Rob Shepherd's Lounge Discussions

Dennis Kelly (who is brilliant at film, TV and theare, writer of Matilda) said at a Q&A I was at recently that you have to treat them as very different art forms and use the different mediums to their upmost. My notes on his talk http://loveyourcreativity.com/2013/06/11/qa-with-dennis-kelly-writer-of-...

Thank you Rachael, it is much as I expected. Although neither story is overly long, it will take time to get the right dialogue to make the stories come alive properly on stage.

I started in theatre, it is much more accessible. For me it was way to gain confidence - and the experience of seeing actors perform your work live- amazing! There is a good fringe theatre scene here in Manchester, UK, which is much better than amateur dramatics. Fringe theatre will get your work stage by trained actors and for some actual (often little, but some!) money. It is a completely different medium as Jacqueline mentioned, you ideally need one or two settings, two to four characters, and still tell an exciting, satisfying story all told through dialogue (screenplays are thus the opposite, telling through pictures). But it is really worth it in terms of developing your craft, so I strongly recommend it! Here in the UK theatre is also a good way to get the attention of TV producers (network/ meet them/ invite them to performances). Having theatre credits is also very helpful in proving your abilities when approaching agents. Also, in fringe theatre you can start small - from 15 min sketches, to miniature plays 30 mins, to full-length pieces 60-90 minutes. Good luck!!

Thank you so much for your valuable insights Ben, they are very helpful. I am working on my ideas gradually and carefully to get what feels right without adversely affecting the story in itself. So it may take a little while to complete them as I work on other stories for my books, but all this great information is brilliant for me to digest and put into practice as I hone my writing skills, thank you so much.

Thank you Jaye, that is very useful info. That is something I hadn't considered, learning that would be the first thing to do, thank you.

Keep it up my friend, you are well on your way.