A screenwriter, story writer, and creator with a rich background
We enjoy introducing our regular writers. In this post, we want to introduce you Seda Anbarcı, who contributes to our publications on Medium. Our diverse, inclusive, and supportive publications hosting stories of 25,000+ writers include:
Born a curious “misfit,” Seda thrives on asking thought-provoking questions and challenging societal, philosophical, and psychological norms through her captivating stories as a screenwriter based in Hollywood.
Seda comes from a rich background in music, sports, theatre, and science, and she’s always been stubborn in achieving anything she set her mind to. Born in Istanbul, Türkiye, she graduated from an esteemed science high school before pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical and Biological Engineering.
She became a professional swimmer for a team in Türkiye at age 4 when they discovered her talent and quickly started winning awards at the championships. Later, she became a volleyball player from age 7 to 16 and played in many professional teams.
Her musical journey started with playing the violin, and her mentor immediately started preparing her for the music conservatory at age 12. Seda’s dream has always been to play the piano, and when she told her mentor, he said that her hands were not fit for the piano.
After passing the exams for the music conservatory in violin, she quit pursuing violin and started practicing the piano. Years of hard work paid off, and she passed all the Royal Academy of Music exams in London, proving that physiology has nothing to do with becoming a musician and we can do anything we set our minds to.
While studying chemical and biological engineering, Seda was a part of the student theatre club, and later, she founded the university’s humor club, where she became an acting coach, sketch comedy writer, and event organizer. In the meantime, she was also taking the final music theory and piano exams for the Royal Academy of Music, which led her to become a songwriter for an EDM producer in London.
This journey of writing plays and songs sparked her passion, which had been left far behind. Seda remembered how the moment she learned how to write as a kid, she would fill her diaries with stories and characters she created for her favorite films and shows and write lyrics and poems.
When this fire lit up again, Seda went to Los Angeles for a summer screenwriting workshop and fell in love with the art of visual storytelling. After returning to Türkiye for her Senior year of college and graduating from Chemical and Biological Engineering, Seda’s passion took her back to Los Angeles, where she got an MFA in Screenwriting.
Not long after graduation, Seda became an award-winning screenwriter & filmmaker with a fiction podcast series nominated for the prestigious 2022 Audio Verse Awards, a multiple award-winning web series with a 210,000+ audience, and many other projects. She is actively involved in developing various TV series and films creatively.
Drawing from her diverse background, Seda combines intellectual curiosity with creative finesse, crafting unique stories that captivate audiences and spark deep introspection. Dedicated to empowering women, Seda’s storytelling mirrors her own transformative journey, inspiring others to break free from constraints, challenge boundaries and fearlessly follow their hearts.
On Medium, Seda discovered her voice as a nonfiction writer. Here, she feels free from all the calculations of plot points, character goals, and act breaks. Her writing on Medium focuses on her journey of self-discovery, mental health, guiding artists and freelancers, talking about culture, short fiction stories, poetry, and her life in Hollywood as a screenwriter & filmmaker.
Seda’s most recent project that got optioned & produced is an audio drama series called Bonnie Screws Up, which got renewed for a Season 2. She wrote about it in Illumination Video & Podcasts —
Thank you for reading these beautiful and meaningful stories of Seda Anbarcı. You may contact Seda on ILLUMINATION’s Slack workspace and get in touch via her website sedaanbarci.com.
Our senior editor/curator Mike Broadly, DHSc also started featuring stories from his own reading list giving us more reading options. You may check his collections, which cover wonderful pieces.
ILLUMINATION-Curators also started topic-based curation. For example, we have a new publication called ILLUMINATION’s Nutrition, led by Surekha Chandrasekhar. Here is the first collection.
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