UCLA Extension has built its Writers’ Program steadily into a place where writers – from the established to the merely curious, and everyone in between – have found a home. Now in its 60^th year, the prestigious program counts more than 400 courses among its portfolio, evolving to meet each moment while continuing to offer students a safe space to express themselves.

“I think depth and breadth is a key asset of this program,” said Charlie Jensen, portfolio director of UCLA Extension Humanities and Social Sciences, who has overseen the Writers’ Program for more than a decade. “People can come here and learn any and all kinds of writing.”

Courses are offered on novels, poetry, screenwriting, editing, publishing and more. Communities have formed for the deaf, veterans, LGBTQ, voices of color and autistic writers. One ethos above all: everyone is welcome at the Writers’ Program.

“The Writers’ Program has grown and succeeded by being attuned to students’ ever-evolving needs and preferences, shifts in popular taste and literary practices, technology, the marketplace and larger economic realities,” said Linda Venis, who ran the program for about 30 years starting in 1985. “Almost every day I felt a sense of excitement and optimism: what would our team create next?”

An example of that striving for innovation was when the Writers’ Program launched “distance learning” at UCLA Extension in 1995. The institution’s first-ever online course was Fiction Fundamentals taught by Harry Youtt.

“We had 10 intrepid students enrolled. By the time I retired, over half the program’s offerings were online,” Venis said.

The difference between an MFA program and the Writers’ Program is that the latter can be more boutique and malleable. Courses are kept small to safeguard an intimate setting. Classes are offered in-person, hybrid or remotely. There is a big contingent of international student participants. Only 10 percent of students pursue a certificate.

“We really focus on each student and their personal goals,” Jensen said. “We never tell students what they should do. Being a published writer doesn’t have to be the end goal. There are other finish lines that are just as valuable. We also have students that stick around for decades. That is a testament to our instructors.”

Generations are interconnected through the program: Diane Thomas took screenwriting at UCLA Extension. She wrote the movie “Romancing the Stone,” which was produced by Steven Spielberg. When Thomas tragically passed in a car accident, Spielberg funded a scholarship in Thomas’ name. A winner of that scholarship was Stuart Beattie, who went on to create the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie franchise. And so on.

Other accomplished alumni include Octavia Butler, Janet Fitch, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Kevin Williamson and Iris Yamashita – just to name a very small number of a very large list. Often, a student will return and become an instructor.

“The magic of the Writers’ Program is as one generation exits another rises and picks up the mantle of what came before, and carries that forward to the next generation,” Jensen said.

Moving into the next decade, Jensen said his focus is helping people navigate a rapidly changing industry that serves writers in film, television and publishing. The Writers’ Program offers more virtual courses than ever, and he and his team have developed classes catering to the hot topics of the moment like serial fiction, romantasy and video game writing. They are even developing curriculum confronting artificial intelligence, with the confidence AI will never replace the sincerity of a writer pouring their heart out on the page.

“I think the notion that AI will replace creative writing is hysterical,” Jensen said. “This is never going to stop, and it’s because writing happens in community. That’s what we offer. The Writers Program is 60 because it is a community of writers who share a collaborative spirit, a love of literature and screen storytelling and a service mindset. And AI cannot do any of those things. I feel confident this is really still the beginning of the Writers’ Program story. People will always seek an opportunity to learn in an environment like this.”