The WGA is on strike. In today's episode, WGA Board Member and showrunner/creator John Rogers (Leverage; The Librarians) talks about why, what's at stake, how negotiations broke down, and how long this might last.

Plus: new WGA member and former Teamster Danielle Nicki has some heartfelt words of encouragement.

THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.

Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com 

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andor creator Tony Gilroy (Rogue One; the Bourne movies; Armageddon) discusses on getting hot on a project, writing vivid scenes, the incremental building of a series, his early resume including The Cutting Edge and Dolores Claiborne, and his disparate influences.

But first: the WGA is on strike. In the first of many conversations with working writers on strike, Ben Blacker chats with M3gan writer Akela Cooper (Star Trek: Brave New Worlds; Luke Cage) about her hopes, fears, and why we're taking this action.

This interview with Tony Gilroy was recorded before the WGA strike began.

THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.

Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com 

SOCIALS:

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mrs. Davis co-creator and showrunner Tara Hernandez (Big Bang Theory; Young Sheldon) discusses learning as an assistant, backing into sci-fi, how she and Damon Lindelof pitched the show, and how many Popes is too many Popes.

THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.

Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com 

SOCIALS:

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Special thanks to Jordan Katz.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Perry Mason co-showrunner Michael Begler (co-creator of The Knick) discusses switching gears in his career, working with Team Downey, the fun of noir, working with a room, and what makes Perry Mason Perry Mason.

THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.

Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com 

SOCIALS:

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello Tomorrow! creators Amit Bhalla and Lucas Jansen discuss selling original ideas, taking big swings and throwing things away, and what they learned working for David Milch.

THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.

Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com 

SOCIALS:

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dear Evan Hansen writer Steven Levenson, whose new show is Up Here on Hulu, discusses the building blocks of musicals, finding an angle on existing material, his previous work on Masters of Sex and Fosse/Verdon, collaboration, and more.

THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.

Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com 

SOCIALS:

https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER 

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chang Can Dunk writer/director Jingyi Shao discusses getting the Disney+ film off the ground, turning a "feel-good sports movie" into a personal story, taking on a studio feature as his first directing gig, the psychology of storytelling, and lots more.

THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.

Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com 

SOCIALS:

https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER 

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Scott Neustadter (creator, Daisy Jones & the Six), Liz Tigelaar (creator, Tiny Beautiful Things), and John Enbom (co-creator, Party Down) discuss things you can't control, pushing at the edges of your work, trusting your story choices, and whether or not streamers even needs to make TV anymore. The new season of Party Down is on Starz now! Daisy Jones & the Six is on Amazon now! Tiny Beautiful Things premieres on Hulu on April 7.

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Jay Faerber (Supergirl; Zoo) and Ali Vingiano (The Morning Show) go deep on how we present ourselves in our work, outlining, group writing, how-to books, and why they like writing.

Be sure to check out Ali's terrific Substack newsletter Little Things at aliv.substack.com and pick up Jay's new comic Area 510 from Oni Press!

CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA 

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Anna Fricke (creator, Walker, Walker: Independence, Being Human) and Leah Fong (creator, The Midnight Club; The Haunting of Bly Manor) discuss new interests and habits as writers, Zoom showrunning practices, lifting up lower level writers, and vampire trash.

CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA 

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.