Screenwriting for Absolute Beginners
You've been told story starts from structure. It begins with creativity!
A 4-week live course that begins where every other course is afraid to: your instinct.
Most screenwriting courses hand you a blank page and a formula. Then they wonder why you freeze.
You've felt it. You have a story burning in you. A character, a world, a feeling you can't shake. You sit down to write it, and the first thing the course, the book, the YouTube video tells you to do is build an outline. Map your three acts. Define your inciting incident. Nail your midpoint.
So you stare at a structure template for an idea you haven't even let yourself feel yet, and the spark goes cold. You decide maybe you're not a writer after all.
You are. You're not bad at this. You were taught backwards. And once you learn the order that actually fits how a story lives in your head, everything changes.
You've felt it. You have a story burning in you. A character, a world, a feeling you can't shake. You sit down to write it, and the first thing the course, the book, the YouTube video tells you to do is build an outline. Map your three acts. Define your inciting incident. Nail your midpoint.
So you stare at a structure template for an idea you haven't even let yourself feel yet, and the spark goes cold. You decide maybe you're not a writer after all.
You are. You're not bad at this. You were taught backwards. And once you learn the order that actually fits how a story lives in your head, everything changes.
Here's the thing nobody teaches you.
You cannot carve a sculpture out of air. Before you can shape anything, you need a block to shape. A big, messy, honest block of raw material that came out of you and nobody else.
That block is the clay. And before we talk about structure, formulas, or "the rules," we are going to spend real time building yours.
For four weeks, I'm going to teach you how to get every thought, feeling, instinct, image, and half-formed idea in your head down onto the page, with no judgment and no premature editing. We build the block first. Then, and only then, we pick up the tools and start chipping away to reveal the story that was hiding inside it the whole time.
This is the opposite of how it's usually taught. It's also why it works for people who've tried everything else and quit.
That block is the clay. And before we talk about structure, formulas, or "the rules," we are going to spend real time building yours.
For four weeks, I'm going to teach you how to get every thought, feeling, instinct, image, and half-formed idea in your head down onto the page, with no judgment and no premature editing. We build the block first. Then, and only then, we pick up the tools and start chipping away to reveal the story that was hiding inside it the whole time.
This is the opposite of how it's usually taught. It's also why it works for people who've tried everything else and quit.
I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free. — Michelangelo
Who this is for
This is for the one with a story they can't shake. Maybe you've carried it for years. Maybe you've started it a dozen times and stalled every time at the outline. Maybe you've never written a word of it but you know it's in there. You're not a "writer" yet, in your own head, and that's exactly who this is built for.
You do not need any experience. You do not need to know what a logline is. You do not need fancy software. You need one idea you care about and four weeks of showing up.
This is not for working screenwriters polishing a finished feature, or for people who want a structure-first masterclass. There are plenty of those. This is the one that comes before all of them.
You do not need any experience. You do not need to know what a logline is. You do not need fancy software. You need one idea you care about and four weeks of showing up.
This is not for working screenwriters polishing a finished feature, or for people who want a structure-first masterclass. There are plenty of those. This is the one that comes before all of them.
What we do, week by week
Week 1: Build the Clay
This is where it all starts and where everyone else skips ahead. You'll learn how to write freely, without judgment, dumping the full contents of your imagination onto the page. We'll use guided prompts, daily targets that keep the momentum going, and a music exercise tailored to your specific concept that unlocks material you didn't know you had. By the end of week one you'll have more raw story on the page than most beginners produce in a year. The block is forming.
Week 2: Shape the Block
Now we step back and look at what you actually made. We'll find the patterns, the obsessions, the through-lines you didn't plan but kept returning to. This is where instinct meets craft: I'll introduce storytelling techniques, including the timeless shapes like The Hero's Journey, not as a formula to force your idea into, but as lenses to hold up to the clay you already built. You'll see your own story start to take shape from the inside out.
Week 3: Chip Away
The fun, terrifying, exhilarating part. We start carving. You'll learn how to cut what doesn't serve the story and protect what does, revealing the sculpture beneath the clay. This is where the mess becomes a shape, where you find the actual story living inside everything you poured out. Most beginners never get here because they never built enough clay to carve. You will.
Week 4: Reveal the Story
We finalize your roadmap, a clear, working outline of your story that you earned instead of forced. And then we go one step further than any beginner course dares: you'll carve one real scene out of your clay and write it. Actual pages. Real dialogue, real moments, in your voice. You'll walk away from this course not with a worksheet, but with something you wrote that you can hold up and say, "I made this." Because you did.
Why learn this from me
I'm Joshua Young. I'm a 40-time award-winning screenwriter with more than two decades working across this industry, as a writer, a story editor, and a picture editor on hundreds of episodes of television. I've worked in the rooms, cut the footage, won the awards, and spent years learning what actually makes a story land and what just looks good on a structure template.
I'm not going to teach you to write like me. I'm going to teach you to write like you, faster and with more confidence than you thought possible. Because your instinct is the most valuable thing you own as a writer, and nobody else is teaching you to start there.
I'm not going to teach you to write like me. I'm going to teach you to write like you, faster and with more confidence than you thought possible. Because your instinct is the most valuable thing you own as a writer, and nobody else is teaching you to start there.
How it works
This is a live, four-week course beginning Tuesday, July 28, but it's really the start of something longer. We meet once a week on Zoom on Tuesday evenings, at 6:00pm Pacific / 9:00pm Eastern, for two hours per class, where you learn, ask questions, and write alongside other beginners going through exactly what you're going through.
Every class is recorded. Even if you can't make a session live, you get the replay plus a written lesson breakdown, so you never fall behind.
You'll also join a private Facebook community group of people who were all taught backwards and are learning the right order together, where you share your progress, swap clay, and cheer each other on. Every Friday, I host an AMA in the group where you can bring me your questions.
The four weeks end. The method, the group, and the people are yours to keep. You are not doing this alone, and you won't be when it's over either.
Every class is recorded. Even if you can't make a session live, you get the replay plus a written lesson breakdown, so you never fall behind.
You'll also join a private Facebook community group of people who were all taught backwards and are learning the right order together, where you share your progress, swap clay, and cheer each other on. Every Friday, I host an AMA in the group where you can bring me your questions.
The four weeks end. The method, the group, and the people are yours to keep. You are not doing this alone, and you won't be when it's over either.
There are two ways in.
Tier 1: The Course — $100 early bird, then $125
Open enrollment. Everyone who wants in is welcome. The $100 price is locked in only through July 20.
Everything you need to go from idea to outline to your first real scene:
• All four weeks of live classes
• The full Clay Method, step by step
• All classes recorded — replays plus a written lesson breakdown
• The private Facebook student community group, with Friday AMAs
• Share your work, your progress, and get support from fellow writers
• Lifetime access to the method, so you can run the process again on every new idea you ever have
Everything you need to go from idea to outline to your first real scene:
• All four weeks of live classes
• The full Clay Method, step by step
• All classes recorded — replays plus a written lesson breakdown
• The private Facebook student community group, with Friday AMAs
• Share your work, your progress, and get support from fellow writers
• Lifetime access to the method, so you can run the process again on every new idea you ever have
Tier 2: The Course + Personal Feedback From Me — $250 early bird, then $275
Strictly limited to 20 seats. The $250 price is locked in only through July 20.
Everything in Tier 1, plus the part that changes everything:
• I personally review your work as the course progresses
• Direct written feedback from me at each stage — on your clay, your shaping, your carving, and your final scene
• The single fastest way to improve as a writer is feedback from someone who's done it, and this is your direct line to mine
I cap this tier at 20 on purpose. Personal feedback only means something if it's actually personal, and I won't dilute it. When the 20 seats are gone, they're gone for this cohort.
Everything in Tier 1, plus the part that changes everything:
• I personally review your work as the course progresses
• Direct written feedback from me at each stage — on your clay, your shaping, your carving, and your final scene
• The single fastest way to improve as a writer is feedback from someone who's done it, and this is your direct line to mine
I cap this tier at 20 on purpose. Personal feedback only means something if it's actually personal, and I won't dilute it. When the 20 seats are gone, they're gone for this cohort.
Three dates to know
Early bird ends July 20. Enroll on or before this date and lock in the lowest price.
Enrollment closes July 27. This is your last chance to join. Once class begins, doors close, because a live four-week cohort can't take latecomers.
Class begins Tuesday, July 28, at 6:00pm Pacific / 9:00pm Eastern, two hours per class on Zoom — so it fits around a working life.
Tier 2 is capped at 20 seats and the kind of writer who wants real feedback moves fast. If the review tier matters to you, claim your seat before it fills.
Enrollment closes July 27. This is your last chance to join. Once class begins, doors close, because a live four-week cohort can't take latecomers.
Class begins Tuesday, July 28, at 6:00pm Pacific / 9:00pm Eastern, two hours per class on Zoom — so it fits around a working life.
Tier 2 is capped at 20 seats and the kind of writer who wants real feedback moves fast. If the review tier matters to you, claim your seat before it fills.
How to enroll
Enrolling takes two quick steps:
1. Complete the short Google Form to tell me which tier you want and a little about your idea.
2. You'll then be directed to pay securely by PayPal to lock in your seat.
Your spot is confirmed once payment is complete. For Tier 2, seats are reserved in the order payments come in, and once all 20 are taken, that tier closes for this cohort.
1. Complete the short Google Form to tell me which tier you want and a little about your idea.
2. You'll then be directed to pay securely by PayPal to lock in your seat.
Your spot is confirmed once payment is complete. For Tier 2, seats are reserved in the order payments come in, and once all 20 are taken, that tier closes for this cohort.
A few honest answers
I've never written anything. Is this really for me?
It's built for you. The entire method exists because structure-first courses leave beginners behind. You're exactly who this is for.
Do I need special software or any equipment?
No. You need something to write with and the willingness to show up. We'll talk tools, but nothing is required to start.
What if I don't have a fully formed idea yet?
Perfect. Week one is designed to pull the idea out of you. A vague spark is more than enough to begin.
What will I actually walk away with?
A working outline of your story and at least one real, written scene in your own voice, plus a repeatable method you can use on every idea you ever have again.
What's the difference between the two tiers, really?
Tier 1 gives you the full course, the live classes, and the community. Tier 2 gives you all of that plus my eyes on your actual work and direct feedback from me at every stage. If you learn best with a guide watching your progress, Tier 2 is worth every dollar. Only 20 of those seats exist.
It's built for you. The entire method exists because structure-first courses leave beginners behind. You're exactly who this is for.
Do I need special software or any equipment?
No. You need something to write with and the willingness to show up. We'll talk tools, but nothing is required to start.
What if I don't have a fully formed idea yet?
Perfect. Week one is designed to pull the idea out of you. A vague spark is more than enough to begin.
What will I actually walk away with?
A working outline of your story and at least one real, written scene in your own voice, plus a repeatable method you can use on every idea you ever have again.
What's the difference between the two tiers, really?
Tier 1 gives you the full course, the live classes, and the community. Tier 2 gives you all of that plus my eyes on your actual work and direct feedback from me at every stage. If you learn best with a guide watching your progress, Tier 2 is worth every dollar. Only 20 of those seats exist.
You have a story in you. Let's get it out of your head and onto the page, the right way, starting with the clay.
Screenwriting for Absolute Beginners. Next cohort begins Tuesday, July 28 (6:00pm Pacific / 9:00pm Eastern). Early bird pricing ends July 20. Enrollment closes July 27. Tier 2 review seats limited to 20.
