Jonathon Pehrson has enrolled in a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program to pursue his goal of becoming a storyteller. His timeline outlines the 12 courses in the program and his goals and strategies for each. These include developing an understanding of character, improving skills in areas like television writing and animation, and preparing for a career through portfolio courses and learning the business side. Pehrson also identifies industry mentors and companies to learn from, and plans to apply for internships halfway through the program before completing his mastery journey in November 2016.

1. Jonathon Pehrson
Mastery Journey Timeline

2. Creative Writing Master of Fine Arts Degree
Program
My Goal:
I chose to enroll in the Master’s Program because I
have a relatively simple goal: I want to tell stories. I
want to be able to speak to people like so many of
my heroes have spoken to me.
In order for me to do that, I have chosen to take
advantage of every opportunity I have available. Not
only do I want to tell stories, I want to tell stories in
the best way imaginable. And the only acceptable
way for me to get there: My Mastery Journey.

3. 1. Mastery: Personal Development
and Leadership
Goal: This class allows for all Master’s students to familiarize
themselves with Full Sail’s programs, and gain an understanding of
what it takes to succeed. Personally this class allowed me to
understand what it really takes to become a Master, and honestly
allowed me to understand that if I put my all into this I too can become
a Master.
Strategies: “Mastery” by Robert Greene is required reading to
understand the mastery journey. Learning about other masters’
journeys was the most inspiring thing about this course, and I look
forward to researching more about other masters, especially those in
my field. I also used this class to help prepare myself for the yearlong
journey that lays ahead of me.

4. 2. The Art of Visual Storytelling
Goal: The second course in my Mastery Journey is
the first class that is related to my field: Creative
Writing. My goal for this class is to understand the
history of visual storytelling and to see where it is
headed.
Strategies: Analyzing scripts from past and present
is the most crucial strategy for this course. I will also
be visiting
http://www.lynda.com/search?q=visual+storytelling
for tutorials on visual storytelling.

5. 3. Script Analysis and Criticism
Goal: The goal of this course is for students to learn
the different types of scripts (film, television, games,
etc.) and how each transfers to visual media. My
goal for this course is better understand how to
prepare my scripts for production.
Strategies: I plan on utilizing this course in the sense
of learning which questions to ask, because I feel I
need help in better preparing my scripts for
production. I will also watch the script writing
videohttp://www.lynda.com/Flash-Professional-
tutorials/Script-Writing-Fundamentals/11/8089-4.html

6. 4. Character Creation and
Development
Goal: Understanding the psychological foundation
for characters and ensuring that they are well-
rounded and three-dimensional. My personal goal
for this class is to increase my understanding of
character development and make my characters the
strength of any of my stories.
Strategies: I plan on utilizing the tools that are given
to us within the class, as well as the Developing the
Character video found at:
http://www.lynda.com/Design-Color-
tutorials/Developing-character/153984/157441-
4.html

7. 5. Episodic and Serial
Writing
Goal: The goal of the Episodic and Serial Writing
course is to gain a better understanding of television
writing. My personal goal is to gain a great deal of
progress when it comes to television writing,
because I feel it is my worst area.
Strategies: I think that the best strategy for this class
is to completely engulf myself in the class, and also
utilize every bit of help I can. There are many videos
on Lynda.com when it comes to episodic writing, and
I will be watching all of them.

8. 6. Film Screenwriting
Goal: This course serves as a refresher to what
students learned in the Bachelor’s Program, and it
will introduce the concept of sequences to students.
My personal goal is to further my understanding of
script writing and polish my skills.
Strategies: I will use my already-harnessed
knowledge of screenwriting, plus the inclusion of the
assets given to us throughout the class. There are
also a cavalcade of videos dedicated to
screenwriting on Lynda.com

9. 7. Writing for Games
Goal: The goal for the Writing for Games course
shows students how games are written and created
from a storytelling view. This course also highlights
comic and graphic novel writing, of which mastering
is a personal goal.
Strategies: I plan on immersing myself in the course
by utilizing all of the course content. I also plan on
looking more into the clubs that online students are
eligible for at https://orgsync.com/50042/chapter

10. 8. Storytelling and Storyboarding for
Animation
Goal: This course will introduce students to
storyboarding for many different types of animation
and children’s programming. My personal goal for
this class is to master the animated script, which is
the main assignment for this month.
Strategies: This course explains how to structure
and create different animated worlds, and how the
storytelling applies to different audiences.

11. 9. Advanced Script Editing
Goal: This course focuses fully on the editing side of the
creative writing world; an aspect that can be very
resourceful for writers in our field. My personal goal is to
gain a greater understanding of what producers and
editing companies are looking for in editing.
Strategies: The four stages of editing are highlighted in
this course, and I think that is the strongest strategy that
will be offered in this course. The Writing and Editing
video I found at Lynda.com will be of great importance to
me this month as well. http://www.lynda.com/Marketing-
Lead-Generation-tutorials/Writing-
editing/369044/386363-4.html

12. 10. Creative Writing Portfolio
I
Goal: This is when we get to decide which genre we
would like our final thesis to be, and decide what
distribution method we would like to follow. I think
this course will be the kick-start for my career, and I
plan on utilizing every ounce of content this course
offers.
Strategies: This course offers many different options
and various strategies for the students to take
advantage of. The “Pitch” process seems to be the
most crucial piece of the course, as it allows the
writer to experience a real-world distribution
process.

13. 11. Creative Writing Portfolio
II
Goal: This course takes everything that was done in
the previous course and gives it a second look. The
student will re-evaluate all the work done on their
script, and the instructor will revise and help prepare
it for the pitch process upon graduation.
Strategies: This course again provides help with
guidance and help to prepare the script for real-
world distribution, and how to present it to future
employers.

14. 12. Business of Creative
Writing
Goals: This course will help cap off my Mastery
Journey by teaching me about the business side of
creative writing and the differences between in and
other media genres. It will also help me prepare for
distribution and preparing to gain a career in creative
writing.
Strategies: This course will provide all the necessary
information to prepare for the professional world of
creative writing. I plan on reaching out to all the
professors I have at my disposal and utilizing the
help found at https://orgsync.com/50443/chapter

15. Industry Leaders
Geoff Johns: CCO of DC Entertainment and
famed comic writer.
Twitter: @GeoffJohns
David S. Goyer: Famed television and film
screenwriter.
Website:www.davidsgoyer.com
Max Landis: famed screenwriter and director
Twitter: @Uptomyknees

16. Industry Leading
Companies

17. Mentor
Geoff Johns began his journey as an apprentice
under Richard Donner (the director of Superman)
and eventually became his assistant. After
learning from one of the biggest influences in the
superhero entertainment, he began writing
comics for Marvel Comics. Once he gained
steam, he began at DC and never looked back.
He has released many New York Times Best-
Sellers, and is now the Chief Creative Officer of
DC Entertainment.

18. Timeline
Beginning
the
Master’s
Program
Nov. 2015
Apply for
Internship
s by the
half-way
point
Continue
on the
path to
Mastery
Gain an
understandin
g of which
path I wish to
pursue first
Complete
my Mastery
Journey in
Nov. 2016

19. Referenc
es:
Various articles from "New Skills. Improved Skills. Now." Lynda.com. Web.
21 Dec. 2015.
"Geoff Johns." DC Comics. Web. 21 Dec. 2015.
"David S. Goyer." DavidSGoyer.com. Web. 21 Dec. 2015.
“Max Landis” Twitter.com Web. 21 Dec. 2015.
"WWE." YouTube. YouTube. Web. 21 Dec. 2015.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 21 Dec. 2015.
"Warner Bros." Wookieepedia. Web. 21 Dec. 2015.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 21 Dec. 2015.