I have a chance to share this opportunity with our readers, and I want to champion those of us who would like a challenge to pursue this opportunity!
(I’ve done something similar to this before and it was a great discipline to get a project going and done!)
The 31 Plays in 31 Days Project is a chance for playwrights to push themselves to write a new play every day for the month of August. The plays must be a minimum of one page. Are you up for the challenge?
Why?
The 31 Plays in 31 Days Project is based on the idea that to become a better writer, you must write. You must write a lot. And you need to practice experimenting with your writing form constantly. The pressure of this goal will allow you to set aside preconceived notions of what you should be writing and how you should be doing it. You will not have time to overanalyze your work, you will just have to write, write, write and be surprised by what comes out of you. You may love your work some days and wonder what happened on others, but by the end of the month, you will have amassed 31 new plays. Instead of waiting for the breeze of inspiration to blow your way, you will see that writing is a craft that can be called on at any time.
When?
August 1st at 12:00 am until August 31st at 11:59pm
Where?
Anywhere and everywhere!
Who?
Playwrights who are crazy enough to write 31 Plays in just 31 short days!
Finally…. How?
Register here. We’ll send you instructions on how to submit your script daily. Or, you can just write a play a day on your own and not tell us about it! We encourage all participants to comment on their progress often, and their experience throughout the month.
31 Plays in 31 Days is sponsored by Play Cafe, a Berkeley based playwright group.
Code of Ethics & Guidelines
A lot of writers are wondering what the rules are for the 31 Plays in 31 Days project. We really only have one: write 31 plays within the 31 days of August. The 31 Plays in 31 Days project exists to serve your needs as a writer. We’re providing you with a challenging and structured opportunity to write while giving you the flexibility you need to be successful. The following Code of Ethics and Guidelines are designed to give you parameters within which to work. Rachel and I are busy moms and we don’t have time to carefully monitor every playwright and still write our own plays. With that said, we are moms and we have ways of knowing if you’re behaving or not …
CODE OF ETHICS
1. No plagiarism. Seriously, what’s the point of doing this project if you’re going to copy someone else?
2. Submit only new plays written in August. It’s one thing to write a play based on ideas conceived earlier, but this is not the time to tweak a play you wrote, workshopped, and produced two years ago. If you’re really stuck on revisiting a story you’ve written before, consider how you can retell the story in a completely different way (maybe all of the characters are dogs, the setting has changed from a WWI battlefield to a modern high school, etc.).
3. Treat this challenge as an opportunity to bump up against some walls and break through them. When facing self-doubt and self-sabotage, provide yourself with excuses and opportunities to succeed. We will offer writing prompts to help you move beyond writer’s block, and we’ll post encouraging messages to help you continue on this journey.
GUIDELINES
1. Each play should, by your standards, have some semblance of being a complete play. The length, structure, presence (or lack of presence) of a through line, and all of the other “rules” about what makes a “good” play are all subject to your whim.
2. Submit the work that you’re not happy with. We don’t care if your characters are believable, if your plot is plausible, or if your ending is satisfying. We just want you to write a bunch of stories in a fixed period of time. We won’t publish or perform anything without your permission.
3. Do your best to submit one play per day. Although you will be able to submit everything at the end of the month, you’ll be more likely to keep up with the project if you submit frequently and regularly.
4. Create space in your day to write. Consider scheduling specific times to write each day or writing alongside a friend to make sure you follow-through on your commitment. (Yes, you can collaborate on plays with other writers, and you can each submit the same play as part of your 31 plays in August.) We are really excited that you’re interested in participating in this writing challenge. We’re as nervous as you are about figuring out ways to succeed in writing 31 plays in 31 days, but we know we can do it, and we know you can, too. Honestly, this project is about helping us overcome the things that get in our way. Whether or not you follow our guidelines or write 31 plays, this project will give you a chance to stretch your playwright’s muscles. Go for it!
Visit this link for more information: http://31plays31days.com/about
