“The text will be perfect for my playwriting class!” — Darryl Thompson-Norton, Savannah State University
“The Elements of Playwriting, 2/E is particularly useful because it is clear and concise. It is the perfect format for undergraduates and ideal for an introductory course in playwriting.” — Brian Railsback, Western Carolina University
199 pages, $27.95 list
1-4786-3597-5
978-1-4786-3597-0
© 2018
paperback
eBook availability
Similar Titles
The Elements of Playwriting
Second Edition
Louis Catron imbued experienced and fledgling playwrights with inspiration, guidance, and a passport to maximizing their writing skills as well as their overall ability to transform written words into a stage production. He understood that being a playwright is more than putting pen to paper. It involves expressing a personal point of view, bringing a vision to life, developing dimensional characters, structuring a play’s action, and finding producers, directors, and actors to bring the work to life.
In the second edition Norman Bert infuses the enduring merits of Catron’s original work with examples, technological developments, and trends geared to today’s readers. Bert’s play references are familiar to contemporary students, including examples from plays written since 2000. He includes useful information on web-based research and the electronic submission process. A new chapter focuses on the playwright’s responsibility to lay the groundwork for production elements like casting, design, theatre architecture as it impacts audience–performer relationships, staging modes, and the uses and expectations of stage directions. Also new to this edition are reading resources for delving deeper into topics discussed.
In the second edition Norman Bert infuses the enduring merits of Catron’s original work with examples, technological developments, and trends geared to today’s readers. Bert’s play references are familiar to contemporary students, including examples from plays written since 2000. He includes useful information on web-based research and the electronic submission process. A new chapter focuses on the playwright’s responsibility to lay the groundwork for production elements like casting, design, theatre architecture as it impacts audience–performer relationships, staging modes, and the uses and expectations of stage directions. Also new to this edition are reading resources for delving deeper into topics discussed.
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1. Being a Playwright
Being a Playwright Means Appreciating Your Ancestry / Being a Playwright Starts with Knowing Who You Are / Being a Playwright Means Studying People / Being a Playwright Involves a Sense of Construction; Being a Playwright Involves a Sense of Discovery / Being a Playwright Means Writing Stageworthy Plays, Not "Closet Dramas" / Being a Playwright Means Understanding, Using, Modifying, and Challenging Accepted Principles and Guidelines of Drama / Being a Playwright Means Writing, Writing, and Writing / Special Advantages of Being a Playwright
2. What Makes a Play?
A Play Is Not a Novel / Plays Require Conflict / Selectivity: Drama Is an Interpretation of Life, Not Real Life / Plays Are Complete in Themselves / Plays Have a Beginning, Middle, and End / Avoid Cinematic Writing / Dramatic Action Must Be Possible, Plausible, and Probable / Plays Are Entertainment / Plays Communicate with Emotions / Plays Communicate to the Imagination / Unities of Time, Place, and Action / The Fourth (and Most Important) Unity: Playwright's Purpose
3. The Size of Your Canvas: Monodramas, One-Acts, and Full-Length Plays
Determining the Size of Your Canvas / The Monodrama / The One-Act Play / The Full-Length Play / Thinking of Audiences and Types of Theatres for Your Play
4. Where Do You Start?: Turning Your Vision into Plays
Sources of Plays: Germinal Images / Working with Your Germinal Images / Fleshing Out Germinal Images / Developing Your Idea's Theatrical Potential
5. Building Plot: Shaping Your Play's Action
Three Basic Divisions of Plot / Part One: Beginning—Introductory Materials / Part Two: Middle—The Play's Struggles and Action / Part Three: Ending—A Sense of Finality / A Twenty-First-Century Plot Sample
6. Creating Characters: People in Action to Achieve Their Goals
Writing Effective Characters / Forces That Shape Us. Forces That Shape Our Characters / Sources for Theatrical Characters / Necessary Characters for Your Play / The Protagonist / The Antagonist / Secondary Characters Serve the Play / Creating Theatrical Characters / Deciding How Many Characters You Need in Your Play
7. Constructing Dialogue: Action through Words
Dialogue Is Verbal Action / Theatrical Dialogue Differs from Other Forms of Writing / The Playwright's Goals / Acquiring an Ear for Dialogue / Communicating Basic Details / Techniques of Writing Dialogue / Principles of Structural Emphasis / Special Aspects of Dialogue: Imagery and Poetry, Monologues and Soliloquies / Dangers to Avoid / Working with Actors and Directors
8. Laying the Groundwork for Production Elements
Production Elements for Playwright Consideration / Insuring Theatricality / Danger Areas / Understanding Stage Directions / Writing Like a Theatre Practitioner
9. Evaluating and Revising Your Play
The Revision Process for All Writers / Working Alone to Revise Your Play / Working with Others to Revise Your Play / A Checklist of Questions to Consider at Each Step of Revision
10. Script Format: Typing Your Script for Producers and Directors
General Guidelines / Specific Guidelines for the Playscript / Preliminary Pages / The Script Itself / Script-Writing Software / Sample Pages from a Script / Mailing Your Script
11. Resources for the Playwright
Organizations for Playwrights / Copyright / Literary Agents / Contests, Workshops, and Conferences / Productions / Conclusion
Being a Playwright Means Appreciating Your Ancestry / Being a Playwright Starts with Knowing Who You Are / Being a Playwright Means Studying People / Being a Playwright Involves a Sense of Construction; Being a Playwright Involves a Sense of Discovery / Being a Playwright Means Writing Stageworthy Plays, Not "Closet Dramas" / Being a Playwright Means Understanding, Using, Modifying, and Challenging Accepted Principles and Guidelines of Drama / Being a Playwright Means Writing, Writing, and Writing / Special Advantages of Being a Playwright
2. What Makes a Play?
A Play Is Not a Novel / Plays Require Conflict / Selectivity: Drama Is an Interpretation of Life, Not Real Life / Plays Are Complete in Themselves / Plays Have a Beginning, Middle, and End / Avoid Cinematic Writing / Dramatic Action Must Be Possible, Plausible, and Probable / Plays Are Entertainment / Plays Communicate with Emotions / Plays Communicate to the Imagination / Unities of Time, Place, and Action / The Fourth (and Most Important) Unity: Playwright's Purpose
3. The Size of Your Canvas: Monodramas, One-Acts, and Full-Length Plays
Determining the Size of Your Canvas / The Monodrama / The One-Act Play / The Full-Length Play / Thinking of Audiences and Types of Theatres for Your Play
4. Where Do You Start?: Turning Your Vision into Plays
Sources of Plays: Germinal Images / Working with Your Germinal Images / Fleshing Out Germinal Images / Developing Your Idea's Theatrical Potential
5. Building Plot: Shaping Your Play's Action
Three Basic Divisions of Plot / Part One: Beginning—Introductory Materials / Part Two: Middle—The Play's Struggles and Action / Part Three: Ending—A Sense of Finality / A Twenty-First-Century Plot Sample
6. Creating Characters: People in Action to Achieve Their Goals
Writing Effective Characters / Forces That Shape Us. Forces That Shape Our Characters / Sources for Theatrical Characters / Necessary Characters for Your Play / The Protagonist / The Antagonist / Secondary Characters Serve the Play / Creating Theatrical Characters / Deciding How Many Characters You Need in Your Play
7. Constructing Dialogue: Action through Words
Dialogue Is Verbal Action / Theatrical Dialogue Differs from Other Forms of Writing / The Playwright's Goals / Acquiring an Ear for Dialogue / Communicating Basic Details / Techniques of Writing Dialogue / Principles of Structural Emphasis / Special Aspects of Dialogue: Imagery and Poetry, Monologues and Soliloquies / Dangers to Avoid / Working with Actors and Directors
8. Laying the Groundwork for Production Elements
Production Elements for Playwright Consideration / Insuring Theatricality / Danger Areas / Understanding Stage Directions / Writing Like a Theatre Practitioner
9. Evaluating and Revising Your Play
The Revision Process for All Writers / Working Alone to Revise Your Play / Working with Others to Revise Your Play / A Checklist of Questions to Consider at Each Step of Revision
10. Script Format: Typing Your Script for Producers and Directors
General Guidelines / Specific Guidelines for the Playscript / Preliminary Pages / The Script Itself / Script-Writing Software / Sample Pages from a Script / Mailing Your Script
11. Resources for the Playwright
Organizations for Playwrights / Copyright / Literary Agents / Contests, Workshops, and Conferences / Productions / Conclusion