Hi there!

I've just been looking around for a Group that deals with play writing as I am in the process of turning a short story into a One Act Play. It'll be the first time I've tried it and I was hoping for some help and guidance!! As there doesn't seems to be a relevant group, I wondered if anyone had any suggestions... pretty please!

Yours hopefully,
Debra

Hi Debra
I used to be in the old theatre group (shut down due to lack of activity) , i'd be more than happy to post in a new group if there were one, i'm not sure how many members are needed to propose a group however...

Hiya Bazz

sounds like your help would be just what the doctored ordered... I just checked and you need at least 4 signed up before a group goes live. Is there a way round the having a group thing? Could I post on the Forum? Can people comment on a work without it being assigned to a group? I guess I should find out! LOL

Hope to catch you somewhere along the line...
D ;0)

Can people comment on a work without it being assigned to a group?

Yes, but they rarely do...

Groups are definitely preferable as there is a reciprocal vibe that gets going and makes it easier for you can to crit back for any crits you receive, so making it more likely for you to get re-critted later...

As an observation, my problem with critting the script-style pieces I've seen on WW is almost always length rather than content. I think it may have been Bazz who opined that scripts should be taken whole, which is fair enough, but it puts even more pressure on the reciprocal ethic - ten-thousand words is still ten-thousand words, even if it is spaced neatly in bite-sized headed chunks. I would be unlikely to be willing to read that much for somebody else without having an equally massive chunk that I wanted a crit on. Certainly, I'd be reticent to try the drive-by critting that I sometimes do with shorter pieces.

G

"drive-by critting" I love it, it did make me smile

Thanks G, yeah I know what you mean! I'd feel guilty expecting too much of someone's precious time.. I tend to post short sections and post more if people want to read more.

On the play thing - I'm not sure if I'm formatting it correctly and I would like some advice about how much stage direction is considered good form! I've got a few weeks at most to re-write my story as a play so was hoping for some quick-fire advice rather than an in-depth crit on the storyline at this point

best wishes
D ;0)

Hi Debra
as gaius says, i do think the best way to judge something is in the context of its whole; on the other hand, in this sense it might make more sense for you to upload an extract in the archive. i'd be happy to take a look at it, I've written/read quite a lot of theatre over the years, so i might be able to help you out with a couple of points.
as for stage direction, actors and directors generally seem to think less is more, and i agree that it should be restrained only to things that need be explicitly clear. writers like pinter and mcdonagh for example, are very sparse with stage direction, thinking it ruins the flow of the dialogue...
anyway, be glad to help, if i can.

Thanks Bazz, I will post a section to the Archive and if you don't mind giving it a look over, that would be wonderful

cheers
D ;0)