Abstract

The purpose of my research was to discover the most effective ways to write ten-minute plays. I adapted various "suggestions" proposed in the many playwriting books I gathered to find the way that worked best for me as an artist. The majority of the books I read suggest writing ten-minute works before attempting a one-act or even a full-length play. My resources yielded a plethora of information on how to actually write a play. Three of my sources that proved to be enlightening were The Art and Craft of Playwriting by Jeffrey Hatcher, Playwriting for Dummies by Angelo Parra, and Naked Playwriting: The Art, the Craft, and the Life Laid Bare by William Missouri Downs and Robin U. Russin. I also attended a master class with playwright Tim Bauer, and he gave me insight on approaching writing ten-minute plays. Through my research, it became evident that the real problem with writing is not so much the structure or the way a person writes, but the actual writing itself. Each of my resources had valuable information that made my job as an artist easier, but none of them, even the tips Bauer gave me, worked one hundred percent of the time. Some plays were easier to write if I wrote them without stage directions first, as Bauer suggested, but others stalled if I didn't write my vision of the stage before actually writing dialogue. The research I have completed can aid a multitude of future creative artists. My Five Tips for Writing and Three Tips for a First Production are useful insights that would have been invaluable had I known them when I started writing.

Notes

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Thesis Completion

2014

Semester

Spring

Advisor

Weaver, Earl

Degree

Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.)

College

College of Arts and Humanities

Department

Theatre

Subjects

Arts and Humanities -- Dissertations, Academic; Dissertations, Academic -- Arts and Humanities

Format

PDF

Identifier

CFH0004600

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Document Type

Honors in the Major Thesis

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Playwriting Commons

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