by any means necessary

pentimental · Jul 27, 2019

Hi all -

I'm posting on behalf of my 97-yr-old father. He's a prolific playwright but has never marketed his work much; he's had some put on by local theaters and radio in the past, and some readings.

His desire now is simply to make his plays available to anyone who wants to use them - community theaters, schools, nonprofits, etc. -at no cost. To get the work out there, as widely distributed as possible. While I'm sure he'd love to see something professionally produced, it's not his primary motivation.

He's asked me and my brother to help him with this. Neither of us have experience with playwriting or the theatre. (We've helped him put some of his short stories, and one previously unpublished novel, on Kindle.)

Any suggestions? Please note that given my Dad's age, things that might have a long time lag, like submitting to agents, are do-able but not optimal. Thanks in advance!

pentimental · Aug 1, 2019

I confess the silence is a bit disheartening.

If someone could please let me know if my post was problematic in some way, or if it's best to ask in a different forum, I'd appreciate the feedback. Thank you for any response.

cornflake · Aug 1, 2019

Sorry, this area tends not to get as much traffic as some others on AW.

Where are you? You don't have to say, but if you're someplace with a big theatre community you might have an easier road. I have only peripheral experience/knowledge in this area, so hopefully someone who knows more will come along but...

If there are theatre companies in your area that put on works, or do any workshops, you might contact them and inquire; similarly, if you're in an area with schools that feed to the theatre, or that have robust programs themselves (like if you're in or near NY, LA, Chicago -- not that they're the only places, at all, but they're places I know this exists), look into their theatre programs and try emailing a professor in charge of the theatre, or in playwriting, and ask what you have here, basically.

If you're near NY you might actually ask at the drama bookshop (if you're not you can contact them anyway I'd suppose)-- though I think they're not re-opened yet. They know everything, and have been around forever.

pentimental · Aug 1, 2019

Thank you! : )
Where my brother and I live doesn't matter much (I'm in southern AZ), as we're helping my Dad at a distance most of the time. He's in Portland, OR. He's had a professional company stage a reading at the community where he lives which was well received, but it didn't lead to other connections. Your suggestion has me thinking perhaps I could contact that company and ask *them* about local programs.

I love your suggestion about the Drama Bookshop! My father's writing roots are in NY; both his previous publishers were/are based there. What we're really looking for is some kind of comprehensive distribution rather than trying to micromanage access to individual venues at a distance. The people at the bookshop might have some ideas... worth a try. Thanks.

cornflake · Aug 1, 2019

Yeah, I've no idea how that'd work if it weren't stuff being put out by the people that traditionally print/distribute/offer up plays, but I'd wager someone at the bookshop or one of the bigger theatre programs or a longstading, say, off-broadway house would have some idea.

Definitely mention he's previously staged and/or trade published (in any regard). I'm not throwing shade at anyone who isn't, just a *lot* of people tend to contact places and people asking the same sort of thing you are but they're really looking for a big deal and don't have a grasp on the basics of how to get agents, playwriting, etc. If you clearly establish he's had experience, his age, what he's looking for and why you're NOT going a particular route, it might help steer you in the right direction.

RCRichardson · Aug 1, 2019

Pentimental, I know next to nothing about that side of our industry, but I think it's great that you and your brother are doing this for your father. The best of luck to the three of you!

pentimental · Aug 1, 2019

This is very helpful advice, thanks... yes, he's had plays staged and a novel trade-published, but I will have to be sure to note that all his experience was pre-digital-age and the basics might have changed a lot since then! I'm hoping my own ignorance won't be a hindrance. Beginner's luck, maybe.

I sometimes manage a trip back to NYC in Sept-Oct. This gives me ideas for places to contact beforehand, if I go this year. And a good excuse to make it happen. : )

pentimental · Aug 1, 2019

Pentimental, I know next to nothing about that side of our industry, but I think it's great that you and your brother are doing this for your father. The best of luck to the three of you!

Aw, thanks. Honestly, I know I'm biased, but I think anybody who reads my dad's work will want to see more of it available!

So much great work by so many good writers goes unpublished. Wish they all had advocates.

Jakedfw · Aug 11, 2019

If you just want to get it out there, you can create PDFs of the plays and post them to a website. If you're looking to market your dad's plays then I have no experience with that. You would be better served asking on a theater company or theater director forum.

creativexec · Aug 18, 2019

You might want to see if there's some online aggregate for royalty free plays.

Playwrights who offer their work royalty free often have their own websites with the plays available for PDF download (or via an email request). This would mean listing the title and genre of the play, a brief synopsis, how many male and female actors needed, and how many settings. IMO, this would be the smartest way to go, because it accomplishes your goal and eliminates the need for a middle man (and bypasses submission processes, vetting, and rejection). You could also consider putting together a compilation of his plays and self-publishing via Amazon print-on-demand or for Kindle.

Samuel French and the Dramatist Play Service are two of the biggest publishers of plays. You can certainly look into what their submission policies might be. There are other smaller publishers specializing in plays also. But if a play is published by these houses, they charge per performance royalties. (It's how they earn real money beyond just the sale of the book.)

If any of his plays are appropriate for school ages kids, you might want to look into arts education royalty-free publishers/publications.

Agents will not have interest in royalty free plays. Furthermore, unless the plays have had a recent professional production, it seems unlikely that agents or publishers will have any interest.

Overall, going a traditional publishing route feels like the longest of long shots and involves time & effort.

Unfortunately, there are a zillion plays floating in the ether, making for very tough competition. And, sadly, given the cutthroat nature of the business, few will care about your father's indomitable and altruistic spirit at his advanced age.

Ironically, wanting to give them away for free makes it all that much tougher than trying to get them published for profit - which is hard enough.

Good luck!

pentimental · Aug 20, 2019

Jakedfw said:
If you just want to get it out there, you can create PDFs of the plays and post them to a website. If you're looking to market your dad's plays then I have no experience with that. You would be better served asking on a theater company or theater director forum.

Thank you! Someone else suggested creating a PDF for self-publishing on Kindle, so I'll definitely look into that.

pentimental · Aug 20, 2019

creativexec said:
You might want to see if there's some online aggregate for royalty free plays.

Playwrights who offer their work royalty free often have their own websites with the plays available for PDF download (or via an email request). This would mean listing the title and genre of the play, a brief synopsis, how many male and female actors needed, and how many settings. IMO, this would be the smartest way to go, because it accomplishes your goal and eliminates the need for a middle man (and bypasses submission processes, vetting, and rejection). You could also consider putting together a compilation of his plays and self-publishing via Amazon print-on-demand or for Kindle.

Samuel French and the Dramatist Play Service are two of the biggest publishers of plays. You can certainly look into what their submission policies might be. There are other smaller publishers specializing in plays also. But if a play is published by these houses, they charge per performance royalties. (It's how they earn real money beyond just the sale of the book.)

If any of his plays are appropriate for school ages kids, you might want to look into arts education royalty-free publishers/publications.

Agents will not have interest in royalty free plays. Furthermore, unless the plays have had a recent professional production, it seems unlikely that agents or publishers will have any interest.

Overall, going a traditional publishing route feels like the longest of long shots and involves time & effort.

Unfortunately, there are a zillion plays floating in the ether, making for very tough competition. And, sadly, given the cutthroat nature of the business, few will care about your father's indomitable and altruistic spirit at his advanced age.

Ironically, wanting to give them away for free makes it all that much tougher than trying to get them published for profit - which is hard enough.

Good luck!

Thank you very much! This is exactly the sort of info I was looking for, even with the caveat at the end. Lots for my brother and I to work on.

If we do go the website or Kindle route, next will be figuring out how to get them seen... but that'll be another post. : )

by any means necessary

pentimental

pentimental

cornflake

practical experience, FTW

pentimental

cornflake

practical experience, FTW

RCRichardson

pentimental

pentimental

Jakedfw

Viable Paradise 14

creativexec

New kid, be gentle!

pentimental

pentimental