin
OR
An Actor Prepares (Bloomsbury Revelations) by Konstantin Stanislavski

For students wanting to write a film script:

Screenplay by Syd Field
OR
Making a Good Script Great by Linda Seger

Tutor for this course

Karen Jeynes

Karen has been on our staff for over a decade. Over the years, she has established herself as a hugely popular and respected mentor for emerging scriptwriters. She studied drama and linguistics at UCT and obtained her Honours in The Art of Writing from UWC.

Karen has won numerous awards and nominations for her co-writing of TV series, including two Emmy nominations for Best TV Comedy. Currently, she is the head writer for Both Worlds Productions, overseeing ZANews: Puppet Nation (winner of 22 South African Film and Television Awards and two Writer’s Guild of South Africa Awards for Best TV Comedy), as well as Point of Order (SAFTA winner for Best Game Show in 2017), Comedy Central News and Parlement Parlement.

Before joining Both Worlds Productions, Karen had extensive experience writing and producing in both theatre and television. Her plays include the multi-award winning Everybody Else (is f*cking perfect), which won Best Comedy in 2005, Kiss Kiss, I’ll Have What She’s Having, Laying Blame and Vaslav, which was nominated for three Fleur du Cap Awards. She served as head writer for 90 Plein Street and has written for shows like Thabang Thabong, Vaya Mzansi and Moferefere Lenyalong. She is in demand as a script consultant and advisor, working with local and international production companies and channels. Today she serves on the board of Women Playwrights International. She was also the president of the International Centre for Women Playwrights for six years.

Her achievements aren’t confined to television and theatre. Her adaptation of Thomas Rapakgadi’s The Purse is Mine aired on Bush Radio. SAfm has featured her excellent series Office Hours (co-written with Nkuli Sibeko) as well as the radio version of Sky Too Big. Her teen novels, Jacques Attack (co-authored with Nkuli Sibeko) and Flipside (co-authored with Eeshaam September) were released by New Africa Books. She also has a children’s story published in the anthology Metz and Bop and Other Stories.Karen tutors the Scriptwriting Course and the Advanced Scriptwriting Course.

When she isn’t busy, she indulges her deep obsession with reality television, Good Omens, chaos theory and Nutella.

Course Curriculum

Task 1

Submit a two-page pitch document.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 2

Submit a full film/TV series/play synopsis of approximately five pages.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 3

Submit a character bible of approximately five pages.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 4

The Components of Fiction

Submit a series bible or a film or play treatment, incorporating a synopsis and character bible – approximately 20 pages.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 5

Learn How to Write Scenes

Submit a beat outline for a pilot episode/film script/play script.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 6

Submit draft two of a beat outline for a pilot episode/film script/play script, with edits clearly tracked.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 7

Submit a full pitch with edited bible or treatment and outline.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 8

Submit a first act of approximately 40 pages for film (variable for TV). For theatre, discuss scope of project with tutor.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 9

Submit a full draft script of approximately 100 pages for film or play (variable for TV).
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 10

First edit in response to feedback; resubmit with edits clearly tracked.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 11

Second edit in response to feedback; resubmit with edits clearly tracked.
Time to complete task: One month.

Task 12

Final edit and proofread of bible and script; submit for final assessment.

What Our Students Say

I found the course exciting and interesting. I never expected to learn as much as I did. Karen Jeynes is an excellent lecturer. The feedback I received from her on assignments was definitely the reason I managed to improve my writing over the six-month period. Karen continually encouraged me and increased my confidence, and I was able to complete the course successfully. Her criticism of work submitted was fair, and she gave clear advice on how to overcome the writing deficiencies in my work. Passing the course had a lot to do with her tutoring skills. I will be back next year to enrol for another creative writing course with The Writers College.

I learnt a lot in a short space of time, which was fantastic. Karen was very approachable and always replied promptly. This was important to me because I needed to wait for a response before I could continue working on an assignment.

I loved every moment of it. The knowledge I gained fills me with great excitement for the future. Karen was such a blessing! Knowing that there is someone on the other side with so much experience gives you so much confidence in approaching the assignments. The feedback I received raised my understanding of the whole scriptwriting process. I would, however, remind other students that it is not spoon-feeding. The information is very good, however, you need to get out there and work it. Overall, it was a very positive experience. The Writers College delivers a high-quality experience to the open student.

My experience at the Writers College was very good. It was very in-depth and thorough, and I have gained a lot from it. The experience with my tutor was very good; she gave me constructive criticism, and was very clear about how I could improve. Karen was very helpful whenever I needed it, and the Writers’ College was understanding in times of need. The material covers a lot, it applies to situations outside of the course, which gives you direction once the course is completed.

The course has already opened doors to wonderful opportunities. I have not felt this motivated and inspired in a long time! Both the course and Karen have made a difference in my life.

Karen Jeynes is an excellent tutor. She gave me maximum support throughout the course. I have not had the pleasure of seeing any of her work, but she is very passionate about what she does and it shows through her tutoring. She was very encouraging and she just inspired me to keep trying until I got it right. For as long as I live I will not ever forget the advice she gave me. She is excellent! Overall I was very happy with the course, I learnt a great deal and would recommend it to anyone interested in pursuing a career in this field

Lifetime Course Access

Benefit from free lifetime access to future course updates and access to our writing resources.

Join a Community of Writers

You will have access to our friendly Facebook community, daily writing tips and writing inspiration.

500+ Bonus Articles on Our Blog

A superb, constantly updated resource with articles on writing and interviews with writers.

Work at Your Own Pace

Our courses work around you. You can pace your course around your busy life.

Work Opportunities

Top students are invited to join our writers and editors for hire service.

Be the First to Know About Writing Competitions

We'll help you keep up to date with the latest competition announcements

Risk-Free 100% Money-Back Guarantee

We are so confident that you will love your course that if you’re not 100% satisfied with the quality of our training, simply ask for a refund within 30 days.

Complete the Application Form to Enrol on the Advanced Scriptwriting Course

You will receive an approval email and invoice within one working day.

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Questions? We've Got Answers

How does the course work?

The course consists of 12 tasks. Once a writing assignment has been completed and emailed to your tutor, you will receive feedback and the task will be considered complete. The next task will then commence.

The course is considered complete once all 12 tasks have been submitted, critiqued and/or edited.

Is it interactive? Can I ask my tutor questions?

Absolutely. You have direct communication with your tutor for the duration of the course. The more questions you ask, the more you will get out of the course.

For how long will I get access to the course?

You will get lifetime access to the course. You will also benefit from future updates and improvements to the course!

Will anyone else see my work?

For the majority of our courses, only your tutor will see your work. It will remain completely private unless you get it published, a decision that is yours to make.

What are the conditions of certification?

You will receive a Writers College Certificate upon successful completion of the course, provided you meet the following conditions:

You must have completed all assignments.
The course must have been completed within 12 months of registration.
A minimum average of 50% must be achieved.

What are the admission requirements?

You should be a graduate of the Scriptwriting Course, although we may consider students who have not completed this course. In this case, acceptance on the course would be based on the merits of your existing portfolio of writing.

Computer skills as well as email and Internet access are required.

When can I start a course?

Because you will work with an individual tutor, you can start your course as soon as your application has been approved. There are no specific start dates as would be the case with a traditional college.

An application is usually approved within one working day. Once we receive proof of payment, your can start your course.

You could be starting your course today!

What is the minimum estimated time commitment?

The speed at which you work is entirely up to you. We would estimate that each task would take at least five hours to write and polish.

When will I get access to the course?

Once your application has been approved, you will receive notification of approval and an invoice via email. As soon as we receive proof of payment, your first module as well as your tutor’s email address and your login details will be sent to you. Your tutor will also be in touch to welcome you.

Who owns the rights to the work I produce?

Any work you create on our courses is owned by you. We will never make a claim to anything you produce. We follow the rule that copyright subsists with the creator (you).

‘Doing this course is something I would recommend to anyone who wants to grasp the mechanics of creating a solid script. The course without a doubt met my objectives. The professionalism, communication, support and encouragement from The Writers College is second to none.’