
The Writers Panel
The definitive insider's guide to our current golden age of television, Ben Blacker's The Writers Panel is an ever expanding anthology of live convention panels and intimate in-studio interviews with the writers, producers, and show runners responsible for all the shows you can't stop watching. Over the course of nearly 500 episodes and counting, The Writers Panel has sat across from guests such as Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad), Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele (Key and Peele), Liz Meriwether (New Girl), and Damon Lindelof (Lost, The Leftovers) to talk about the art and business of creating great television. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Latest episodes

Sep 27, 2022 • 1h 7min
Will Graham (A League of Their Own;); Melissa London Hilfers (Monarch); Conner Shin (Harley Quinn) + The Ebo Twins (Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.)
Will Graham (co-creator, A League of Their Own; showrunner, Daisy Jones and the Six), Melissa London Hilfers (creator, Monarch) and Conner Shin (Harley Quinn; Fairfax) discuss writing for actors, building a machine that works, and why Will wants you to bring photos of your loved ones to the writers' room. PLUS a chat with The Ebo Twins (writer/director and producer of Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.)CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIAbenblacker.substack.com https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sep 13, 2022 • 1h 21min
Bruce Miller (The Handmaid's Tale); Veronica West (Surface); Natalie Chaidez (The Flight Attendant); Eric Haywood (Law & Order: Organized Crime) + bonus interview with Jared Stern (DC League of Super-Pets)
Bruce Miller (creator/showrunner, The Handmaid's Tale), Veronica West (creator/showrunner, Surface; co-creator, High Fidelity), Natalie Chaidez (The Flight Attendant; Queen of the South), and Eric Haywood (Law & Order: Organized Crime; Manifest) discuss what keeps them going, specific shows they've worked on, what makes a room functional, and the best part of writing. PLUS: a chat with DC League of Super-Pets co-writer/co-director Jared Stern (creator, Dr Ken).CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIAbenblacker.substack.com https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

13 snips
Aug 23, 2022 • 1h 32min
Better Call Saul series wrap-up
Better Call Saul co-creator Peter Gould and writers Tom Schnauz, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock, Ann Cherkis, and Ariel Levine discuss the road to the end, pitches that got away, whether the series had a happy ending, and, finally, the answer to the question they posed in previous appearances: What problem does becoming Saul Goodman solve?CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIAbenblacker.substack.com https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 9, 2022 • 1h 13min
Writers for young people with Ben Acker, Preeti Chhibber, Sarvenaz Tash, Lily Sparks, and Halima Lucas
Ben Acker (author, Stories to Keep You Alive Despite Vampires); Preeti Chhibber (author, Spider-Man's Social Dilemma); Sarvenaz Tash (author, The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love; upcoming: A Whole Song and Dance); Lily Sparks (author, Teen Killers Club series); Halima Lucas (Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur; Rugrats) talk about writing for young audiences, their work habits, letting your characters lead, and more.CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIAbenblacker.substack.com https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jul 26, 2022 • 50min
Writer/actor Bonnie Hunt (creator, Amber Brown, Life with Bonnie)
Bonnie Hunt is a comedy hero, an incredible funny writer, improvisor, and actor. If you've seen any of Bonnie's early sitcoms--The Building, Bonnie, and Life with Bonnie--then you know and love the "Bonnie Hunt voice." How she came to that voice and point of view, as well as translating it to movies like Return to Me (which she co-wrote and directed) and the new Apple+ series Amber Brown (based on the book by Paula Danziger) are discussed, along with her writing process, making television in the 90s and today, and how improv is like writing.CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIAbenblacker.substack.com https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jul 12, 2022 • 1h 1min
Steve Yockey (creator, The Flight Attendant; showrunner, Dead Boy Detectives); Dennis Lehane (creator, Black Bird; The Outsider; The Wire); Yahlin Chang (Handmaid's Tale; Supergirl);
Steve Yockey (creator, The Flight Attendant; showrunner, Dead Boy Detectives); Dennis Lehane (creator, Black Bird; The Outsider; The Wire); Yahlin Chang (Handmaid's Tale; Supergirl)LISTEN TO THE WRITERS PANEL AD-FREE ON FOREVER DOG PLUS: https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/plus CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel THE WRITER'S PANEL IS A FOREVER DOG PODCAST https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/podcasts/the-writers-panel Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 27, 2022 • 52min
Claudia Forestieri (creator/showrunner, The Gordita Chronicles); Akilah Green (Black Monday; A Black Lady Sketch Show); Pilar Golden (creator/showrunner, Sinking Ship’s Beyond Black Beauty; Gossip Girl)
Claudia Forestieri (creator/showrunner, The Gordita Chronicles); Akilah Green (Black Monday; A Black Lady Sketch Show); Pilar Golden (creator/showrunner, Sinking Ship’s Beyond Black Beauty; Gossip Girl)LISTEN TO THE WRITERS PANEL AD-FREE ON FOREVER DOG PLUS: https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/plus CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel THE WRITER'S PANEL IS A FOREVER DOG PODCAST https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/podcasts/the-writers-panel Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 14, 2022 • 1h 9min
Dan Gregor and Doug Mand (Chip n Dale: Rescue Rangers)
Dan Gregor and Doug Mand (Chip n Dale: Rescue Rangers)LISTEN TO THE WRITERS PANEL AD-FREE ON FOREVER DOG PLUS: https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/plus CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel THE WRITER'S PANEL IS A FOREVER DOG PODCAST https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/podcasts/the-writers-panel Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 24, 2022 • 55min
Joby Harold (showrunner, Obi-Wan); Kerry Ehrin (showrunner, The Morning Show); Gina Ippolito (The Unicorn; Murphy Brown; Regular Show)
Kerry Ehrin (showrunner, The Morning Show; co-creator, Bates Motel), Joby Harold (showrunner, Obi-Wan; John Wick 3; Army of the Dead), and Gina Ippolito (The Unicorn; Murphy Brown; Regular Show) talk about the overwhelming responsibility of showrunning, big stars, weighty expectations, improvising plotting, and the death of Chewbacca.LISTEN TO THE WRITERS PANEL AD-FREE ON FOREVER DOG PLUS: https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/plus CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel THE WRITER'S PANEL IS A FOREVER DOG PODCAST https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/podcasts/the-writers-panel Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 10, 2022 • 58min
Jason Katims (creator, As We See It, Parenthood); Tony McNamara (creator, The Great); The Girl from Plainville creators Liz Hannah (The Dropout; The Post) and Patrick MacManus (Dr. Death; Happy!)
Jason Katims (creator, As We See It, Parenthood); Tony McNamara (creator, The Great); The Girl from Plainville creators Liz Hannah (The Dropout; The Post) and Patrick MacManus (Dr. Death; Happy!) talk about plotting, writing for your characters, how they got their unique shows to air and how you can too!LISTEN TO THE WRITERS PANEL AD-FREE ON FOREVER DOG PLUS: https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/plus CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel THE WRITER'S PANEL IS A FOREVER DOG PODCAST https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/podcasts/the-writers-panel Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.