Congratulations to all the playwrights who submitted a play to the NJ Young Playwrights Contest 2009! It takes a substantial amount of work and energy to put your words on paper. And it takes a strong sense of confidence to set those words out into the world. Thank you for sharing these thoughts and stories with us. I can’t wait to begin reading your scripts.
Thanks and congratulations are also owed to all of the teachers, parents, and other supporters of the young playwrights. Your encouragement and assistance throughout this process is invaluable. Thank you for patronage of these young people as they have endeavored to share their insight with us.
What happens next?
The office has been inundated with scripts these past few days and I look forward to receiving many more when the post office reopens tomorrow morning. Over the next two weeks, our office will enter these scripts into our Contest database and begin forming packets of plays that will be read by two theatre artists. I will keep you updated of the Contests progress throughout the next few months. So, stay tuned and in the meantime, have fun!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
Today is the Day!
The NJYPContest deadline is here! Be sure to get your play to the post office today before it closes. Check the US Postal Service website to find the hours for your local office - www.usps.com.
Now that you're done. Go celebrate!
I look forward to receiving your plays!
Now that you're done. Go celebrate!
I look forward to receiving your plays!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
3 More Days
There are three more days to get to the Post Office and send your play to the NJ Young Playwrights Contest. Don't delay... send it in!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Time to Share
10, 9, 8, 7…
Is it still the New Year even if you don't get to see the ball drop and the "2009" light up? Anyway, I hope you’ve had a great holiday filled with inspiration for your play. Some scripts have already started to come in to the office and I look forward to being inundated with them over the next two weeks. There is just a little over a week until your plays need to be postmarked for entry into the NJ Young Playwrights Contest. This means that you still have some time for last minute revisions and tweaking before January 16th.
Perhaps this weekend you can get together with a group of friends or family who’s opinion you trust and have an informal reading of the play. This doesn’t need to be a formal presentation, or a fully acted reading (though it can if you want it to be). Often a reading like this works best when everyone is hanging around the living room on couches or chairs. An informal reading will provide you with the opportunity to hear the play outside of your head and see how actors or your intended audience might respond to the piece.
I know that receiving critique on something that you’ve written can be uncomfortable to bear. This is why it is important to keep the event informal and only include people whose opinions you trust. It is also helpful to inform your group that the goal of the reading is for you to hear it out loud and potentially strengthen some areas. You may want to provide your readers with a list of questions you have, or certain sections of the play that you are unsure about. Ask the group to tell you what they liked FIRST, and then get into suggestions, questions, or ideas.
IMPORTANT! - Always remember that YOU are the playwright! Everyone who reads or sees your play will respond to it differently; will have his or her own opinion about how your story should be told. It is important that you listen to what people have to say, but in the end, this is your play and you have the final say in how it is written. Just remember that the goal of writing a play is to communicate an idea to the largest audience possible. The reactions of your reading group may give you an idea of what a larger audience does and does not get from your play. If they are missing something that you want the audience to get, you may want to see where you might be able to make revisions to get that point across.
Rewriting is tough, especially after you've put so much into completing that first draft. But it is well worth the trouble. Have fun!
Happy writing!
Is it still the New Year even if you don't get to see the ball drop and the "2009" light up? Anyway, I hope you’ve had a great holiday filled with inspiration for your play. Some scripts have already started to come in to the office and I look forward to being inundated with them over the next two weeks. There is just a little over a week until your plays need to be postmarked for entry into the NJ Young Playwrights Contest. This means that you still have some time for last minute revisions and tweaking before January 16th.
Perhaps this weekend you can get together with a group of friends or family who’s opinion you trust and have an informal reading of the play. This doesn’t need to be a formal presentation, or a fully acted reading (though it can if you want it to be). Often a reading like this works best when everyone is hanging around the living room on couches or chairs. An informal reading will provide you with the opportunity to hear the play outside of your head and see how actors or your intended audience might respond to the piece.
I know that receiving critique on something that you’ve written can be uncomfortable to bear. This is why it is important to keep the event informal and only include people whose opinions you trust. It is also helpful to inform your group that the goal of the reading is for you to hear it out loud and potentially strengthen some areas. You may want to provide your readers with a list of questions you have, or certain sections of the play that you are unsure about. Ask the group to tell you what they liked FIRST, and then get into suggestions, questions, or ideas.
IMPORTANT! - Always remember that YOU are the playwright! Everyone who reads or sees your play will respond to it differently; will have his or her own opinion about how your story should be told. It is important that you listen to what people have to say, but in the end, this is your play and you have the final say in how it is written. Just remember that the goal of writing a play is to communicate an idea to the largest audience possible. The reactions of your reading group may give you an idea of what a larger audience does and does not get from your play. If they are missing something that you want the audience to get, you may want to see where you might be able to make revisions to get that point across.
Rewriting is tough, especially after you've put so much into completing that first draft. But it is well worth the trouble. Have fun!
Happy writing!
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