A new ad I'm running. Sometimes, these things hit me late late at night and I never quite know if they land in the light of day. The ad itself is a carousel that you thumb through. But here's a video so you get the idea as well. I just realized you can actually click on the carousel and go leave comments, likes, etc. Def helps with engagement and this community. So go do that! Meanwhile... What's the best "worst" compliment you've gotten? For me, it's a golf clap and the words, "Well told!" at the end of a 30 min pitch. Instantly, you know you're dead in the water. Followed by, "You got any questions?" Exec: "No, I think you explained it really well." Me, mentally: I'll show myself out. 🤮

Boo hoo, the market's dead. It's not! It's transforming. And actively looking for new talent as evidenced by Backrooms, Obsession and the spec script market that's alive and well. Check out the stories below and think about where you are now and what you really want to achieve from your writing. From being here. And what stands in your way. If you have a vision and a voice, now's the time to take it to the next level. - The spec market is still alive in 2026. Studios and streamers have kept buying original specs and pitches this year, continuing the rebound that started in 2025. The takeaway for you is not "chase the market." It is that original material with a strong hook is selling again. The writers getting reads are the ones who finished something distinct and were ready when the call came. - First-time and emerging writer-directors owned Sundance this year. Beth de Araújo's "Josephine" sold to Sumerian in a seven-figure competitive deal. Australian writer-director Adrian Chiarella made his major debut with the queer horror film "Leviticus," bought by Neon. Nigerian-born Olive Nwosu, a Sundance Lab alum, took a Special Jury Prize. Different countries, different genres, same lesson. A specific, personal story with a clear voice still cuts through. - The Nicholl window is open. Deadline is July 20. Submissions for the 2026-2027 Academy Nicholl Fellowships opened June 22 and close July 20 at 5pm PT, or when 2,000 scripts are in, whichever hits first. That cap matters. Every year writers wait too long and the door shuts early. If you have a finished feature you believe in, this is the most prestigious free-to-enter shot you'll get all year. Up to five $35,000 fellowships. No agent required. Just the script. - A viral short became a Sundance feature. Again. Casper Kelly, the mind behind the cult Adult Swim short "Too Many Cooks," landed his feature debut "Buddy" at Sundance 2026, picked up by Roadside Attractions and Saban Films. This is the whole game in one story. He made a strange, personal short. It found an audience. That audience became a career. You do not need permission to make the thing that gets you noticed.

🔊🔊🔊 Update - the Dark Drafts Discord server has been created! You can join here: https://discord.gg/79GKZ8RT3 Hey friends, interested in syncing up with a few horror/thriller/sci-fi people (can expand, I love everything) to sync up in a small writers group where we read each others stuff and like a 1/week check in. Would be awesome to get a lil feedback group going before table reads etc. @David Stem or Mods pls feel free to delete if not the place for this. But would be awesome to have a partner or few to just get feedback before shipping to @Chad Desrochers for table reads.

I am so excited to share the news with you all! The results are in on my entry to the Oxford Script Awards Best US Screenplay, and I am a FINALIST! I am incredibly grateful to @David Stem and everyone in the Writer's Forge for your insights and support! I have been carrying this story in my bones for decades, and it wasn't until finding this community in mid-March that I shifted from a memoir to a screenplay, and wow, I am so glad I am here! There weren't any other teenage girl Assistant Athletic Trainers for a Men's Rugby Team in California or Europe in the 1970s or early 1980s that I ever saw or heard of, so it's a very unique story to be told, and it could only happen here in the Writer's Forge! I researched Film Festivals that were in countries where rugby is very familiar, knowing my story might be seen as surprising, coming from California, a woman, and a member of an Elite San Francisco club from the 1960s to 1980s. We have a long history of traveling overseas to play top competition unavailable in the U.S., and they once played a match in Oxford, a well-established rugby community. So I am beyond proud of this achievement! From Film Freeway: The Oxford Script Awards is an IMDb-qualifying competition built for one purpose: getting your script into the hands of UK industry professionals looking for the next indie talent. Ranked as a Top 15 Most Popular Screenwriting Festival in the UK and Top 100 Best Reviewed globally, we provide the ultimate professional platform for emerging screenwriters. We run a specialized marketing portal for directors and producers where we actively promote the best scripts from every season. This is your chance to be part of a curated selection seen by industry professionals looking for new stories. Moreover, the best screenplays receive our Main Prize of $400 for further development and career support from our professional jury.