As of this morning we've already received a significant number of script submissions to the NJ Young Playwrights Festival! Don't be left out... submit your play today!
There are 5 days left to submit a script in the High School, Rewrites, and Podcast divisions of the NJ Young Playwrights Festival.
There are 12 days left for Junior HS and Elementary submissions.
Please review the submission guidelines at http://www.njypf.org/ where we have provided links to the Title Page Information form hosted at SurveyMonkey. Also, all scripts must be submitted to us via njypf@ptnj.org.
Happy writing!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
First deadline approaching...
Happy New Year to you all! I hope that you found time to rest during the holiday break, but also have continued working on your script submissions.
We have begun to receive script submissions to all divisions of the 2011 New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival. Just wanted to remind you that scripts for the High School Divisions (High School, Rewrites, and Podstages) are due by 11:59 pm on Friday, January 14th. Junior HS and Elementary Division submissions are due by 11:59 pm on Friday, January 21st.
In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions regarding your script submission. I fielded a few questions during the break and am happy to provide any guidance about the Contest and the submission guidelines that I can.
I look forward to receiving your play. Happy writing!
We have begun to receive script submissions to all divisions of the 2011 New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival. Just wanted to remind you that scripts for the High School Divisions (High School, Rewrites, and Podstages) are due by 11:59 pm on Friday, January 14th. Junior HS and Elementary Division submissions are due by 11:59 pm on Friday, January 21st.
In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions regarding your script submission. I fielded a few questions during the break and am happy to provide any guidance about the Contest and the submission guidelines that I can.
I look forward to receiving your play. Happy writing!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Revision
Revision is an important part of the writing process. However, as we've found for some of our young playwrights, it can also be the most painful. That makes sense. You've put in so much time and effort to get your play together. Everything feels right and after all that exertion the last thing that you want to do is to start making cuts, or additions, or completely rewrite certain sections. I've been there, too - I get it. But remember that a play is written to be performed, or to think of it in more general terms, a play is written to be shared with an audience. To make the revision process a bit more enjoyable you can try a couple of things to see how an intended audience is reacting to the work.
Critique
Critique sessions (or "contructive criticism" sessions) where others read your work and provide a response can be nauseating, especially when the responses become anything but constructive. However, as you are in control of how your script is written, you can also exercise some control over the kind of critique that you receive.
First, be sure that the people who you ask to read your play are those whose opinions you trust. It is equally important that these readers are people who will speak to you honestly and respectfully. That seems like a no-brainer, but when it comes to critique you should never take anything for granted.
Second, ask those who read your play to provide you with responses to specific things about the play. For example, you might be unsure about a particular event in the play. You may want to provide your readers with a question about that event, or simply ask them to tell you their reactions to it. There is also a great protocol for feedback created by Liz Lerman, which can be found on her website at http://danceexchange.org/projects/critical-response-process/. I've used the four steps of Lerman's process as a framework for talkback discussions of new plays both with students in a classroom and with audiences after a show. I find that it creates a respectful atmosphere where the audience is free to express their reactions and opinions, but always mindful of the story as the playwright has written it.
Readings
Once you have a draft of your script that you feel comfortable with, pull together a handful of friends and/or family and read through the play. I find that a group of four (2 male, 2 female) tends to provide enough variety to cover the character population in most students' plays. Of course if you have a play of all female or all male characters, you may want to adjust the numbers.
Assign roles to each actor and have them read the play out loud. I find it best to do this sitting at a table. This way the actors don't need to worry about acting out the character. At this point, you just want to hear the play.
I strongly suggest that the playwright does not read anything in the script, with the possibile exception of the stage directions. When you are reading a character, it can be difficult to hear everything that has been written, so try to fight the urge to perform.
Rewrite
These two approaches should provide you with some useful feedback about your play. They may also help you identify certain parts of the script that could use some revision. Perhaps there was a section that your readers/actors had a lot of questions about? Maybe a suggestion was made that you find would help strengthen the play and/or take it in a direction that you want. Remember that in the end, no matter who the people are providing you with feedback, this is YOUR play. It is your voice and your ideas, so be sure that you are comfortable with it in the end.
Hope that's helpful. Happy (re)writing!
Critique
Critique sessions (or "contructive criticism" sessions) where others read your work and provide a response can be nauseating, especially when the responses become anything but constructive. However, as you are in control of how your script is written, you can also exercise some control over the kind of critique that you receive.
First, be sure that the people who you ask to read your play are those whose opinions you trust. It is equally important that these readers are people who will speak to you honestly and respectfully. That seems like a no-brainer, but when it comes to critique you should never take anything for granted.
Second, ask those who read your play to provide you with responses to specific things about the play. For example, you might be unsure about a particular event in the play. You may want to provide your readers with a question about that event, or simply ask them to tell you their reactions to it. There is also a great protocol for feedback created by Liz Lerman, which can be found on her website at http://danceexchange.org/projects/critical-response-process/. I've used the four steps of Lerman's process as a framework for talkback discussions of new plays both with students in a classroom and with audiences after a show. I find that it creates a respectful atmosphere where the audience is free to express their reactions and opinions, but always mindful of the story as the playwright has written it.
Readings
Once you have a draft of your script that you feel comfortable with, pull together a handful of friends and/or family and read through the play. I find that a group of four (2 male, 2 female) tends to provide enough variety to cover the character population in most students' plays. Of course if you have a play of all female or all male characters, you may want to adjust the numbers.
Assign roles to each actor and have them read the play out loud. I find it best to do this sitting at a table. This way the actors don't need to worry about acting out the character. At this point, you just want to hear the play.
I strongly suggest that the playwright does not read anything in the script, with the possibile exception of the stage directions. When you are reading a character, it can be difficult to hear everything that has been written, so try to fight the urge to perform.
Rewrite
These two approaches should provide you with some useful feedback about your play. They may also help you identify certain parts of the script that could use some revision. Perhaps there was a section that your readers/actors had a lot of questions about? Maybe a suggestion was made that you find would help strengthen the play and/or take it in a direction that you want. Remember that in the end, no matter who the people are providing you with feedback, this is YOUR play. It is your voice and your ideas, so be sure that you are comfortable with it in the end.
Hope that's helpful. Happy (re)writing!
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
2011 Young Playwrights, Inc. National Playwriting Competition
Hey New Jersey Young Playwrights! Please take note of another great playwriting competition for which you are eligible:
Young Playwrights, Inc. (YPI) in New York is now accepting scripts for their annual national playwriting contest. The YPI contest was the first of its kind in the United States and the inspiration for the festival in New Jersey and many more across the country. YPI runs a fantastic program and I want to encourage you to submit your script(s) to them in addition to sending them here to us.
Visit their website at http://www.youngplaywrights.org/ for submission guidelines and additional info. Deadline for entries is January 3, 2011.
And as a reminder, the submission deadlines to the New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival (NJYPF) are also in January 2011: all high school submissions (grades 10-12 in the High School, Rewrites, and Podstages divisions) are due by January 14; Elementary (grades 4-6) and Junior HS (grades 7-9) plays are due by January 21. All NJYPF submissions must be done online at http://www.njypf.org/.
I'll be in touch again soon with some writing ideas. In the meantime, happy writing!
Young Playwrights, Inc. (YPI) in New York is now accepting scripts for their annual national playwriting contest. The YPI contest was the first of its kind in the United States and the inspiration for the festival in New Jersey and many more across the country. YPI runs a fantastic program and I want to encourage you to submit your script(s) to them in addition to sending them here to us.
Visit their website at http://www.youngplaywrights.org/ for submission guidelines and additional info. Deadline for entries is January 3, 2011.
And as a reminder, the submission deadlines to the New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival (NJYPF) are also in January 2011: all high school submissions (grades 10-12 in the High School, Rewrites, and Podstages divisions) are due by January 14; Elementary (grades 4-6) and Junior HS (grades 7-9) plays are due by January 21. All NJYPF submissions must be done online at http://www.njypf.org/.
I'll be in touch again soon with some writing ideas. In the meantime, happy writing!
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