Writing Workshops

IP and Adaptation: Turning Your Nonfiction Into Fiction with Adam Popescu

$175

2 Sessions

Out of stock

Saturday & Sunday 1:00 pm EDT - 4:00 pm EDT May 16 to May 17, 2026

Online via Zoom

How did Argo go from a memoir to an article to a film? How does your article—or podcast or book—become a novel or a screenplay? What’s the value of IP, and how do you turn real-life stories into fiction? This course will follow just that.

I’ve covered climate to AI, and my forte is deeply-reported narratives for the world’s biggest publications. I also specialize in turning my own nonfiction and journalism into fiction that’s grounded in reality and truth. In this course, we will go through the basics of how to think like a fiction writer while using the tenets of journalism and nonfiction (scenes, characters, access, details) in order to craft adaptations that are both believable and rooted in truth—but not limited by them.

I have adapted and optioned many of my articles, and in 2019, published a well-received novel based on my BBC reporting from Everest, and my forthcoming book is a satire on journalism and the age of misinformation. We’ll talk about how you can frame real experiences into compelling narratives, workshop your pitches, and tackle craft and the realities of the IP business so you leave this two-day course with a sharp proposal.

Course Outline:

This six-hour, two-day course will be broken down into blocks.

Day One will include an hour-long lecture on the nuts and bolts of the writing and reporting process, from finding sources to the ethics of storytelling to the business of selling a story. In the second hour, we’ll workshop true stories that I and others have adapted. Our third hour is reserved for Q&A.
Day Two, we’ll workshop student pitches. Each pitch will be read and receive actionable feedback that will help students better understand how to use the reality of nonfiction as a jumping-off point for their fiction.

Teaching Style: This is an interactive and very conversational course with the ultimate goal of honing our craft and learning what works. To that end, I will provide supplemental material, including completed television and feature pilots and fiction, that I and others have successfully adapted.

Level: Introductory

This course is held online via Zoom.

Led by

Adam Popescu

Adam Popescu

Adam Popescu has spent 15 years writing for publications that include the New York Times and Bloomberg Businessweek. He has reported from every continent—Everest to Greenland to the Congo—covering climate to crypto to AI, breaking Hunter Biden’s art career, reporting from war zones and conflict areas and writing front page stories with Pulitzer Prize winners during the pandemic. The throughline in his work is power and how our world is changing. He specializes in deeply-reported narratives and has previously published a well-received book based on his BBC reporting from Everest (Nima). Publisher’s Weekly called it ‘a perfect fit for book clubs.’ He has a forthcoming book on misinformation in media.

About this series

Writing Workshops

We strive to make our classes the most inviting and rewarding available, offering an intimate environment to study with award-winning, world-class writers. Each class is specially designed by the instructor, so whether you’re a fledgling writer or an MFA graduate polishing your novel, you’ll find a perfect fit here.

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