THERE ARE NO BAD NOTES, ARE YOU F@CKING KIDDING ME??

               
A question asked by...Lucy V Hay. Script Editor | Bestselling Author | Story Coach | Structure, Genre & Character Specialist | Trusted by Oscar-Winning Creatives on Linkedin.

I start with a belief that there are too many playwrights and not enough opportunities. But that is the least of our worries. More importantly, I was keen  to share my experience

Two local opportunities: one - a call out for plays to work with local writers, where I got a Dear John. It wasn’t even that, just Dear…, no reasons why or even how the play could be developed. The fact that I was in discussions with them, for me to self-produce, puts that in doubt. Will there even be time on the calender?

 

A local competition that would have hundreds and hundreds of entries, even from Australia and the US!!! But they were a small group of voluntary readers and couldn’t possibly read them all. 🤐🤫🤐🤫

The third example was for a well-known playwright competition, who kindly suggested that two scenes where the protagonist opens up to a counsellor, were too expositional and should be addressed as an issue. The fact that these were in the first third of the play and projected the protagonist toward on his journey, resulting in the breakdown of his family was totally missed.

Finally, I was encouraged by a very experienced playwright with some twenty five published plays, to pitch to the major publishing houses, because he loved what I was doing and believed a national, rather than a local publisher, was what I needed. I did.

My play was about my local teams comeback from disaster and into the Premiership and first silverware. The football was a backdrop to the real story of industrial decline, this was the 1980’s and Thatcher.

Having done my pitch, I received a lovely email saying how they were from my area, big fan of our team and loved the play!!! But wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole. First world problems, I know

I’m working on my fourth book, and have at least two more plays waiting. Nothing’s gonna stop me now.

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