Going Off Script (Part 2) by Diane Bator

 

Introducing: 

All That Shines

Book 2 in Glitter Bay Mysteries

Sage Miller is knee deep in fashion designers—whether she wants them in her new vintage boutique or not.

One winds up dead.

Another isn’t what he seems.

A third is treasure hunting.

Sage is stuck in the middle trying to solve a murder before the grand opening of Vintage Sage, which involves a fashion show she’d rather not be part of.

Join in the fun! Buy links are on my BWL Publishing page: http://bookswelove.net/bator-diane/

More of Going Off Script...

This year has been a busy one for me! Not only do I have a beautiful new novel to add to my list, but I've been taking a playwriting course. The great thing with taking a sidestep from novel writing to playwriting, is that I enjoy writing dialogue to help propel the story along.

My first playwriting class was more of a basic overview of scripts. One thing I learned was that actors and directors don't like to be told what to do, so keep stage direction to a minimum. As part of a play I'm currently working on, I'm reading The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams. The stage directions make up nearly half the script! I was surprised.

After the first class, we had to write a 1-2 page scene. I had fun with that and got great feedback. I'd share, but I plan to work on it and create a whole new play from it. Okay, maybe a teeny bit. So far it doesn't have a title:

 

Frank:            Did you hear those kids? For god sake, they’re more worried about some fancy wedding than the fact she isn’t even listening to a word he says.

Carrie:           What did you say, dear?

Frank:            Really? I’m two feet away from you and you didn’t hear a word I said.

Carrie:           That’s not true. I heard you ask if I heard those kids. That’s when I tuned you out.

Frank:            And why did you tune me out?

Carrie:           Because I saw cheesecake on the menu and started to daydream about eating it only I realized I should just end up rubbing it on my stomach and thighs since that’s where it would end up anyway.

Frank:            You’re right. That does sound much better than what I was saying. Please, go on.

I have to admit, it was a bit weird hearing and seeing other people read my words for the first time. It was a fun experience and I was absolutely giddy hearing their feedback. What a great boost for the heart and soul!

While I love writing books, mysteries in particular, writing for stage is a whole different beast. With books, writers can add the details they envision. Each movement or look, the color and placement of the furniture, the things they want the audience to see. Plays are staged at the discretion of the director and performers and can be open to interpretation.

Week two, we were asked to submit 4-5 pages that were the beginning of a play. I took a deep breath and submitted the one I’ve been toying with since January 2020 called Secrets That Haunt Them. A murder mystery complete with a ghost.

Week 3, they read my few pages of my play. I heard lots of great feedback. The only concern was there were a lot of characters. Anything more than 5 or 6 characters becomes an expensive production. Mine has 7. It was fun to hear it brought to life though! At the end of class, we were invited to submit a monologue. I didn't send one. Instead, I started on a whole new play...

After Week 4, my confidence was up there a little. While I haven't received critique from my instructor, I did get feeback from the Artistic Director of the theatre where I work. I have some work to do - after all, it is my first play ever! - but overall he loved it. The concept of having too many characters came up again so the next step is to clean it up and submit it back to him so we can set up a workshop. 

Workshopping a play is lining up some great actors to read the lines while the playwright sits back and makes edits like crazy if they hear lines are too tough to follow or say, take out things that aren't funny, or even add in ideas from the director or actors as the playwright thinks will benefit the performance. We sort of did that in Week 2 & 3 with the lines I wrote above. I have to admit it was both cool and nerve-wracking to hear people read my writing aloud. 

Hopefully, we'll be able to perform it on stage one day. For now, I'm enjoying the launch of All That Shines and will get to my edits for the play soon.

This may be the start of a whole new path along my writing journey!

Have a fabulous day!

Diane Bator 

Going Off Script (Part 1) by Diane Bator

 

I've worked in theatre for over 4 years now and have met some amazing performers. I have also often thought of writing a script. I mean I've written a lot of books so how hard could it be? Last year, I actually started to write two plays but set them aside because of timing. Not many play performances going on.

Enter 2021.

January 4, I attended a virtual Write In and the leader of the group is a playwright. Cool.

January 6, my boss who is the Artistic Director in our theatre, asks if I've done any more with those scripts I started what seems like 10 years ago... We set up a meeting.

January 11, I get an email about a workshop with a playwrite whose work I admire. I sign up instantly. It seems this New Year isn't content with all the edits I'm currently doing. There is more to pile on my plate!

I have one thing going for me in the script department. I've always been better at dialogue than detail. I'm not ashamed to admit it takes several edits to add in a little extra oomph to my novels. Take All That Shines, book 2 in my Glitter Bay Mysteries that I am currently editing. My lovely beta reader asks, "How big is this room? That's a lot of stuff inside. Maybe you need to rethink this."

One thing with writing for stage: you have limited space where you can place your furniture, props, and performers. With novels, you can use the entire world--or even other worlds--to move things around at your leisure and whim.

Something both plays and novels do have in common is the basic 3 Act Layout. They both have a beginning, a middle, and an end. Both need to have more than one storyline going on to keep the audience/reader's interest. Both also need to keep the action moving along. No lulls allowed.

With playwriting and plays in general, one thing to be kept in mind is how superstitous theatre people are. For example:

• Never ever say the work MacBeth in a theatre. It is that Scottish play. If anyone does say it, they should exit the theatre, spin around in a circle three times, and spit. 
• No live flowers on stage.
• Whistling backstage is a jinx.
• Peacock feathers onstage are bad luck.
• Say "break a leg" instead of "good luck.
• Mirrors onstage are bad luck.
• Always turn on a ghostlight before leaving the theatre.

With those things in mind, I've set off to write a play about a ghost haunting a theatre. Yes, there is a ghostlight involved and some superstitions could come into play. (yup, bad pun!) I also have a couple great mentors to help me write and later workshop my play.

My workshop began January 26 and runs until February 16. I'll fill you in on how it all goes!

Have a great month until we meet again!

Diane Bator

https://www.bookswelove.com/bator-diane/