Hi all!

NaomiRE · Jun 18, 2005

Hiya....i just thought i'd do the whole introduction thing!

Hi...im Naomi... lol....there we go. lol

Im from nr southampton for those of you who that will make sense to and for those of you for which that means nothing ...central south coast in the uk!

ive recently been made redundant so im currently slumming it at home lol. and saw an advert for a thing on channel 4 called The Plays The Thing....theyre looking for unpublished/amateur playwrights to submit a synopsis and 20-30pages of script to them for an upcoming tv show...theyll follow the play through all the stages and then pay for it to produced in the west end.

i love the theatre. since i was a little kid ive loved it....everything about it....when i was little i did think i wanted to be an actress...then i found out that a) i couldnt act to save my life and b) i hated performing in front of people....so it kinda hampered my dreams lol. my second love after the acting was the stage itself...i find the transformation of an empty stage into a set quite amazing and something i am still in awe of even now is stage lighting....to look at a stage and actually SEE an emotion change purely by the colour of the filter, well it blows me away....i tried it as a study option but my theatre course changed its syllabus, cutting its lighting design and engineering modules by almost 80% being young at the time i quit lmao.....

anyway...sorry for rambling...im getting to my point....honest

so anyway...now i find myself sat here regretting giving up on something i loved so easily...and i start reading this thing on the channel 4 website. :idea:

i love writing....i just dont think im particularly good at it lol... ive had a few poems published...bit of an ego boost...but its not exactly a play is it.

so ive decided to stop regretting not doing what id like to do and now i seem to be sat here attempting to write a play. lmao what the hell am i doing?!?!?

with no formal training - writing or otherwise - i think im completely out of my league...or if not at least a tad :crazy:

but i figure i should give it a try anyway....ive written my synopsis and ive made a start on the first act...i let a friend read it and they said they thought it was pretty good....she swore she wasnt just saying that but well...im not exactly convinced shed tell me it was pure drivel if pushed to do so lol.

and then i found this place....and im thinking you can keep me sane through this....ive got about a week to two weeks to write around 20-30 pages of script....i dont need a complete play at this stage...but they want a good part of it....easier said than done!

i know youre probably all thinking im mad and i hope you dont think im trivialising what you guys do...cause believe me im not...i want to do this...i just need a little guidance and support along the way...doesnt everyone?

i guess, the crux of all this....and god theres been a lot of waffle in this post....is....got any tips? lmao where to start, the structure, how to keep it fresh and interesting anything and everything lol.....

otherwise i might end up :Hammer:

and thats just a waste of a perfectly good laptop!

so yeah....there you go....a potted life story :roll:

come on guys....hit me with your best!

:box:

NaomiRE · Jun 19, 2005

Now come on guys....lol...i know you're reading this lol....so has NOONE got anything to say on the subject?

Joe Calabrese · Jun 19, 2005

Welcome NaomiRE and sorry for the lack of responses.

It seems that there are not a lot of playwrights here. I personally am a screenwriter and moderate both forums since they are related loosely. It's a bit of a ghost town in this forum but I hope to change that in time.

So again, welcome!

If time was no object, I would take a course, join a community theatre and get the feel for it and read everything I could get my hands on before writing.

But since you say you have only a few weeks, I would look at some published plays at your local bookstore and well as a few books on the craft. The structure is quite different from screenwriting, so look for specific books playwriting.

I recommend:
The Elements of Playwriting by Louise E. Cat,
Playwrights on Playwriting by Toby Cole

Good luck and keep writing.

Maryn · Jun 19, 2005

Gee, Naomi, it's so rare to find a new post on here that I haven't been checking.My apologies for not welcoming you more quickly.

Joe's given you good advice (hi, Joe!). While the story matters most, plays have a specialized format, just like screenplays do, so before you submit your 20-30 pp. make sure you either copy the format of a recent play you've checked out from the library or bought, or followed the format advice in any playwriting book.

Some screenwriters are also interested in theatre and can give useful input. With Joe's permission, perhaps you could post your early draft for critique on the screenwriting board? If not, please put it in Share Your Work and give us a heads-up here that you could really use some feedback, and we'll try.

It's great to return to something you love doing, writing. Best of luck with it!

Maryn

NaomiRE · Jun 19, 2005

Hi guys, thanks for the welcomes/replies lol. I was beginning to wonder if there was anyone out there at all lmao.

Yeah, time is the big issue...and it's slow going.....lol....it's taken about 2-3 days so far to get 5 pages in...i know what i want to say, and im getting into it etc im just concentrating a lot lol....i am considering posting the first draft synopsis in the share forum....ive got one of those terrible fears of failure....lol....and in some cases success too!!! lmao so i get nervous!!

anyway....im gonna post the synopsis and try and get some feedback!!

cheers for the advice guys....im off to the libraray asap!

Writer2011 · Jun 19, 2005

My question is what kind of format do you follow when writing plays? It is similar to screenwriting? At this point i'm trying to find my niche if you will... Would appreciate more information... anyone can send me a PM or e-mail me...Thanks.

~Bill~

Maryn · Jun 19, 2005

Bill, play format is very similar to screenplay format. The one (and probably only) play I ever wrote, I just borrowed the basics of screenplay formatting. I understand (but have not read for myself) that Elements of Style for Screenwriters by Paul Argentini, price about $12 (US), includes a section on play format. I've also heard that Final Draft screenwriting software has a setting for plays, but again, I haven't seen it myself.

Depending on your finances, you may not want to buy a book or software. You can produce a play or screenplay using any word processing program, or an old typewriter for that matter:

Font is Courier or Courier New, size 12 point.

Calling the left edge of the paper 0" and the right edge 8.5":

ACTION ELEMENT: Between 1.5" and 7.25"
SLUGLINES: Same as Action Element
CHARACTER NAME: Centered, between 4.0" and 6.5"
DIALOGUE: Between 2.5" and 6.5"
PARENTHETICAL: Between 3.5" and 6.0"
TRANSITION: Between 5.0" and 7.25"

That will produce something perfectly decent looking without costing a cent.

Maryn

Writer2011 · Jun 19, 2005

Maryn...thank you so much

I appreciate it.

NaomiRE · Jun 20, 2005

for someone thats meant to be writing a play.....that should all make sense shouldnt it lmao......anyone wanna put all that into english for me lmao

Writer2011 · Jun 20, 2005

Welcome Naomi....hope that you will enjoy it here as much as I have.

Maryn · Jun 21, 2005

My pleasure. Format is the easy part--and minor format errors will be ignored if the play is great. But if the play isn't so good, formatting perfection won't save it, eh?

Maryn

Hi all!

NaomiRE

NaomiRE

Joe Calabrese

Maryn

At Sea

NaomiRE

Writer2011

Maryn

At Sea

Writer2011

NaomiRE

Writer2011

Maryn

At Sea