Week #6 MP4---Assignment #7---Drama Dialogue

Scriptwriting--Assignment #7


Playwriting Exercise

Pick one opening linevfr4om the list below:

The scene should be at least 2 pages long. The scene should only have two characters who are in one room, in one location. Go down the list and use the provided first line as the first line of your scene and write scene using proper format as indicated in the link below.

1.Well, aren’t you going to congratulate me?
2.What do you mean “I have to give the ring back?”
3.This is most definitely the result of a curse.
4.Dude, Lara Croft is not your girlfriend.
5.I can fix this, I am determined to fix this.
6.I have something important to tell you.
7.Why are you hiding in the bathroom?
8.Sir, you dropped your wallet.
9.I would do anything for a peanut butter dipped chocolate bar right now.
10.First day of school, first day of hell.


THE STANDARD STAGE PLAY FORMAT What follows is a guide to “professional” stage play script formatting. These pages are an explanation of the standard stage play format. See the Example Pages for visual examples of the format. There are three reasons why playwrights use this format: 1) In this format, it is easy for a producer/script reader to estimate how long the running time of the script will be. The accepted format lays out the script at roughly one minute per page. 2) This standard format is optimized to make all the separate elements of the script easy to read and comprehend (character names, dialogue, stage directions, page numbering, etc.). 3) This standard format immediately tells a producer/script reader that the playwright knows something about submitting plays. “How good could the play be if the playwright doesn’t even know the basics of formatting?” they will ask. Unfair, yes... but the way your script looks is the first impression you make.

FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE ON THIS LINK:
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/scripts/stageus.pdf

INDENT 5 TABS for each CHARACTER NAME and CAPITALIZE CHARACTER NAMES

Link

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/scripts/stageus.pdf

Week #5 MP4--Assignment #6 Drama Monologue

The Monologue
A monologue is for one character on stage talking to theaudience or to another character or characters.

Assignment:
Write a monologue.
Name and describe your character.
Your monologue should be ABOUT 1/2 PAGE LONG, SINGLE-SPACED, USING Times New Roman, 12 pt. font


See sample monologues:

http://www.monologuegenie.com/basketball-therapy-monologue.html

https://www.dramanotebook.com/monologues-teenagers/

CHOOSE ONE of the following ideas and write only one monologue!


Exercise: The Monologue
1. ONE: Dealing with the Past
It is a common practice with monologues that a character relates a past story in order to illuminate something that is currently happening the plot of the play.
The problem with these types of monologues is when a character says, "I remember." "I remember" creates an insular experience; it's something that only happened to the character and it's difficult for the audience to share in the event. The audience doesn't remember.
Another problem with past monologues is the use of the past tense. When something has happened in the past, it's over, it's done. Using the present tense is much more alive and active.
EXERCISE
Write a monologue where the first line is 'I remember when...' and uses the past tense. Have a character talk about a childhood memory that has significant impact on how they are today.
Re-write the monologue, taking out all mentions of 'remembering.' Just tell the story.
Re-write the monologue in the present tense.
Read aloud the first version and then the third. Discuss the differences.
OR
2. TWO: Making the Story Count
If a character tells a story in a monologue - "I went to the grocery store and THIS JUST HAPPENED," there has to be something besides the base story going on for the audience. There has to be more. The story has to show something: a character flaw, a plot point we didn't know, a lie, a romance, and so on.
EXERCISE
Write a monologue where the character tells a story about going to a parade.
Re-write the monologue so that by telling the story, the audience sees the character is a liar.
Re-write the monologue so that by telling the story, the audience sees the character is heartbroken.
Re-write the monologue so that by telling the story, the audience sees the character is in love.
OR
3. THREE: The Need to Speak
In every monologue a character must 'need to speak.' Otherwise, why is the monologue there? In every monologue you write, you must determine the need for the character to speak. What drives the character? Is there anything that stands in the way of the character's need to speak? The character doesn't necessarily have to succeed with what they need. Maybe they're too afraid, or they change their mind, or there's something stopping them. Obstacles are good! But start with the need and then see what happens.
EXERCISE
Choose one of the following needs. What kind of character would have that need? Give them a name, an age, and a physical appearance. Who are they talking to? Who is the listener? What is the relationship? Decide if your character will succeed or fail with their need. Now write the monologue.
The character needs to reveal a secret to the listener.
The character needs to prove something to the listener.
The character needs to reveal they love the listener.
The character needs to reveal they hate the listener.
The character needs to stand up to the listener.

Week 4 MP4--Book of Qualities Assignment #5--Due Friday, May 15

Book of Qualities Assignment #5

1. Link to Ruth Gendler's blog and website:

www.ruthgendler.com/

2. VERY IMPORTANT!

Look at examples.

Examples:

https://mseffie.com/assignments/book_of_qualities/Qualities.html

 New Writing Project:  Assignment #5  Week 4 MP4

The Qualities

Personification:

the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

POV: 3rd person (he, she, or it)

Create two "quality" personifications similar to the ones that Ruth Gendler has written (see examples)

Select an emotion and give it the qualities of a human being--personification!  How does this emotion act, "feel", live?  Who are friends of this emotion?  What does this emotion look like physically (if he or she were a person)?  Use vivid DESCRIPTION to PERSONIFY this emotion.

Those of you who would like to can also draw a picture of your "character" and we will try to publish a class book of "The Qualities" at the end of the marking period

Week 3---Assignment #4 30 Day Poetry Challenge Prompts

Dear CW7 Students,

Last month, April, was National Poetry Month.  At the start of the month, several websites post a Poetry Challenge.  I'm posting a copy of one here.

Now some of you might not want to write poetry.  If you want to write a nonfiction piece (a personal narrative or essay) or a story for this assignment, that's fine!  Just try out ONE or more (for extra credit) of these PROMPTS during the week and upload it to Google Classroom.

REMEMBER:  Poems use lines and stanzas, not paragraphs!  Poems do not have to rhyme! Lines do not have to start with a capital letter! check out poems on poets.org

Here is a famous example:

This Is Just To Say

William Carlos Williams - 1883-1963

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold

Stay well!  Keep reading and writing!

30 POETRY PROMPTS

1. Write a haiku about early mornings.

2. Where is home to you? Tell about a location or people you feel the most
comfortable around. Paint a picture with words, capture what you see and feel.

3. Mimic a poem after one of your favorites, following punctuation and line breaks,
but surrounding an original idea.

4. Describe a time when you were in nature and felt a connection with the earth.
Write about your environment and how it moved you.

5. Describe your favorite pair of shoes. Tell a story about the places it’s been.

6. Write a poem from you pet’s perspective. If you don’t have a pet, choose your
favorite animal.

7. Write about a place that you have traveled to that you absolutely fell in love with.
Describe the place and why you enjoyed being there so much.

8. If love were a recipe, what would be the top 3 essential ingredients?

9. What is the universal meaning of Spring?

10. Describe a desert. What are the flavors? Does the taste remind you of something
from your past?

11. Take the third line from your last 14 text messages sent and arrange them into a
contemporary sonnet.

12. Write about the seasons as if they were people. How do they feel?

13. Pick something in your life that you are grateful for. Write about how fortunate
you are to have that thing in your life and why.

14. Think about a time when you have harmed someone. Write them a poem
apologizing.

15. Use vivid imagery to write about a tree in a forest. Describe what the environment
feels like, the colors, the scent of the leaves.

16. Think about the outdoors after it rains. Place yourself in the setting and describe
what it's like.

17. Find a friend. Write a collaborative poem that is at least 12 lines. Take turns by
having one person write a line, then switch until you feel it is complete.

18. Listen to your favorite song and use it as a foundation of rhythm and flow to create
a contemporary poem. Only write while listening to the track.

19. Write about a textile in your home and the character it brings to the space.

20. Turn your phone off for the day and every time you have an urge to check it, write
a line until you feel a poem is finished.

21.  21 Questions. Write a poem using only questions (21 to be exact) about a feeling,
person, or topic you would like to know more about.

22. Write a poem that takes readers through a week in your life. Embrace the mundane,
the excitement, and everything in between.

23. Choose an inanimate object. Write from its point of view. Have it questions its purpose
and the meaning of existence.

24. Think about a person you have lost that meant a great deal to you. Try as best you can
to write about what they mean to you.

25. Write a poem about your most vivid memory last summer. Describe as many details
as possible and how you felt.

26. What is one thing you cannot go too long without? Write about something you cannot
give up no matter how hard you try.

 27. Observe or research a flower or plant and use it as a metaphor, or subject, of your
poem.

28. Sit in a coffee shop and write what you see.

29. Who is your favorite poet? What would you tell them if you had a chance to meet
them? Write a poem about what you would say.  

30. Find a contest online with a specific theme or guidelines and write a poem specifically
for it.