Frequently Asked Questions

There are a few ways the Writers Guild Foundation can help you on your screenwriting journey. The first is our Library in Los Angeles, which is open to the public by appointment only. There, you can read over 40,000 film and TV scripts, books, and materials—or just come in to write. We’re open Tues, Weds, and Fri from 11am to 6pm and Thurs from 11am to 8pm. You can make an appointment here. We also host regular events featuring film and TV writers, which are a great way to meet other writers. You can watch our past conversations on our YouTube channel. We recommend signing up for our weekly email newsletter, which is where we announce our upcoming events, initiatives, and promote events that would be of interest to writers. 

We have an active slate of events, but we do not offer small group meetings. We strongly recommend attending our own events and networking with other audience members. Browsing social media, searching on Google, or taking a class to meet other screenwriters are great ways to find writing groups—or starting your own! While we cannot vet the legitimacy or quality of all writing groups, we recommend checking out UCLA Extension courses, seminars by Robert McKee, and The Black List website for other ways to get involved in writing communities.  

The Writers Guild Foundation does not provide script consulting services. We are glad to offer areas like our Library for you to write in a comfortable and quiet environment, but please refrain from asking staff members to read and critique unsolicited material. 

No. The Writers Guild Foundation does not accept unsolicited material and does not serve as an intermediary for members of the industry in this capacity. 

We know that people all over the world aspire to screenwriting. While we can’t directly share scripts, our Resource Center is full of curated lists, recommendations and educational blog posts that can help jumpstart your screenwriting practice. We also host many events on Zoom and you can watch recent and older conversations on our YouTube channel.

The WGA works on a unit system based on writing employment and/or sales within the Guild's jurisdiction and with a "signatory" company (a company that has signed the Guild's collective bargaining agreement). Depending upon the number of units earned, a writer may be eligible for either Current (full) membership, or Associate (partial) membership. More information on Guild Membership can be found on the WGA website here. 

The Writers Guild Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that is affiliated with, but independent of, the WGAW. While we partner with the WGAW for some of our events and utilize resources that the WGAW generously provides us, we operate as a separate entity. WGF is wholly responsible for its own governing, programming, and funding.

Internships and job opportunities will be posted on our Careers page as openings become available.

Using the WGAW’s Registration service is the most crucial step to protecting your work. Registration provides a dated record of the writer’s claim to authorship of literary material. The WGAW Registry may produce the material as evidence if legal action is initiated. Any file may be registered to assist you in documenting the creation of your work. Registerable material include scripts, treatments, synopses, outlines, stageplays, novels, books, short stories, poems, commercials, lyrics, drawings, music, and various media work such as Web series, code, and other digital content. The non-member fee for registering is $20.  

You can also register your work with the US Copyright Office. Copyright is a form of protection grounded in the U.S. Constitution and granted by law for original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression. Copyright covers both published and unpublished works. A basic registration starts at $35.