Playwriting - Part 6C - The Working Process, Mixing the Processes

I've stressed many times that there is not one correct way to write a play. You write how things work for you. I was in a playwriting class where it was stressed that we had to do things in one certain way. We had to write character biographies first. We had to write plot treatments before writing the play. This is not my style of writing.

I often like to start out with whatever my initial idea was. I tmight have been the beginning where a character or a few characters speak. For a story, it might just be the opening lines of a story. I will use what I need when I need it.

If I know that I have a character and I know that I need to figure out more about the character, I'll use a character biography, but I don't force myself to fill out everything. I write down what I feel I need in order to continue writing. I may find that I need to create another character to make the play work, so then I'll use a method of character creation.

I'm not fond of plot treatments, but if I find that I'm stuck, I may use a plot treatment for some of my story to figure out where my story is going. However, it is more likely that I'll use a method of storyboarding.

It is perfectly fine to combine methods in order to write. As long as you get your writing done, ther is no wrong method. It's always up to you.

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