Today we’d like to introduce you to Allison Intrieri.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I am a TV writer, producer and a children’s book author. The day my fourth grade teacher read a short story I wrote to my entire class, I knew that I was a writer. That said, I saw it as a hobby at first. Growing up in Pittsburgh, the only writers I knew were broke. It did not scream stable career choice. As as kid who struggled academically, I didn’t major in English with a focus in creative writing because I loved to write. I majored in it because I knew if I did, I’d graduate. What I really wanted to do was move to Los Angeles and pursue a career in the entertainment business. I had stars in my eyes. I loved everything to do with TV and film. I could not get enough of it.
It wasn’t until I moved out to Los Angeles and was hired as an extra on Friends that I realized I wanted to write for TV. There I was on the Warner Brothers lot. on the stages of one of the hottest sitcoms at the time, and little did I know, what seemed like a really cool thing to get paid to do for two days, was going to lead to my lifelong career choice. I could no longer deny, I wanted to be a writer.
Once I figured that out I was off to the races. I took classes at UCLA in TV writing. I wrote spec script after spec script. I sent resumes and cover letters to every TV writers room in Los Angeles. I begged people in the industry to talk to me, to read me, to hire me. I eventually got hired as a researcher and writers’ assistant on Law & Order: SVU. I eventually worked up the courage to share my spec Without A Trace script with my boss, the showrunner. He liked the script so much he bought the idea and we turned it into an SVU episode. I was staffed shortly after that script went into production. From there, I continued to work on shows like Chicago Justice, Power Book IV: Force, Bull, East New York and SVU ( a second time).
In 2025, I wrote and published my first children’s picture book – Thatcher Hates The Bath. The inspiration – my son who was born in 2021. The book has received a lot of praise since it debuted in September. It’s currently available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. While writing for TV is my first love, I definitely have more children’s picture books in me.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. When I moved to Los Angeles, I had zero contacts in the business. It took me a minute to break into the industry. I didn’t get my first agent until after I got my first freelance script. I’ve had long stretches of time in my career where I went from one job to the next. I’ve also had stretches of time where I’ve been out of work and kind of reinvent myself. I don’t think I’m unique in that experience. I am very thankful the jobs that I have gotten and the work that I’ve been able to do. I think if you ask the most successful person in the industry they’d tell you they same thing. We all feel like our last job is just that – our last.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am proud of the work I’ve done as a TV writer and producer. I’m proud of the scripts I’ve written and the episodes I’ve produced. I’m proud of my work in the writers room, in the production meetings, in the notes meetings, and when I’m on set. I’m also proud of the fact that I listened and observed in the early years of my career to the senior writers I was fortunate enough to work under. I allowed myself to be a sponge in their presence, taking in everything. I paid attention to all of it: the tone meetings, the production meetings, the casting choices, the editing notes, etc., etc. When it came time to go out on my own, I took everything I learned and I applied it to my own writing, my own casting suggestions, my own editing notes. I believe that has made me a very valuable writer and producer to any staff/ showrunner as a result. I work very hard and I take none of it for granted.
As a result, when I wrote and published my first children’s picture book, I was able to put on the hat of creative director and make sure that my vision was thoroughly executed in both the text, the illustrations and the entire look and feel of the book.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
I like the weather best. Los Angeles has great restaurants. Working in the entertainment industry and being a member of the WGA, you get to go to some incredible screenings. There’s almost always a Q& A after with the writer, director and actors that were in the project. The only other city where you can really do that is New York.
I don’t love the traffic or the fact that Los Angeles is so spread out. I wish, like New York, I could call up my best friend and say let’s walk to get sushi. It just doesn’t happen like that here. Nobody walks in LA!
