News

USC Comedy Festival

Alena Smith will appear alongside fellow writers and creators on the opening panel of the festival, “Can Comedy be Automated?”, an investigation into the role A.I. plays in  comedy writing. USC School of Cinematic Arts, March 28, 2025.

‘You Cannot Put a Fire Out’

A new scholarly article on Dickinson by Sarah E. S. Sinwell published in New Queer Television, by University of Chicago Press. March, 2025.

Something Wicked

NBC is developing Something Wicked, a multi-camera comedy starring June Diane Raphael and written and executive produced by Raphael and Alena Smith. A comedy with a Bewitched-type premise, Something Wicked examines the condition of modern womanhood and how even with witchcraft, balancing everything is impossible. Deadline, March 6, 2024.

The Anachronistic Turn: Historical Fiction, Drama, Film and Television
Literature professor Stephanie Russo’s new book on the style and impact of Dickinson is now out from Routledge. December 2023.

Tell It Slant Award
The Emily Dickinson Museum  honored Alena Smith with the Tell It Slant Award for her service to the museum and the legacy of Emily Dickinson. September 2023.