Tips for improving your chances at winning a writing fellowship

Our team has read over 1,800 pilot script submissions through the Moonshot Pilot Accelerator. Here are 4 tips for improving your chances at winning a writing fellowship:

1. Make sure your project is a match. What kind of project is the competition looking for? Their website usually tells you; you just have to make sure to read it! For example, the Moonshot Pilot Accelerator is all about gender equity in the TV industry and aims to get more women and gender-expansive folks on screen and in writers’ rooms. Yet sometimes, we’ll receive script submissions with no female characters at all! That’s not a good use of the writer’s submission funds.

2. Follow instructions. There’s a reason the competition wants things submitted in a certain way. For example, when we move applicants on to the 2-minute pitch video submission round of our Moonshot Pilot Accelerator review process, we tell applicants that we want to see a video of them speaking straight to camera (as if on Zoom) with no cuts. That’s because our program is all about pitching one-on-one to execs at major companies like HBO, Netflix and more — and there are no cuts when you pitch live on Zoom! We want to make sure that the writer can keep their pitch succinct and can deliver their pitch in a single take. It’s a red flag when we get videos that are sped up or that have a bunch of cuts, because we are not able to assess pitching skills effectively.

3. Get to know the lab or fellowship. Usually, there’s a ton of info available, such as blog posts, social media posts, testimonials from past fellows, and more. The program may even have a live info session (we do! It’s on April 20th and it’s free — register here). We think it’s better to invest the time in learning about programs you’re excited about rather than submitting randomly, because you’ll write a better application and save money.

4. Share who you are as a writer. We don’t care about accolades or past lab acceptances; we just want to get a sense of who you are. Did your life experience inspire this pilot script? Does the character come from your same background, so you have a lot of insight into their experiences? Are you obsessed with a niche subject, and it comes through in your writing? Those are GREAT things to share!

Ready to apply for a writing fellowship? Applications for the Moonshot Pilot Accelerator are now open! Accepted fellows pitch one-on-one to companies like HBO, Netflix, Hulu, Showtime, Starz and more, plus agents and managers, after a 3-week pitching and industry intensive!