Why the wait?

Okay! So it all went quiet…

What happened?

The plan failed.

I suddenly realised that I needed more hours in the day. If I was going to make a decent stab at this, I needed to dedicate four hours an evening to the craft: and two things got in the way. 1) Family; we all fell ill again. 2) Work; things are going mad here.

I mentioned that I had just been changed in my job – and the workload is huge. And day-by-day, it gets bigger. And something else rather substantial has happened on the job front…

I was selected for promotion!

As of 1 Oct 06, I will be a Lieutenant Commander!

That means that I’m going to move – both job and location.

As you can imagine, that has changed my life completely… and I had to put the play on hold.

But does that mean that its not going to happen? No. I’ll resume work in a couple of days… When I do, I’ll carry on rambling and taking you through the pregnancy!

Day 6 – Starting the writing

Target: 10 pages
Achieved: 7 pages
Current Status: 3 pages behind schedule

I’ve got a problem.

The scenario might not be long enough. I may not have put enough detail in it.

And reading it back to myself, one of the characters may be a little too aggressive.

I could very easily have written the required 10 pages tonight, but I would have ended up compressing the play too much and have very little scope to move forward tomorrow.

As I see it, I have too choices – and in reality, I think that I’m going to do both. First, I can review the scenario and see where I need to extend the plot and conflicts. Second, I have to increase the comedic input to temper the aggression of this character.

When I was writing the scenario, I saw this moving away from a comic drama into a pure drama. But once the characters started talking to me as I was writing, their voices weren’t quite what I expected.

So rather than plug on – it’s time to review. And I’ll have far more time to do that tomorrow night, seeing as it isn’t a school night.

I’d sooner be 3 pages behind schedule that walking away from the PC thinking that this play is going to be a failure. And from the quality of the dialogue so far, it isn’t going to be that.

On a more positive note, there’s a chance that one of the other RN clubs might produce my one-act play Folio. It’s being reviewed for it’s potential this evening, so I might have some good news to post tomorrow.

Day 5 – Rest Day

Target: Rest
Achieved: Rested
Current Status: Somewhat nervous.

The initial plan was to develop 8 pages a day. But there are times where you have to show your family that they still exist.

That was what was needed last night.

My day job is somewhat chaotic at the moment, and no matter how hard you try – some of that ends up going home with you.

So it was necessary to spend the night with the PC and TV off and just chat.

The plan has to change, but the 14 day limit is not negotiable. That means that for the next 4 days I have to write 10 pages a day, to enable the last 5 days to return to the 8 page limit.

Sound too difficult? I have a robust scenario – I don’t need to think about how to twist the plot, where the uppers and downers need to be… I just have to develop the dialogue and put all of my efforts into making it invite the audience.

I’m actually looking forward to this evening. I really think that 10 pages a day is achievable… Only time will tell.

Day 4 - Developing the Scenario (Part II)

Target: Completed scenario (inc ½ act debt from yesterday)
Achieved: Completed scenario!
Current Status: I’m back on track!

I love it when a plan falls apart!

So, I was going to make a few notes when I was at work... Some hope. I made the stupid mistake of assuming that today would be a normal office day (doing my job, getting things done, having lunch...).

But no. I ended up having to rearrange a meeting the second I entered the department. Then the people that had promised me information let me down, leading me to commence a massive phone chase. Then I am informed that I am very likely to changing job and having to pass over all my projects to someone else!

This is far from a typical day. The military run on order and clearly defined chains of command. However, when a new mission comes in, these things can become blurred.

Today, it's about as blurred as looking through a dimpled pint glass, covered in petroleum-jelly, after seven pints of wife-beater and a couple of single malt chasers!

One O'clock came, and I realised that I was treading water - professionally and personally. The pain came when I realised that I would have to take the hit on the personal side of life. Today - profession comes first, as get my current tasking wrong... I could put people's lives in danger in the future.

But that didn't stop me from glancing at the notepad every now and again.

May have looked – but I didn’t make any notes.

My frustration was rising. It’s the pain associated with endeavouring to become what you want to be – reality all to often steps in to attempt to distract your from your dreams.

Thank goodness for the dance lesson (I can cut a fairly mean Cha-cha-cha now!). It was just the medicine I needed. I couldn’t think about the frustrations of work – or the lack of time I had to write.

When I got home, I realised why I married my wife. She knew how much this deadline means to me. But she also shares me dream of doing this for a living – she would love me to be at home writing.

She told me to fire up the PC and get this thing done. She knew that we had just spent quality time together – and unless I got back on target, I would feel as though I had let myself down.

So I dived back into it. I was sure that I would find it difficult without some additional note.

I started typing and realised fairly soon that I needed a drink. Once I came back to it, I saw the footer glaring at me.

I had written 4 pages! The end of the synopsis was in sight!

I knew not to question it, just get it finished. Before I would have thought that I must have made a mistake somewhere. But this time I knew it was right – I had even jumped back a couple of times to include some continuity links.

Suddenly my mood has lightened. I know I’ll sleep well tonight. Work may be challenging at the moment, but the play is back on schedule.

Just goes to show that when your day job starts interfering with your quality of life – a good boogie is just what the doctor ordered.

Day 3 - Developing the Scenario (Part I)

Target: ¾ of the scenario (reason to be given later).
Achieved: First act of the scenario
Current Status: ½ of an act behind schedule!

Before we get on to the writing side of life, here comes the drop dead justification for meeting my self-imposed deadline!

There's no reason in writing this thing, unless I have somewhere to perform it in the Festival. I approached my Mess President (Navy talk for the bloke that is in command of my mess - or Wardroom as we prefer to call it ). I talked him through what I wanted to do: Perform the play in the upstairs bar, no entry charge, keep the night informal, and we'd need to provide a night's bed, board and water for the Adjudicator.

He leapt at it! Moreover, he's giving me additional bar-staff, a themed supper before the performance, hosting the Adjudicator, staff to escort the audience to the performance and a waiter drinks-service throughout the performance!

Damn it all! I now have one hell of a venue and service... All I have to do it write the thing, learn it, rehearse it and put it on!

To make matters worse (or better) it looks like I can put on an earlier performance in the Senior Rates Mess the night before... So at least we won't be raw when we go in front of the adjudicator.

But back to the reality of the Scenario...

Why do I generate one? I've said before that I love writing the dialogue. And I have written a play without one before now. So why go through the hassle of writing one for this play?

The simple answer is time. If I'm to stand a fighting chance of developing the script in 10 days, I'll need to know where I am going from the outset - and avoid that dreaded 'page 1' writer's block.

That's not to say that the scenario is overtly prescriptive. It is a detailed outline of the play, showing the interactions, motivation and emotions that need to be conveyed. But in the dialogue process, should a new idea hit me I can still employ it - but I have a decent idea on how it will impact on the remainder of the play.

I said at the top, that I need to develop at least ¾s of the scenario today. The reason is - tomorrow. There won't be much time for writing that night, as my wife and I attend a dance class (we're taking Ballroom and Latin classes, as it is the only excuse we have to spend a little time alone together away from the kids!).

There are many things that I am will to sacrifice for my writing, but my marriage isn't one of them. Indeed, it's one of biggest motivations for making writing my profession: If I can become successful at writing, I can give up the day job and spend more time at home with my family, doing what I love, in the company of those I love.

So today’s task is getting that scenario down. I suddenly realised how big a task I have given myself. Thanks to yesterday’s synopsis, generating the scenario started very well. I could feel all the emotions developing. And they are developing in a shape that will have the audience engaged – and just importantly, will have something for the actors to get their teeth into.

But I realised how much time this was taking. Getting your brain to convert emotions into text (that you know that you will be able to understand later to enable you to write the dialogue) takes time. But you aren’t aware of that time as your brain is constantly working. Hence the time disappears from you.

I set myself a target of saying that I would put myself to bed at 11:30. Before I knew it, I was about half way through the first act – but when I looked at the clock, it was nearly 10:30.

By my target, I had half a play’s worth of scenario to develop in the next hour!

Worse, I realised that my working title for the play was wrong… Sure, that happens as you develop the work… But I allowed it to distract me. I wasted valuable time.

Plus I started to get annoyed with myself. This is about developing a play – not about how to divvy up the time to write one!

But this is the deal that I have to cope with.

And the payback of that deal is that I am ½ an act behind schedule on my target scenario.

Am I disappointed? Strangely – no. And it's because of the annoyance.

When I realised that the working title was wrong, it enabled me to shift the point where the first act ends. It enables me to have a new and more dramatic hook at the end of the first act and changes the tone of the second act.

But how do I make up the time? I can’t work on this while I'm at my day job. While this is true, I can have my note book. And this has made me look at the play from a new stance. When that happens, ideas flood me, much the same ways as I was flooded while writing the synopsis.

All I have to do is make a coupe of bullet-point notes as to the shape of the play in my notepad, and I’ll be able to write the remainder of the scenario in less than half the time I’ve invested today.

I may be behind schedule, but that time can be made up. But more importantly, the play is going to be better as a result.

Overall, a rather good day!

Day 2

Planning is always a pain.

I’d far sooner be doing the actual writing. But I know that without the plan, things could get out of control.

Hence, today I have to generate the synopsis. That leaves Days 3 and 4 to generate the scenario. That will then give me 10 days of writing at least 8 pages a day.

Why 8 pages? Because, that will give me two acts of approximately 40 mins.

But there is something wonderful about writing the synopsis (yeah, I managed to do it, so I’m on target so far). While planning isn’t developing the dialogue, which is the part that gives me the biggest thrill, but it does give me a thrill of another sort.

Every time that I have sat down to write a synopsis, it has always felt like a chore that you know has to be done, but will give no pleasure – a bit like taking the bins out, or loading the dishwasher after a dinner party.

But there is another reason I hate it. It’s because, there have been far too many times that I have tried to write one, and I realise that the story is either crap or isn’t ready. It has been the death blow to far too many of my ideas.

There is a thrill though, when the synopsis takes you by storm. You type slowly and get the first couple of sentences down. Suddenly, from no where, a new plot development jumps into your mind that fits perfectly. It makes perfect sense! The play will work far better if you use it! Damn! Type it quickly!

Bang! Another one drifts past your eyes. Hell, that’s good. That fits with the play and you last good idea. Quick! Get it down!

Before you know it, more and more of these ideas pour from your imagination and have to get onto the page.

Here’s where the danger comes – you can’t make the plot too complicated, else you run the risk of losing your audience. This is why you have to be disciplined about keeping your synopsis to one page, else there could be too much to achive.

Tonight’s work, went over that one page limit. The thrill was replaced by disappointment.

But not for long. I read the synopsis again and realised that the first few sentences did nothing other than enable me to start writing. They were dead lines as far as synopsis is concern – they didn’t develop a plot or the scene.

Magically, deleting these sentences – it ran to a single page!

So… Now to write the Scenario. And only 2 days to do it.

Enough blogging for today… Just a cryptic clue about one think that tonight’s synopsis has reminded me to blog about in the near future… Where do you get the names for your characters?

The challenge starts here!

Yesterday I attended my first committee meeting for several months.

I may ramble another time why I haven’t been for a while. But for now I’ll tell you what committee it is (as I have checked, and I’ve never mentioned it before).

I’ve been a committee member of the Royal Navy Theatre Association (RNTA) on and off for 7 years. Indeed, I have acted in the drama festival it runs every spring. And I’ve now got 7 of those under my belt.

At the committee meeting, I discovered that this could be the worst year it has ever had.
We all know that the military is under increasing pressure. The knock on has been that there are fewer personnel that can take part in the festival. But this year, it looks like we might only have 4 entries.

I had tried to start a production on at my establishment, but I needed 7 actors (forgetting techies…). I had 3 volunteers. So I had to curtail my participation this year.

Until I heard that news.

Theatre gives us so much in the military. Not the culture. Not the expansion of the mind and our perceptions. While these are all worthwhile things, this is not why it proves of value to a military service.

It’s leadership!

Leadership in a rank-less environment. I performed in a panto once where I was playing the Dame (maybe I’ll post a picture to scare you all!). Me, a lowly junior officer.

My sidekick was a Commander. The Panda (Yep, it was Aladdin!) was a Captain! But there were Lieutenant Colonels, Majors… And not once did rank enter the game. The job was to get a performance in front of an audience. And who ever was the best qualified, or most experienced was the one listened to.

In that panto, that person was me. And they listened – And I learnt so much about myself.
When I heard that there were only going to be 4 productions this year, I felt two things: Disappointment; as this gives so much to my service and I could only think about the establishments that were going to miss out. And Guilt; I failed to put on a production.
But why did I fail? Because I couldn’t get enough actors…

But what if I could find a play that only needed two actors? I’ve got a mate that I can trust to deliver a great performance…

After a half-hearted search, I discovered thousands of one act plays I could do… But the RNTA festival requires a full-length production!

So here’s the challenge.

I’m going to write a two-act, two-header play!

Moreover, I’ve got 14 days to do it!

That breaks to 4 days planning, 10 days writing – leaving me with 4 weeks to rehearse and perform!

I’ve got the concept for the play! (All I’ll say at this moment, is that involves the Secret Service.) I’ve made a few notes… So that means that Day 1 has been spent… I now have 13 left…

I’ll blog each day for the next 13 days (more for me) as to what has happened, so that you can witness the conception, gestation and birth of a play.

When I get to perform it, witness it’s adjudication and the awards process – you can watch this child grow (and maybe die).

Anyone want to share the ride?

Blatant advertising

But it’s not for me (for once). Hopefully people that view this blog are looking at moving their own writing career forward.

I thought that it would be worth while to point out another couple of blogs that could aid them in that goal (falls to knees and prays that you’ll still keep coming here).

I have had the pleasure of communicating with A C Crispin on several occasions. She is a highly successful science fiction writer. But she doesn’t stop there. She is passionate about putting scammers (those that will try and dupe writers out of a few quid) out of business. Indeed, it was her that saved me from being scammed myself by a character purporting to be an agent, but was in fact a front for a vanity publisher.

She has been running a website of vital information for writers to avoid these scammers with her colleague Victoria Strauss for several years (Writer Beware – Link on my website) but they have now started their own blog. Do visit to see what scams are out there and how not to fall into the vast range of traps that are out there.

Now this one isn’t truly a playwright thing. But it does give you an idea about the industry. Or more importantly, how to look professional. This is the blog of a professional literary agent.

I still get amazed that these people are willing to take the time out to share this information. But they do. So use it.

One day – we might see our plays performed by professional actors and see our scripts on the shelves of Waterstones!