The Writers Hangout – Details, episodes & analysis

Hang out with Sandy as she discusses the joint statement from WGA East and West about the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery by Netflix and the hostile takeover by Paramount. Plus, an update on Carl Rinch, the writer/director who embezzled $11 million from Netflix. Carl Rinch’s trial just wrapped up last week. We also share an inspiring story about resilience involving Meryl Streep and Dino De Laurentiis.  

Executive Producer Kristin Overn
Executive Producer and Host Sandy Adomaitis
Producer Terry Sampson
Music by Ethan Stoller

Novelium: Write With an Editor at Your Side

https://novelium.so

Rewind. On Christmas Eve 2000, Susan Berman, a talented journalist, screenwriter, and author, sadly lost her life at her home on 1527 Benedict Canyon Drive in Beverly Hills. Susan, the cherished daughter of a mobster and a former dancer, was raised as part of mob royalty, celebrating birthdays with Elvis and Liberace. Her tragic passing deeply affected her friends, leaving us wondering—did Susan ever suspect her killer?

Executive Producer Kristin Overn
Executive Producer and Host Sandy Adomaitis
Producer Terry Sampson
Music by Ethan Stoller

Eight spec scripts have sold so far in August 2025. That's a fantastic achievement that should energize every writer out there. It looks like audiences are eager for movies that keep them guessing, which means fresh, original stories that can still surprise and delight. Sandy reports on this genuine optimism for screenwriters in an industry that has recently been taken over by existing IP.

The PAGE International Screenwriting Awards sponsors the WRITERS HANGOUT.
Executive Producer Kristin Overn
Creator/Executive Producer Sandy Adomaitis
Producer Terry Sampson
Music by Ethan Stoller

We are back!  The Writer’s Hangout is back with a brand-new episode.  We break down the current WGA Writers’ Strike and whether A.I. can write a screenplay better than a human.  We introduce A.I. Theater, where Terry reads from three scripts written by bots.  Writers, we challenge you not to laugh at these delightful screenplays.  The scripts are all written by bots and can be found on the Instagram Account: @bot_scripts

👍 If you enjoy the show, please remember to follow us and leave a review where you listen to podcasts. 

📸 Check out our IG for photos @thewritershangoutpodcast

💙 If you have an idea for the podcast or would like to comment, please contact us @thewritershangoutpodcast@gmail.com 

PAGE International Screenwriting Awards 

Hollywood's favorite screenwriting contest -- one of the industry's top sources for new talent.

Rewind -- British screenwriter Ian Mackintosh's plane went missing on July 7, 1979, nineteen days before his thirty-ninth birthday, over the Gulf of Alaska. What happened remains a mystery. Join us as we tell the story of Lieutenant Commander Hamish Ian Mackintosh, a British Royal Navy officer, a writer of thriller novels, and a screenwriter for British television. 

Ian's series, THE SANDBAGGERS, was groundbreaking. The New York Times said "the best spy series in television history." Ian MacKintosh was among the first writers to present espionage realistically and as a sordid series of political struggles, double-crosses, and personality clashes.

If you want to read more about Ian Mackintosh, I highly recommend The Life and Mysterious Death of Ian Mackintosh by Robert G. Folsom.

We wanted to “jump on the mic,” as the kids say, and give you a Writers’ Hangout update.  Terry and I have been working on some projects that took our time away from recording, but we’ve been working behind the scenes on future episodes and are excited about hanging out with you soon. I miss you guys a lot.  In the meantime, here’s a favorite episode of mine and Terry's entitled; WRITING REAR WINDOW WITH HITCHCOCK AND HAYES.  Learn how a short story from a dime store magazine turned into one of the most discussed films produced in Hollywood and the fifth-grossing film of 1954.  The film REAR WINDOW, starring Jimmy Stewart, Grace Kelly, Raymond Burr, and Thelma Ritter, was written by John Michael Hayes and directed by Alfred Hitchcock.  

👍 If you enjoy the show, please remember to follow us and leave a review where you listen to podcasts. 

📸 Check out our IG for photos @thewritershangoutpodcast

💙 If you have an idea for the podcast or would like to comment, please contact us @thewritershangoutpodcast@gmail.com 

PAGE International Screenwriting Awards 

Hollywood's favorite screenwriting contest -- one of the industry's top sources for new talent.

REWIND of two more PAGE Awards Judges, Dwayne Smith and Mike Kuciak continue the conversation on how they evaluate your screenplay.

Mike Kuciak has two movies coming out in 2022; he's the writer-director and writer-producer of the other. He's a producer on a third film scheduled to begin production in late 2022. He has served as a producer and executive producer on several independent films. He was the senior vice president of development for a literary management-production company and, after that, the founder/CEO of his own company before hanging that up to focus on writing/directing/producing.

Dwayne Smith has been a professional screenwriter since 1999 and has written scripts for Warner Bros., Lionsgate, Intermedia, and Gold Circle. His urban thriller PAY THE LADY is in post-production, and his sci-fi feature IMPLANT is in pre-production. Representing the management firm Circle of Confusion at numerous screenwriting conferences and festivals, Dwayne has listened to hundreds of pitches and read countless screenplays in search of new writing talent. As a judge for the PAGE Awards, he reads Comedies, Thriller/Horror, Science Fiction, and Action/Adventure scripts.

👍 If you enjoy the show, please remember to follow us and leave a review where you listen to podcasts. 

📸 Check out our IG for photos @thewritershangoutpodcast

💙 If you have an idea for the podcast or would like to comment, please contact us @thewritershangoutpodcast@gmail.com 

PAGE International Screenwriting Awards 

Hollywood's favorite screenwriting contest -- one of the industry's top sources for new talent.

Rewind of Episode 3 -- Sandy and Terry Sampson discuss the little-known mystery of the 1997 disappearance of screenwriter Gary Devore. Gary was returning home after working out the ending of his latest script, which he claimed would blow the lid off government secrets when he disappeared without a trace. Did Gary step out to "buy a pack of cigarettes," or was he met with foul play? We'll delve into what happened that fateful night and revisit the rumors and conspiracy theories that continue to baffle and disturb people. 

The PAGE International Screenwriting Awards sponsors the WRITERS' HANGOUT.

Executive Producer Kristin Overn

Producer Sandy Adomaitis

Producer Terry Sampson

Music by Ethan Stoller

We are rewinding episodes 17, 18, and 48 -- The Unbelievable True Story of Elisabeth Finch and Grey's Anatomy.  

Rising star and television writer Elizabeth Finch wrote many emotional scripts for GREY'S ANATOMY, exploring cancer, abortion, and sexual abuse using her life experience. In March of 2022, Grey's Anatomy writer Elisabeth Finch was investigated by Disney and placed on administrative leave by the production company Shondaland over concerns about her medical history. Elisabeth told friends and co-works at Grey's Anatomy she'd been diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer called Chondrosarcoma in 2012. She wore a bandage that covered her port, was pale, nibbled on saltines, and took breaks to vomit during work. Elisabeth's cancer inspired a storyline on Grey's Anatomy, where the character Catherine Avery, played by Debbie Allen, was diagnosed with cancer like Elisabeth in Season 15 of Grey's in 2018. Elisabeth also lost a kidney; then, part of her tibia was removed due to chemotherapy. If that wasn't bad enough, she was forced to abort a fetus because chemotherapy made the pregnancy impossible. 

You won't believe the shocking story that comes next!

We have a fantastic show for you as we continue celebrating our sponsor, The PAGE AWARDS' 20TH Anniversary, with 2018 Page Awards Grand Prize winner Kevin Bachar. Kevin's screenplay - THE INHABITANT- starring Dermot Mulroney & Leslie Bibb came out last year in theaters and can be found on high-end streamers like Amazon Prime and Hulu. 

 Kevin was a Senior Producer at National Geographic Television for ten years before forming his production company, Pangolin Pictures. Since then, he's developed and produced films and series in all genres but specializes in Natural History films. Kevin's films have won three EMMY awards and garnered another six nominations, including two 2011 Prime-Time Emmy nominations for Jaws: The Inside Story and John Belushi: Dancing on the Edge. 

 Kevin's screenplays won numerous competitions, including the 2018 Page Awards Grand Prize!

👍 If you enjoy the show, please remember to follow us and leave a review where you listen to podcasts. 

📸 Check out our IG for photos @thewritershangoutpodcast