SHOP THE DRAMA CENTER
SCRIPT & MANUSCRIPT ANALYSIS AND COACHING
A Taste — Free
Give me your first 5 pages and I will give you at least 5 valuable comments—guaranteed.
If you are interested in this service, email the first 5 pages of your work to Diana and Diana will get back to you within a week—free!
The Write Foot — $150
Give me your first 20 pages or your idea, your opening, your outline, and I’ll get you off on the Write Foot: to ensure your writing starts well and your outline is strong and structurally sound. Talk by phone.
Turnaround time: 2 days
Q.T. (The Quick Tell-All) — $290 for scripts; $390 for manuscripts
Diana reads your script up to 120 pages or manuscript up to 200 pages and provides a written analysis of the macro (big) things you need to work on i.e.: premise, structure, events, tone, characters, conflict, resolution and marketability; and the micro (small) things you need to work on such as formatting, sentence structure, dialogue and persistent grammatical errors.
For narrative works (fiction and memoir) Diana works with you on the importance of consistent style and focused narrative. For dramatic works (screenplays and plays) Diana works with you on dialogue and, for film, the creation of the visual.
Diana concludes with a written and referential summary of how to write a much-improved next draft, and a talk by phone to discuss and guide.
Turnaround time: 5 days
Q.T. + Meeting — $390 for scripts; $490 for manuscripts
This is the ultimate service that benefits writers more than years of taking classes. The Q.T. + Meetings consists of everything that’s offered in the Q.T. (above) with the addition of an in-person meeting with Diana in which she goes over your script or manuscript with you page by page, in addition to reviewing her written notes with you in person. Diana reviews key principles of Story Construction with you in person, making sure you get them. See student quotes to hear it straight from the students themselves.
Turnaround time: 7 days including meeting
Structure Buildup — $150
You have an idea, notes or an outline. You want to make sure the structure, when you do write, will be sound. Diana works with what you’ve got, teaching you story structure, demarcating structural elements; and outlining them for a structural framework you can work with, confidently. Talk by phone.
Turnaround time: 5 days
Structure Breakdown and Build-Up — $450
You cannot get this invaluable service anywhere else because it is based on Diana’s time-proven methods of Story Construction. You’ve written up to 200 pages of a memoir, novel, screenplay or play. Diana analyzes and “beats up the beats” of your written work to locate the Events. She lists them in order for you, so you can see the barebones of your story. She then works with you to reconstruct your exact story in a sturdy structure that is the basis of future drafts. Includes two one-hour phone talks or one two-hour meeting.
Turnaround time: 7 days
Coach in My Pocket — $980
It is wonderful to know you’ve got someone knowledgeable, caring and supportive to work with throughout your writing process. When you buy the Coach, you can send Diana successive drafts, including a first draft and two more, and she will carefully read your pages and provide you with her Q.T. (see above) plus ongoing coaching by phone and in person. She will assist you in marketing your work and in contacting agents, producers and publishers. She will help you draft your query letter, and teach you some tricks for getting through to the Powers That Be.
Turnaround time: As long as it takes
The Turnkey Reading – $2080
This thrilling experience starts with Diana’s Q.T. + Meeting included in the price. When your work is ready, The Drama Center produces a professionally-acted reading. We secure the space, cast the right actors, and send out an invitation to TDC’s database plus your own invited guests. We make the event special with wine and food, and a professional program. You get to see your play or screenplay acted before a live audience—an unforgettable experience that leaps you forward in your writing process. If you’ve written a novel or memoir, our own Gillien Goll coaches you in presentation skills as part of the package, so you may read from your work before a live audience. Or if you prefer, we will find the perfect actor to read your pages.
Turnaround time: As long as it takes
Help by the Hour – Diana: $100/hour; Larry: $200/hour
If you prefer freeform and want to purchase coaching time by the hour, you can work with either Diana Amsterdam or Larry Collins. See Larry’s bio here. Time can be purchased in the following bundles:
Playwright Career Development with Harbison
See the amazing Harbison’s career info and all the playwrights he has substantially helped, here
Acting & Audition Coaching with Gillien Goll
See the glowing face of our most esteeemed Gillien and her credentials, here
