How to create scripts
Organization
No, this isn't a creative writing or scriptwriting class. You
can't learn the art of scriptwriting here.
These are just some ideas for how you may generate scripts that are
both good and also (we certainly hope) immune from someone's claim that
they "own" your work.
- Storytelling is a fine art form that continues to increase in
popularity. There are storytelling classes, and leagues, and
groups. Are you a member of a storytelling group? Do you
know anyone who is? Present your/their group with the following
idea. Sometime, during or after or instead of one of the regular
meetings, you can choose one or more of the stories just told, and
write the story as a script. You may do this individually, or in
small "break-out groups" or teams of 2-4 people, or all together.
Small teams probably will be the most fun and most productive.
- Have a "script-writing party" at your local playhouse, or school,
or bookstore, or library... (there are lots of locations you could use)
- Combine a "script-writing party" with a potluck at your
house. Or even invite everyone over for lunch or dinner, letting
them know the theme of the event will be "writing a kid's play".
- Get together a small group of people who will, every week or two,
read one or more versions of a folk tale, and write it up into a
script. You can do this with kids around, who will (we hope)
enjoy hearing the folk tale. Then maybe you can get 'em out your
hair; let 'em go play while you write. Later you can have the
kids try performing the play you just wrote.
Sources of story ideas
- Folk tales. These are an excellent source of themes and
ideas. No "copyright troll" can seriously claim to own the
thematic content, or the plot, or the "core story". If you write
the script in your own words, no other copyright can apply, and
FreePlays.org will be able to offer your work without hassles,
indefinitely.
- Your own original idea(s). Professional and amateur
storytellers may write their own stories into scripts.
FreePlays.org will welcome your original story in script form, and
probably, so will the rest of the world. After all, even though
folk tales from around the world are great, eventually you get tired of
them just like you get tired of anything else when you get too much of
it. We will just need to be careful to make sure you can
demonstrate, if you ever need to, that you really were the original
author of the work. There are some ways to do this.
Legal detritus and impedimentia
We live in a world where people try to claim "intellectual property
rights", and ownership, of stories, ideas, concepts, treatments, plots,
inventions, and pretty much anything any other intellectual product
that you can think of. We at FreePlays.org don't want to deal
with
coldly polite, letters from lawyers containing demands and threats of
action. Probably you don't, either.
Suppose an author, or someone who claims to be the author, or
a lawyer claiming to represent the author or own the rights to their
work, writes a letter to
FreePlays.org demanding that we remove a play from our site. If
you are not the author of the original story, and haven't gotten the
author's permission, we'll have to comply.
That would be sad and a waste of time for everyone involved.
There is some kind of legal concept of copyright, though just exactly
what it means, and how to know if someone's work is "protected under
copyright", is not exactly clear. Copyright laws
are different in different countries, they're complicated, and they
change every few years. There's little support of or provision
for "fair use", and unless a work is quite old, there's no nice, clear
way to be sure you're in the
clear. If you think this is an exaggeration, check out this. A lay person can't
easily comply with the copyright law - it's a murky mess. Get it
wrong, and we have to deal with
this.
We at FreePlays.org would prefer to shine a radiant
light, not mess in murk. Here are three ways you can help us:
- Write a play we can publish is to base your play on folk tales or
old
literature. We hope that no one will stoop so low as to claim
that
they own the story concept of "Hansel and Gretel" or the fall of Troy.
- Write your own play based on your own original story idea.
Make up your own story, plot, and characters. Use your own words,
thoughts, and ideas. Be creative, be original. If you can,
and if you think of it, keep your early drafts. Maybe even print
them out and date them. Maybe even send your scripts to yourself
registered mail and keep the unopened envelope.
- Do base your play on another author's work/story, but before you
start, get the
author's permission to distribute a play based on their work under
the
Creative
Commons license mentioned at the bottom of this and every other
FreePlays.org page.
About authoring scripts
Are you worried that you won't be able to write a good script?
Please don't. Yes, there is a craft to playwriting, and
you can make mistakes. So can "professionals". Here's what
one critic said[1] about a script that made it all
the way to the film screen:
His writing is turgid and his dialogue can be almost literally
unspeakable, what with lines like "The harvest was as precise as it
ever was".
The critic is right. Pretend you're onstage, trying to act your
part with clarity and force of character. Now say that line out
loud:
"The harvest was as precise as it ever
was".
It doesn't quite trip off the tongue, does it?. After a few lines
like this, the audience will be thinking of
other, more entertaining things, like bills, laundry, or shopping lists.
Don't fear writing awful lines like that. Don't fear making some
other
technical error, like following a
vigorous fight scene with a gentle love scene[2]. It's OK. You
don't need to get every single thing right. No script is ever
perfect and yours doesn't have to be. People who get scripts from
FreePlays.org
can put on your play, discover the couple of errors you made, fix 'em,
and submit the improved version. We publish it along with your
original, you get credit for the play, they get credit for the
improvements, the world gets the benefit of your collaboration, and you
both get the honor you deserve for doing a generous, good thing.
Think of a hockey game. Players get credit for both the goal, and
the assist.
If yours happens to be a kids' play, the kids have fun just in the
"playing", even
if the script has deficiencies.
I have never heard a young kid complain about the literary
quality of a script.
Be bold, don't be afraid to publish your script. The world can
use your work, and enjoy your creation. You can add to the
beauty of the world, help actors have fun acting, and help audiences
have an enjoyable evening at the theater.
[1]
Review of Lars Von Trier's "Manderlay", from The Wall Street Journal,
Page W5, Friday, February 3, 2006
[2] If you put the same actors in both scenes,
they'll be out of breath. They won't be able to speak your lines
the way they should.
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Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License. In short:
- You are free to print, copy, read, use, modify, and perform these
works
without royalty.
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recordings of
performances), with or without modification, you
must grant these same royalty-free rights.
For legal details, see Creative Commons
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