Zac Hug

Zac spent many years as a Digital Media Executive for Bravo, The View, and ABC Family. He was a writer on Drop Dead Diva (Lifetime) and Shadowhunters (Freeform). Zac wrote and produced the award-winning web series These People. He has written over 20 Hallmark Christmas movies, including Road to Christmas and Christmas in Evergreen: Letters to Santa. He teaches television writing at the University of British Columbia. He has a BFA in Theatre from NYU, an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia, and a dog named Pickles.

Ben Baur

Ben is an actor/writer/director whose first foray into writing was a romantic comedy short film that let him live out his dream of being a gay, male Meg Ryan. He continues his journey to “America’s Gay Sweetheart” status writing queer content that has played at Outfest, NewFest, and many fests in between. His work for Group Hug started with covering The Magicians and 12 Monkeys for SYFY.com and, later, copywriting social media posts for multiple shows on Freeform.

Claire Boyles

Claire loves coffee, kale, and ice cream. Author of the short story collection Site Fidelity and the forthcoming novel Appraisals, scheduled for release in August 2026. Claire has written sales copy and social media for farms, realtors, and financial planners. Her essays and stories have appeared in the Virginia Quarterly Review, the Kenyon Review, and McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, among others, and she also writes movies for the Hallmark Channel. She would be happy to hold your fussy baby while you collect yourself and would love to discuss your garden and/or houseplants.

Drew Staten

Drew studied International Relations and Creative Writing at the University of Southern California. While he never joined the foreign service, he did teach English in Spain for a year and continues to write science fantasy novels and screenplays. For Group Hug, Drew has mainly focused on genre television content, covering shows like American Gods and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina for SYFY.com. When he’s not working, you might find visiting his number one crush, Trader Joe.

Erica Spates

Erica moved around a lot growing up and has experienced life in everything from small towns, to the suburbs of the South, to big cities like New York. She has eleven years of professional writing experience for television. Much of her background is in comedy and children's programming, including creating and showrunning The Healing Powers of Dude for Netflix and writing and producing on Nickelodeon and Disney shows, including Victorious and Walk the Prank. She has also developed a YA Drama with HBOMax and several features. When Erica isn't teaching her daughter sarcastic comebacks, she loves to be a mentor to emerging writers. She has worked with WriteGirl, RespectAbility and #StartWith8.

JJ Wienkers-Alvendia

JJ is a longtime TV/screenwriter, producer, agitator & activist, repping the G in LGBTQ+. He has written on hour-long dramas and adapted & sold an internationally best-selling novel to series. Happy to be part of Group Hug, JJ has penned thousands of quips for Freeform’s brand pages, including 25 Days of Christmas and 31 Nights of Halloween. He also worked on coverage of Single Drunk Female and Motherland: Fort Salem. Brand storytelling, strategy and social copy are just a few of his specialities. Funny drama is his sweet spot in all narrative forms.

Beth Johnson

Beth is a fan of all things pop culture. Current favorites in the worlds of TV, music and books include Widow’s Bay, Geese and London Falling. Recent consulting projects involve digital project management, copywriting, and building and launching sites for small businesses. She also has worked on improving email campaigns, reworking copy flow and call to action text, writing entertainment news stories, tv series recaps and much more. Clients include NBC/Universal, Radish Media, RepairSmith, M3x Analytics and more. She is a graduate of The University of Chicago and has worked for The New Yorker, InStyle, Bravo, and ABC/Disney.

Our Team