Wondering whether sigining up to WrAP2022 is a good idea? In this blog post, playwright Olivia Pryle shares her experience of taking part in WrAP2021 and how the play she started developing made it to the Bread & Roses Theatre as part of the Clapham Fringe this October…
“A few years ago I started putting pen to paper and wrote my first two short length plays. One was called, ‘Sex Deprived’ and the other ‘Bottoms Up’. It was very exciting for me and I got to have the privilege of showcasing these at a new writing night called The Platform. I got a taste of what it felt like to create and collaborate and knew I couldn’t stop there.
Next step I wanted to challenge myself and write a full-length play. I sat on this daydream for a while but didn’t do much about it, as I had no clue where to start. Then the pandemic hit, I was out of a job and had A LOT of time on my hands. After twiddling my thumbs and worrying about the future inspiration hit and I started writing down an idea into a scene, only two pages but it was better than nothing. Not knowing where I should take it next, I was trying to research anything that would help, but still I struggled – how do you write a play if you’ve never done it before?
This was my opportunity to really throw myself into an exciting project but where do I start? How do I move from these two pages? All these questions felt like walking through cement, I was just stuck.
As a member of the London Playwright Blog I noticed they were advertising the WrAP2021 challenge and I thought what is this? I found out that it was an opportunity for members like myself to take part in encouraging writers to get going and write ‘their’ story. I clicked my way through to signing up and within moments I was on my way to writing a play.
Every day they would send daily prompts. This could vary between themes, structure, characterization, writing exercises and daily ideas all within a timeline that helps you along.
It’s completely up to you how you work with it and where you are at with your story. For me, it was exactly what I needed as a new writer.
After going through prompts and exercises I finally had my first draft written, it was a big achievement for me and I was pumped and ready to keep going. I then got funding from The Bread and Roses Theatre and went into rehearsals and development for my play ‘Follow the Lines’, where I then had a rehearsal sharing of it too.
I continued to develop the script and finally submitted it to the Clapham Fringe Festival where it was performed live to a sold out audience over two nights in October 2021. This wouldn’t have been possible without the help of the WrAP2021 Challenge and I couldn’t recommend it enough.”
WrAP2022 kicks off this January! Sign up and write a play with us!
Find out more here.