Calling all smart people!

Scott Myers

16 Jan 2014 • 4 min read

There are three things I could use your help with. First, other than when I made the switch to partner with the Black List about 30 months ago, this blog site has remained pretty much the same since its launch in May 2008. Oh, we added sliders and a few other bells-and-whistles, but basically my focus has been on creating content, then archiving stuff here:

That is a lot of content. But I’d like to make it as user friendly as possible. So that’s one thing: What advice or ideas do you have to make these resources more helpful to you and other readers.

Perhaps what I need is someone out there with a background in library science or an instinct for how to organize content. If you’re that person or know someone who would be kind enough to give me some input, great.

Second thing: I think it’s about time we make a special area featuring just the essential archive content. A place where if a first-time user stumbles on the site, they could go there and find really great content, not so much to overwhelm, just enough to help get their feet under them.

So which of these topics do you think should go in that section and how would you like to see it organized?

Finally you may remember this post from November:

Last month, something remarkable occurred. Ten writers from across the United States and Canada converged at The Writers Junction in Santa Monica for a 4-Day Quest Workshop with me as their host and mentor. How was it remarkable?

* The learning that went on as we immersed ourselves in character-based screenwriting was palpable, insights and revelations throughout each session, a cumulative theoretical take on the craft that resonated with all of the participants.

* Each writer put that theory into practice on their own stories, a series of writing exercises that not only provided them with a proven approach to prep-writing, it also enabled attendees to make significant progress on their stories.

* The actual workshop process whereby everyone embraced the idea of constructive critique, honest assessment plus brainstorming suggestions, resulted in one key creative breakthrough after another.

Here are a few observations from some of the writers involved in the Quest Workshop:

“I’ve taken many courses (both academic and recreational), and the workshop was just an excellent combination of practical knowledge mixed with personalized attention.” — Pat Suh

“Thank you again for gathering together such an interesting, diverse group of aspiring screenwriters and providing us all with such a wonderful shared learning and networking experience!” — Melanie McDonald

“I am so grateful for the opportunity to work with Scott and the other participants in the inaugural Quest Writers’ Workshop. There was a palpable, electricity in the air while we worked, the kind you wish you could bottle up to take a drag from whenever you need to be inspired.” — Lisa Meacham

“I’m not trying to blow sunshine up your skirt when I say I got more out of those four days than I did all of grad school.” — Michelle Burleson

I’ve got one in the works in Santa Monica which you can sign up for here.

I am also exploring the possibility of holding as many as four 4-Day Quest Workshops in other cities in the U.S. and Canada during the summer 2014. Based on blog traffic, a list of possible cities: Vancouver, Toronto, San Francisco, New York, Atlanta. If interest emerges in other cities, I’m open to all possibilities. I just need ten writers to enroll in any given location to make that trip a possibility.

Here’s where I could use your help as I am having a difficult time simply figuring out a way to organize registrations. Some have suggested I use Kickstarter or IndieGoGo, but that doesn’t sit right with me. I’m not trying to crowdsource revenue to fund a project, rather I’m offering a unique learning experience to writers.

What I need is some platform where I can set up a set of these possible classes — cities and dates — and people can express their interest, put down a deposit or pay in full But after doing the research, I can’t find anything on the web that handles such a thing.

So any advice? Bare minimum, I need a way to gauge interest for each of the proposed 4-day workshops, but hopefully also something that enables users to do transactions.

To recap:

* Does anyone have advice on how to organize the archive resources to make them more user friendly?

* Does anyone have advice on what content should go in a New User section and how to organize that? And now that I’m thinking about it, what name should that section have?

* Does anyone have advice on how to go about handling possible 4-day Quest workshops in cities like Vancouver, Toronto, San Francisco, New York and Atlanta?

Thanks for your feedback. I really appreciate any help!

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