The first thing Aline Brosh McKenna mentions about writing the screenplay for The Devil Wears Prada isn’t her time on the set with Meryl Streep. Nor is it her Writers Guild of America nomination for the script. Instead, she confides that traveling for the film meant she had to miss her son Leo’s first day at preschool. “I was devastated,” says the renowned screenwriter. “But sometimes there’s no choice.” She worried that their nightly rituals wouldn’t be followed, that her husband and sons would watch Man vs. Wild on the Discovery Channel all night. “I wondered how they could possibly function without me,” she says, laughing. Thankfully, they did just fine, with no drawn-out, tearful goodbye at the door of Leo’s preschool.

Her husband, Will, who works in marketing for a mutual fund, simply dropped Leo off with a “See you later, sport” hug. “It probably worked out better for Leo that I wasn’t there,” Aline says in retrospect. But on her next film, she made sure her family was able to come to New York during the shoot.

Writing Hollywood movies may sound glamorous, but Aline insists she works 9 to 5. “My workday is sitting in a chair for eight hours,” she says. “I work a regular schedule, before kids and after kids. My words may later be spoken by Meryl Streep, but my day is the same whether I’m writing for her or someone you’ve never heard of.”

Aline is disciplined in her craft, never relying on inspiration alone. When she has business meetings or press interviews, she tries to schedule them first thing in the morning so that she has an uninterrupted day to write. She’s at her computer from the time she drops off her kids at school until about 5:30 p.m. If she has a deadline, she logs on again at night after the kids are in bed. “Having to get something done is a great motivator,” says Aline, whose writerly indulgences include a space heater, special teas and dark chocolate.

Stories About Women Aline enjoys the break from the solitude of writing when a script is complete and she works with the actors. “I love to collaborate,” she says. “I love the readthrough and the two weeks of rehearsal. I always find great things, funny things, on set.”

With several big hits under her belt, Aline is the go-to romantic-comedy screenwriter in Hollywood—and she’s gotten there primarily by scripting female leads. In her first produced screenplay, Three to Tango (1999), Amy Post (played by actress Neve Campbell) was a central character. The Devil Wears Prada (2006) centers around Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway), an aspiring journalist who lands a job as junior personal assistant to icy editrix Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep). And in 27 Dresses (2008), we follow Jane (Katherine Heigl), who has served as a bridesmaid 27 times and wrestles with her own amorous desires. Aline’s latest screenplay, for Morning Glory, which opens November 12 (2010), features lead roles for Diane Keaton, Rachel McAdams and Harrison Ford.

The screenwriter sees Morning Glory as a sequel of sorts to The Devil Wears Prada in terms of women in the workplace. “In Prada, it was Andy’s first job, and we see how complicated it can be to find yourself,” says Aline. “In Morning Glory, it’s the first time a young woman is given a big responsibility. She’s trying to gain respect.”

Aline generally doesn’t have to look far for her stories: “I write about things I’m interested in and hope other people will be interested, too.” Some of her ideas are drawn from the people in her life. “I have many fabulous friends struggling with really interesting things.” 27 Dresses, for instance, was inspired by a friend who was in 12 weddings. “It made me wonder how you get to be good friends with that many people,” she says.

Babies and Show Biz Born and raised in New Jersey, Aline attended Saddle River Day School and later graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University. She moved to New York after college and worked as a freelance writer. A script she wrote during a six-week screenwriting class at New York University helped her get an agent. After moving to Los Angeles in 1991, Aline waited eight years to see her first movie, Three to Tango, hit the big screen. During that period she kept working, including cowriting some TV pilots. As her professional life started to take off, so did her personal life. “While Three to Tango was shooting, I was planning my wedding. By the time it came out, I was pregnant.”

She had known her future husband, Will, for six years as friends before they started dating. He lived in New York, so they had a bicoastal relationship for a while. The relationship forced Aline to get over her fear of flying. “The best remedy is to fly a lot. I’m better now,” she says. Aline was able to stay home with baby Charlie for the first two years of his life before she took any business trips. She relies on a lot of support, including a full-time caregiver. “It’s an incredibly important relationship,” she says. “Though I drive the kids to school, Anna does pickup at three p.m. so I can keep writing.” She’s had six screenplays produced and has three more in production. “I have to get jobs all the time, parachuting into new experiences with new configurations, different producers, studios, actors and directors,” Aline explains. “I’ve learned to be very flexible. I figure out how to fit in and accomplish my goals.”

In Pursuit of Happiness Aline’s working-mother philosophy: Happy people make good moms. “If I feel good about what I’m doing, the kids will benefit,” she says. “They don’t benefit if I’m miserable.” She came to this realization while breastfeeding, having seen the knots some women tied themselves into over whether or not to nurse. “I’m not happy if I’m not working,” she says. “I dial down my work as needed, but it’s an intrinsic part of who I am.” She also believes it’s good for the kids when parents make time for themselves. “To women who are exhausted and frazzled, I say, ‘Drop one thing,’” advises Aline, who inks a date night on the calendar for herself and Will once a week. “We might go to dinner or a movie, see friends, go to a bookstore,” she says. “It’s a chance for us to have an actual conversation. It’s so important for kids that their parents, no matter how busy, are connecting.”

Aline’s advice to aspiring Writers

• Persevere. if you want to be a writer, keep at it, keep writing. Or as a friend used to say, “Stay on the bus.”  
• Write every day. Sit at your computer no matter how you feel. Work at it daily. View your writing as a sacred responsibility.  
• Talk less. A lot of people like to talk more than they like to write. What you need to do is make those black marks on white paper.  
• Create opportunities. Don’t be afraid to keep calling when you’re trying to get hired for a writing job. Go after what you want.  
• Build a network. I have a large network of writer friends, men and women. almost all the women are moms. We share tips.