Write LA
Write LA
2025
Reads in Coverfly
Active Since 2017
3 Winners are read by Literary Managers, and win $500 cash! Helpful Prizes for Semifinalists. A competition run by writers who help launch careers.
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About

We’re writers like you, and we know how hard it is to succeed in this business.

We aim to deliver prizes that will advance your writing career in tangible ways, as well as some additional cash!

Our Head Judge prides himself on being available. You know exactly who's running this competition, who's writing the feedback, and who is answering your emails.

We've helped launch careers, and improved writers' command of craft. This season, let us help you!


"Write LA is the most pro-writer screenplay competition I've ever experienced."

                                                                       - Susan Marks - Write LA Finalist 2023

"Tim and Angela at Write LA have given me endless support and tireless commitment to helping me make connections in the industry. I wouldn’t have gotten representation without them"

- Nathan Dame - Write LA 2020 Grand Prize Winner

Benefits

The Top 3 Winners Receive:

– Your script read and considered for representation by leading Literary Management Companies

– A cash prize of $500

– A copy of Final Draft Screenwriting Software courtesy of Final Draft

– An eco-friendly notebook and pen courtesy of Decomposition by Michael Roger
– An on-demand webinar courtesy of Script and The Writer’s Store


The Top 15 Semifinalists Receive:

– Written feedback on your script from Head Judge Tim Schildberger
– An eco-friendly notebook and pen courtesy of Decomposition Books
– An on-demand webinar courtesy of Script and The Writer’s Store


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Coverfly Program Insights
Coverfly vets all programs on its platform, but not every program is right for every writer. Program Insights help you decide where to submit your work.

2024 Honorable Mentions on Coverfly

Top 1%
Feature  · Drama  · 106 Pages
Following the death of his wife, an unexpected series of events sends Roy Bennet from his Florida retirement community to New York, face to face with his estranged daughter, a son he never knew he had, and an eighteen-year-old grandson who might hold the key to Roy’s rebirth.
  • Verified WGA Member
Los Angeles, CA
Alex Lyras has sold pilots to NBC, FOX and WB, and developed shows for Jerry Bruckheimer and Joel Silver. His screenplay, ALVA, won the Alfred P. Sloan Grant from the Tribeca Film Institute. His screenplay, HOW TO ADDRESS AN ENVELOPE, was optioned with Lyras attached to direct. His roots lie in theater, where he has written/produced four Off-...
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Top 4%
Feature  · Other  · 110 Pages
Swim Home tells the inspired journey of Daya, a gifted 16-year-old swimmer uprooted from Boston to Santa Monica, where she battles in pursuit of her Team USA dreams.
Culver City, CA
Creative producer, director, and writer who nurtures filmed creative content of all shapes and sizes. His work includes collaborations with Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., Universal, CBS, The Rolling Stones, Beyoncé, U2 and Tommy Hilfiger. Dave's screenwork in fiction aims to create diverse narratives that spotlight unapologetically authentic chara...
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Top 1%
Feature  · Adventure  · 99 Pages
LOGAN meets FINDING NEMO! A sassy 8-year-old girl and a grizzly fisherman team up on an extraordinary odyssey across the world to find her Mama in Australia while being hunted by an obsessive Social Services Agent hellbent on bagging the girl first. PAPER MOON on steroids...
Ana R. Dominick is a 2023 Final Draft Big Break Winner and Black List Recommended (Top 1%). She optioned her first script at age 19 and has been filmmaking since her teens. She graduated from the UCLA Graduate Directors/Writers/Producers Program in Los Angeles. Currently, she is writing a kick-ass horror project as her directing debut. IG @anardomi...
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See Other Placements

Announcements

Jun 1st
Semifinalists
Jun 10th
Winners

Rules

At the program's request, Coverfly will automatically remove your title page for you if you include one when submitting to this program.

  • All entries must be electronically submitted by midnight Pacific time on or before the respective deadline.

  • Write LA is open to anyone worldwide 18 years of age or older at the time of entry.

  • Previous entrants who reached the Semifinalist level or above may not submit the same script or a new draft of the same script again. Such entrants may enter new scripts or scripts that did not advance in previous years.

  • Previous Write LA winners are not eligible to win again.


  • Initial judging of Write LA is done BLIND. The entrant’s name, address, phone number, or any other identifying information should NOT appear on the title page or any other page of the script. The title page should only include the title of the script or show and the title of the episode, if applicable. Placing a Library of Congress or WGA registration number on the title page is also acceptable, but not required.

  • All entrants retain complete ownership of their scripts.

  • An entry should consist of an original feature film screenplay (maximum 120 pages) or teleplay (maximum 70 pages). Speculative television scripts (i.e. an episode of The Simpsons) are not eligible. All scripts must be written in English. Scripts should be in standard screenplay format and font (Courier 12) and submitted as a PDF file. 

    Scripts sent by mail or email are not eligible.

  • Any genre is welcome. No genre or format (feature, half hour, or hour) will be given preference. Feature and television scripts will be judged together.

  • Adaptations are permissible provided that the writer has permission to adapt the original work. Adaptations of works in the public domain are permissible.

  • Any script currently under option or previously optioned or sold is NOT eligible. If a script is optioned or sold during the judging process, the writer(s) must notify Write LA and will be withdrawn from the competition at that point, but the writer(s) will retain any contest placement earned up to the time of the option or sale.

  • Collaborative work is eligible. By submitting, writing teams acknowledge that all members of the writing team agree to these terms and conditions. Writing teams also acknowledge that any prizes won must be shared by the writing team.

  • Do not include resumes, pitches, synopses, casting suggestions, letters, or other supporting documentation with your submission. Judges will not review these materials.

  • Entrants may submit multiple entries. Each submission must include its own unique script and entry fee.

  • Once an entry has been submitted and payment has been processed, no refunds will be issued. No revisions or re-submissions will be accepted.

  • Affiliates, employees, and family members of the readers, judges, and staff of Write LA are not eligible for the competition.

    The cash prize will be delivered electronically. We won't be mailing out actual cash. Our preferences are Venmo, Paypal and Zelle, but we will make sure you receive your prize.

 

The Boilerplate Stuff

  • By entering Write LA, you acknowledge and agree that contest judges receive numerous submissions of ideas, stories, and scripts, and that your entry and the ideas and stories embodied therein may be similar or identical to other material already received and/or developed by one or more of the judges. Also, being read by a Management Company in no way implies an obligation for that company to represent or assist the writer. There are no assumptions, guarantees, or promises of representation included with the reading. 

  • By entering Write LA, you understand that Write LA will be free to use your name, script title, and logline for promotional purposes without additional consideration should you qualify for the Semifinals or beyond.

  • Write LA winners give permission to Write LA to audio and video record their live script reading for promotional use on websites and social media platforms.

  • By entering the Write LA competition, you agree that you have read the rules and conditions of the contest and that you have the authorization to submit your screenplay to Write LA. You further agree that your screenplay is owned by you (and co-author(s)).

  • The entrant shall indemnify and hold harmless Write LA, its employees, contractors, agents, and Write LA judges from and against any and all claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including but not limited to attorney’s fees, and costs of the court) which may be incurred by reason of any claim involving copyright, trademark, credits, and/or publicity to the screenplay entered.

  • VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. All federal, state, and local laws and regulations apply.