Anyone who has been in the military or has lived with a military man has heard the crude slang, ‘Crapper’ for ‘toilet’. “I gotta use the crapper.” “I’m in the crapper!” “I gotta take a crap”. You might be asking, Okay, Trish, why are you writing about toilets? Because I love the origin of words and the research is so much fun.
Did you know that there was a man named ‘Crapper’ and he was a plumber? Who owned a plumbing company in the 1800’s in England?
I was reading a wonderful mystery 
recently that gave credit to Thomas Crapper for the unique flower-patterned wash basin and the porcelain toilet fixture. I was certain that the slang ‘crapper’ that graces our language, must have originally referred to the inventor of the toilet, Mr. Thomas Crapper, Esq., plumber to kings! But, alas…..I was wrong…
Continue reading “A word Deserving of Its Own Post! ‘Crapper’”
Category: The Writer’s Corner
How to Write a Character Analysis for Writers & Actors!
I sat down with some actors the other day and they asked, ‘how do I write a character analysis?‘ And as I answered them I thought how much this applies to writers as well. If you don’t know your characters (in your story,novel) your readers will never get to know them.
After many years of writing, my characters show up in my head but it’s my job to ‘flesh them out’. Many times I will meet or see a character in real life and they inspire a character for my writing. But, it’s still the writer’s or the actor’s job to give them a story and breathe life into them.
If you’re a new writer take the time to write it down, using some of the tools listed here. If you’re an actor, it is imperative that you write your character analysis. It not the same as a few random thoughts about your character. Some intangible thing happens when you put pen to paper and get to know who your character is. Continue reading “How to Write a Character Analysis for Writers & Actors!”
How to Write a Short Play…7 tips
When writing a short play, you will have no time to ‘set up’ the story. It’s only ten to twelve minutes long, remember? Rather, think of it as walking into the middle of the story; more like a scene…but in this case it must have a beginning, middle, and end, all in roughly ten-twelve minutes.
A ten minute play (or one act) is 10-15 pages written in a proper format. It can have costumes and sets, certainly, but ten minute plays are most popular because of their simplicity. It’s more attractive to the director or educator, for economic reasons, if there are no sets, no costumes, and minimal props needed.
The ten minute play does not sacrifice excellent writing and content for brevity. Less is more. And it is a great exercise for the writer to hone and edit their writing skills.
The ideas for my plays come to me in a little kernel of truth and I am inspired. A state prison, a haunted lighthouse, my days in Hollywood, the news of the day or remembering the stories of my childhood.
I am frequently asked ‘how can you be so prolific?’, ‘how do you write so many plays?’ ‘where do you get your ideas?’
So I thought what a perfect time to give my readers six tips on writing their first stage play. After all, 45 play scripts ago and seventeen years earlier I began writing my first script. And that led me to create five, custom Journals and Handbooks which include how to write a play and how to create exciting characters.
SEVEN TIPS TO GET YOU STARTED
1. Format is very important. If you submit your new play to anyone they will not read it if it is not in a proper format. There is software out there that offer auto-format but I have found them lacking. sample.playwrite.format (here is a format sample)
Notice character name is in CAPS and centered. Blocking (action) is indented and always lower case and double-spaced. If only one word, it is placed next to the character’s name and in parentheses. A ‘beat’ is a dramatic pause or to enhance the pace of the speech.
2. Each page represents approximately one minute of time on stage depending on how complex you make the blocking. For a ten minute play your script should be from 10-15 pages. Each line (dialog) should move the story along…you’ve only got 10 minutes. So chose what your characters have to say very carefully.
3. Leave lots of white space. One day when your play is being produced, actors will need a place to make notes in the script during rehearsal. This is a sample of an actor’s (mine) working script. 
An actor usually ‘highlights’ their lines and writes the director’s blocking in the margins.
4. The blocking (in italics) is where you give the actors instructions on when and where to move. But, keep it short and sweet. Remember there will be a director who has their own ideas of where they will want their actors to be. Be aware of costume changes in your writing. An actor can’t exit stage left and enter stage right, seconds later in a different costume, if you haven’t written in the time it will take to give them the time to accomplish a costume change.
5. Your script has to work on a stage. If your story takes place in more than one locale, you have to be aware of the logistics of a ‘set’ change. So keep it simple to start. If you are ambitious in your setting buy a book on set design to research if your set is feasible. There are some wonderful ‘envelope’ sets that unfold when you need to change the scene. But you have to consider the budget; would a theatre have the money to build it? Always a worry.
6. 7. The ‘Arc’ of your story: The Oxford English Dictionary defines a story arc as ‘(in a novel, play, or movie) the development or resolution of the narrative or principal theme’. Story arcs are the overall shape of rising and falling tension or emotion in a story. This rise and fall is created via plot and character development.
7. Dialogue: Now here’s the hard part: everything you want the audience to know, about the story and the characters, is conveyed in the
dialogue. Unlike a short story or a novel, where you can write as much description as you’d like, a play script has none of that. NO description. Here is a Sample.Dialogue.Sugarek of dialogue moving the story forward. You will notice that the format differs from the sample I provide. This example is from a published play so it looks different.
Check out my series of Journals/Handbooks.
To Purchase Playwright’s Journal
Choose from five custom, unique Covers.
Instruction on: How To Begin
How to Choose the Subject of your Play
Formatting your Play on the Page
How to write Dialogue
How to Create Rich, Exciting Characters
Story Arc
Stage Terminology
Sending out Your Script
How to write a ten minute play? Click here
How To Format a Screenplay
How to Format Your Novel
How to Format a Stage Play
PS. My web site is dedicated to helping new and experienced writers hone their craft. If you have questions, drop me a line. I always love to hear from readers and promise to answer you. T.S.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On Sale NOW! Custom Journals/Handbooks for the Creative Writer
BOOKS BY TRISHA SUGAREK
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DON’T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS!
To receive my blog posts, 
sign up on the home page, enter your email address. I love comments! Take the time to write one at the bottom of a post. Thanks!
Coming Tuesday! My Interview with author, Sherryl Woods
After decades of enjoying Sherryl’s writing, Pinch me!...I’m interviewing her. Don’t miss this coming week (Tues. and Thurs.) and my two part chat with this prolific author.
About Sherryl Woods: With her roots firmly planted in the South, Sherryl Woods has written many of her more than 100 books in that distinctive setting, whether her home state of Virginia, her adopted state, Florida, or her much-adored South Carolina. She’s also especially partial to small towns wherever they may be. In Amazing Gracie, as in her later Trinity Harbor series, Woods creates a fictional version of the town where she spends summers on the shores of the Potomac River. “This town just lends itself to fascinating characters and a charming locale,” she says.
A member of Novelists Inc., Sisters in Crime and Romance Writers of America, Sherryl divides her time between her childhood summer home overlooking the Potomac River in Colonial Beach, Virginia, and her oceanfront home with its lighthouse view, in Key Biscayne, Florida. “Wherever I am, if there’s no water in sight, I get a little antsy,” she says.…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DON’T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS!
In addition to my twice weekly blog I also feature an interview with another author once a month. So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers’ special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create! Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!
To receive my posts sign up for my On the home page, enter your email address. Thanks!
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help!
Writing my newest mystery has been a challenge as I found my detectives, O’Roarke and Garcia and the killer in several situations where I have 
little or no knowledge and the Internet produced hardly anything with regard to my research.
So, I had to ‘rely on the kindness
of strangers….’
Since my fourth murder mysteries is heavy on police procedural, forensics, and pathology, not to mention the Catholic faith, I made several cold calls to people I didn’t know. Would they help me?
Continue reading “Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help!”
Suicide by Heroin…A Eulogy
![Philip_Seymour_Hoffman_2011[1]](https://i0.wp.com/www.writeratplay.com/wp-content/uploads/Philip_Seymour_Hoffman_20111.jpg?ssl=1)
Philip Seymour Hoffman died last week by his own hand. Shoving a needle into his arm, one last time and making our world a little more pale and less interesting. Why do the brilliant feel the need to destroy themselves? The heroin was just the ‘fix’ (aptly named) dulling the pain, banishing the demons…for a little while. ‘An accidental overdose’ you say? What was accidental about him sticking the bloody needle into his arm? I ask.
And what does that say about the rest of us; living and struggling on, sometimes in quiet, brave desperation. His actions were pure selfishness and I am royally pissed off at him!
And I earned the right to be angry with him….being a survivor of suicide and the horror and confusion that follows. This man was an inspiration to all artists, actors, directors, writers, painters, dancers….he made us want to be better at our chosen craft …to aspire to his brilliance. And now he’s gone.
Continue reading “Suicide by Heroin…A Eulogy”
My Interview with mystery writer, Andrew Grant (Part 2)
Q. Who or what is your “Muse” at the moment ?
A. For the book I just finished writing it was a bizarre combination of Roy Lichtenstein and Pat Benatar. Lichtenstein’s paintings ended up playing a major role in the book, but sadly Benatar’s music remained trapped on my iPod.
Q. When did you begin to write seriously?
A. When I quit my job in June 2006.
Q. How long after that were you published?
A. I finished the manuscript in June 2007, found an agent in December 2007, was offered a contract in February 2008, and my first book was published in May 2009.
Q. What makes a writer great?
A. The ability to create characters that readers care about as much – or more – as they do about real people.
Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like? Continue reading “My Interview with mystery writer, Andrew Grant (Part 2)”
Part 2 …My Interview with Andrew Grant
Don’t Miss part 2 when I sit down again with best selling author, Andrew Grant this Tuesday, February 11th.
Excerpt:
Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like?
A. For me, it breaks down into three phases: Percolating, where all the thoughts and ideas and “what ifs” that have built up in my head since finishing the last book coalesce and grow until they’re strong enough to carry a whole story; Writing, where I get the first draft of the book down on paper; and revising……. tune in this coming TUESDAY!
An Interview with Author, Andrew Grant
Andrew is a slick, clever mystery writer with tight interesting plots. I ‘met’ him through his writer/wife, Tasha Alexander. Can’t wait for his newest release coming out in the fall of 2014.
Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing?
A. Whenever possible I write in what was originally the maid’s room in our apartment in Chicago (there was no sign of the maid when we moved in, so I figured someone may as well use it…) but due to the amount of traveling I have to do, I often find myself working on planes or in airport lounges, or any other place where I won’t get either wet or arrested!
Q. Do you have any special rituals when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas)
A. I’m an obsessively tidy person, so I guess that tendency extends itself to my work space. Other than tidiness, all I need to get started in the morning is a giant pot of coffee. Followed by several more giant pots of coffee as the day (and sometimes, the night) progresses.
Continue reading “An Interview with Author, Andrew Grant”
Where to Find a Narrator for my Audio book? (Part 2)
Part II An Interview with VO professional and actor, Daniel Dorse (Part I, click here)
It’s Easy! I use www.acx.com. The platform is simple to use and they have a terrific ‘stable’ of professional narrators. Your book is published in audio form at amazon.com/audio, audible.com and iTunes.com. You can pay your narrator/producer a percentage of sales or a one time fee. The one time fees are on a sliding scale depending on what the narrator requires ‘per finished hour’. With acx.com you will know what you will be paying (it’s based on the number of words in your manuscript.) before you commit. Tip. Eliminate all extra words like copyright page, acknowledgements, title, etc. and count only the words of the manuscript.
My one and only complaint about acx.com is the length of time they take to do the final quality control bit. Two weeks. Now sit back and enjoy the second part of my chat with Daniel.
Q. Can you tell us about your process when you get a job to narrate a book?
A. When I’m hired to produce an audio book, I should read the entire book, making character notes, notes on pronunciation, mood, transitions, accents, etc. In fact, I like to live dangerously, reading only a few chapters ahead (to avoid too many unwelcome surprises, like , “Uh-oh! This character I’ve been voicing for 15 pages is supposed to be Irish. Now I have to re-record.”). I do this, I tell myself, because I like to retain an element of spontaneity in my read, but it’s probably also because I’m both lazy & overly cocky about my sight-reading abilities.
Continue reading “Where to Find a Narrator for my Audio book? (Part 2)”