About

Weekly Writer 

Weekly Writer is a platform for educators and homeschool parents to provide instruction in the process of writing and reading comprehension. 

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Developed by internationally acclaimed writer, Darren J. Butler _MFA, the program features research driven instruction and job embedded professional development for teachers. Weekly Writer is evidence-based and research-based. 

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Focusing on kindergarten - eighth grade, Mr. Butler's program empowers teachers to deliver quality writing instruction as they work alongside a virtual writer in residence. 

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Weekly Writer began in 2011 with Virtual Village Classroom. By 2015, the product appeared in schools in all four corners of the United States. Schools saw a dramatic rise in test scores.

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In late 2019, Mr. Butler moved his product to fall under his educational consulting firm, Darren J. Butler, LLC, in order to provide Weekly Writer at a lower cost to educators. 

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* Darren J. Butler, LLC is the sole source for WEEKLY WRITER. 

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CONTACT

Weekly Writer is a product of

Darren J. Butler, LLC

PO Box 2141

Orange Beach, AL 36561

Email:  [email protected]

Phone: 646-974-1250

darren j. butler MFA

playwright, screenwriter, novelist, director, educator

For over thirty years, Darren has written, directed, and taught for stage and film. Since 1999, Darren has directed The Miracle Worker at Helen Keller’s Birthplace. This internationally recognized production is the Official Outdoor Drama for the State of Alabama. Darren wrote and directed the short film, A Fix, starring the late Skye McCole Bartusiak and Emmy nominated actress Julianna Mauriello. In 2006, Darren was fortunate enough to have an hour long drama entitled, Succession, optioned by NBC/Universal, which gained his admittance into the Writers Guild of America. 

His stage musicals - Runaway Home and We The People have been produced around the country, and two of the monologues from Runaway Home were published in Young Women’s Monologues from Contemporary Plays #2 edited by Gerald Ratliff. Recently, his short screenplays of Teddy and The Last Mile were finalists in the Big Shoulder Film Festival in Chicago.

As an author, Butler has written four books in the Abbie, Girl Spy series - The Case of the Missing Locket, The Ducks and Diamonds Mystery, The Secret of Crybaby Hollow, and The Masterpiece. Additionally, he published a children’s fantasy novel entitled Merlin’s Curse and Helen Keller - Leader Without Sight or Sound for Seacoast Publishing. His professional book Countdown to Assessment trained teachers how to prepare students for the Alabama Direct Assessment on Writing for 5th, 7th, and 10th grade students. His literacy research led to the release of RIP & Write - Integrating Reading Comprehension.

For twenty years, Darren served as the director and acting teacher for The Backstage Theatre Company. The professional side of the organization spent seven years touring educational theatre into schools across the South. In the studio, Darren taught hundreds of students, many who went on to work in professional theatre and film or pursue a teaching career in high schools or the university level.

Working as an educational consultant, Darren helped Alabama schools raise their scores on the Alabama Direct Assessment on Writing and the ARMT. Schools under his guidance went from  8 - 42% to 90 - 100%. Butler founded Virtual Village Classroom and created Weekly Writer,  an online curriculum resource for teachers based on his field research in training teachers how to teach writing. For four years, he served as the CEO of Creative Development.

Darren taught theatre in Florence City Schools for three years.  Darren served as the Fine Arts Director and theatre teacher for Orange Beach High School and Middle School for three years. He holds an MFA from Point Park University’s Conservatory for the Performing Arts. Currently, Darren is the Artistic Director of The Gulf Coast Rep and Arts & Education Alliance. He tours to schools across the nation as a published author, writing specialist/consultant, and an actor for his one man show, "Helen Keller IS REAL!"

Darren lives in Orange Beach, Alabama with his wife, Freda and their four children, Evie Rosa, Jack, Hans, and Coco.