About Steve Harper

STEVE HARPER is a writer, producer and actor. He is currently Co-Executive Producer season 3 of the hit CW series Stargirl. Other writing credits include God Friended Me (CBS), Tell Me Your Secrets (Amazon Prime Video) and ABC's Emmy Award winning drama American Crime (created by John Ridley). Steve spent two seasons writing for the USA Network show Covert Affairs. Steve's original web series SEND ME, about time-traveling black people (writer, actor and Executive Producer) was nominated for a 2016 Emmy. As a playwright he has written more than 20 works that have been produced across the country. Through yourcreativelife.com, Steve has been working with artists of all kinds since 2008, helping them achieve clarity and focus in their creative careers. His specialty is working with artists as they write dramatic scripts. Steve has appeared as a guest on many podcasts and has run workshops in New York, L.A. and in between. Through live events, online seminars, and his channels on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, he’s helped thousands of writers and artists. Steve taught for The Harvardwood Writers Group, Young Playwrights and The Creative Gym. He’s been an instructor at the UCLA Extension School and a guest artist at Bryn Mawr, Georgia Southern University, Interlochen School for the Arts, Drexel University’s summer program in L.A. and USC’s Annenberg School. A graduate of Yale, The A.R.T. Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard and the playwriting program at Juilliard, he was certified by the Creativity Coaching Association in 2013.

Only Hope

Often when I’m around a group of writers it doesn’t take long before one of them starts to complain.

“My agent won’t call me.”
“The producer didn’t like my script.”
“Everyone I know is doing so much better than I am.”
“I’m not getting anywhere in this business.”
“There’s nothing going on […]

By |2019-03-01T00:48:44-08:00February 14th, 2019|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Only Hope

THIS is Your Year!

It’s a New Year and time to make some choices.
I don’t mean this to sound dire, but it does pertain to the rest of your life. Ok, maybe just the next 12 months.It’s time to consider what you want to unearth this year. You may have […]
By |2019-03-01T00:46:54-08:00January 3rd, 2019|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on THIS is Your Year!

You Agreed To This

At this point in my TV writing career I feel fortunate to have an attorney on my “team”. He deals with contracts for me. Most recently those contracts are for my work the new drama for TNT. I’ve also had my lawyer create collaboration agreements for projects […]

By |2018-05-30T23:26:44-07:00May 30th, 2018|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on You Agreed To This

You – in the Writers Room

You’re in the writers room, working on a TV series. Every weekday you arrive, ready to collaborate with other smart writers. The showrunner, your boss, has created characters you’re excited to write for and a series you’re thrilled to help on. You have a desk and an office and the show buys you lunch every day. Before […]

By |2018-04-01T17:01:20-07:00March 22nd, 2018|Uncategorized|Comments Off on You – in the Writers Room

Your Big Opportunity

I got my first agent (as an actor) when I was a senior in high school. I was riding the bus to school with a girl who studied at a performing arts center near my house on Long Island, and one day, she asked me if I wanted to come […]

By |2018-04-01T17:21:36-07:00March 8th, 2018|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Your Big Opportunity

Brainstorm. Write. Repeat.

Before I was brave enough to call myself a writer, I was writing. It came in spurts. I’d get an idea and I’d start putting words on the page. At the time, I was writing short stories. I wanted to write novels. Inevitably, I’d hit a wall. I didn’t have […]

By |2018-04-01T16:41:06-07:00February 28th, 2018|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Brainstorm. Write. Repeat.

Your Amazing Year!

The holidays are whipping by as they usually do. They might be leaving you breathless with parties and shopping and other celebrations. Or perhaps you’re relaxing in front of the TV with your feet up or making trips to the movie theatre or obsessed with your favorite […]

By |2018-04-01T16:34:29-07:00December 28th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Your Amazing Year!

Write From The Joy of Your Soul

I was at a networking event (a holiday party – ‘tis the season) and I ran into a friend of mine. He’d just sold a script and was really excited. But he also said he was feeling scared because now he had to write it. (This is […]

By |2017-12-20T16:44:25-08:00December 14th, 2017|The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Write From The Joy of Your Soul

What’s The Plan?

This used to be my biggest impediment as a writer: I’d get so excited about an idea that I’d just start writing. No outline, no nothing. Somewhere along the line I’d become stuck and have no idea how to proceed. I believe that’s because I didn’t have […]

By |2017-12-20T16:38:33-08:00November 30th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on What’s The Plan?

Confidence is Not Required

I’ve been hearing this over and over again from writer friends and clients: some believe they’re handicapped because they don’t have confidence. Without it, they say, they are floundering in their writing careers. I don’t think confidence is required.

On Dictionary.com confidence is described these ways:

1. full trust; belief in the powers, trustworthiness, or reliability of a […]

By |2017-12-20T14:45:50-08:00November 16th, 2017|Uncategorized|Comments Off on Confidence is Not Required
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