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  Three drafts of ‘to be or not to be’. There’s probably a bunch more where that came from.*   First drafts are the raw materials of my industry. I get to read a lot of them.  I love them. They are what they are; the first in (hopefully) a progression of ever more distinguished versions of a good story. Whether you are a complete novice or you have fully emerged from those difficult, uncertain times to the infinitely more difficult and uncertain times of being a hardened professional, first drafts never stop being appalling things.Read More →

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So, you’ve got a story?  Oh, yay!  You think this is a good story, one that’s crying out for a damn good telling? You want to tell this remarkable story to the world, or at least tell your community or your circle of friends, or your daffy old Aunt Eustace. But where do you even begin?  If you find yourself teetering on that starter block, rocking back and forth, thinking about diving into a writing project, but somehow you just can’t quite take the plunge, here’s one great exercise to start.Read More →

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In: Family, Plays, Writing

In honour of the extraordinary and rare moon we are having in the last few nights here in Australia, I’ve been thinking about rare things that can happen in a writer’s lifetime.  It’s not all beer and skittles, or a bed of roses or fun in the sun. Life as a writer is never going to be easy, but once in a Super (rare) moon, odd things happen…Read More →

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So often I read about things to advance yourself as a writer, be you a playwright, novelist, screenwriter or whatever. And it is interesting to read how others have made it happen for themselves.  And I get it. Knowing how to get out there, connect, shine brighter than your competition, and champion your work is hard and you need all the advice you can get.  I still read those lists and I love them.  But I’m also aware of all the mistakes I’ve made along the way and how I have at times sabotaged my work and my career…. Read More →

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In: Dramaturgy, Playwriting, Writing

Full disclosure: I’m beginning this post with absolutely no idea of what I’m going to be writing about. This breaks the rules of blogging and I should be ashamed of myself! Apparently, all the best writers have writing schedules in which the author will slate a whole week or month of topics which they intend to write about. Not saying this is a bad idea at all, just saying it’s all a bit serious.Read More →

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In: Dramaturgy, Plays, Playwriting, Theatre, Uncategorized, Writing

Next time you’re at some fancy-schmancy dinner party and someone asks you what you do for a living, just for laughs, say that you are a dramaturg.  The more socially adept in your company will nod their heads politely and feign the appearance of a passing knowledge of such a profession. They will pause for a sip of wine to give them a moment to think of something to say, then come up with a conversation-stopper comment like “Wow. That’s terrific.”Read More →

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In: Dramaturgy, Family, Plays, Playwriting, Theatre, Uncategorized, Writing

September last year I went to my childhood home, packed up the stuff my sisters had put to one side for me and I shipped them home in three cardboard “tea chests”. Only yesterday did I finally get sick of these overstuffed tea-chests making it impossible for anyone to actually walk into our “walk-in robe”. They had to go. But go where?Read More →