Tag: plays

Reader Question of the Week:  What Are You Reading?

Posted on by Ian Dawson

Late last year, I wrote a post about creating reading goals for 2023, and I wanted to check in with you and see what you decided and how it’s going.  I chose to read 30 books this year, and I also made the decision to only read books I currently own and not buy any new ones this year.  

And I know that will be harder to do as the year progresses.

Thirty Books?  That’s crazy!

It seems like a lot – more than two books a month – but I have created a strategy to ensure I can reach the goal and not spend all my free time with my nose in a book.

I started the year reading shorter books, and I also added in plays and screenplays to the mix that can be read in one or two reading sessions.  This allows for a buffer zone when I pick up a longer book and am reading that for an extended period.

If you have kids, any children’s book you read can also count toward your reading goals for the year.

There’s no reason to cause yourself unneeded anxiety over making a big reading goal for the year.  There are books of all sizes and page counts you can integrate into your schedule to help you reach your goal.

How many books are you planning to read in 2023, and how many have you read so far?

Do Audiobooks Count?

I say, absolutely.  If you can get through it faster by listening to it than by reading it, it counts as a book you read.  Some people obtain information better through listening than reading, so this is another great way to learn and increase your book reading total.

What audiobooks have you listened to this year?

Did You Pick a Reading Strategy?

As I mentioned above and in the post from last year, I have been switching between fiction and non-fiction with every other book.  This year, I added screenplays or plays between each book to break things up.  

I’m sticking with non-fiction about actors from The Golden Age of Hollywood for now, and once I’m done with those, I’ll move on to world history.  

Fiction-wise, I have the final two Game of Thrones books (until Martin finishes the final one), a stack of Stephen King, and a few other fiction titles I’ve wanted to get into.

It’s always good to have some plan and know what you will be reading next to keep your momentum going. 

Do you have a reading strategy in place?

Final Thoughts

I love reading.  It’s good to have a strategy in place that you can use that can help you know what to read next and keep you on track.  Adding smaller books or audiobooks can help you bridge the gaps when it comes time to read a longer book during the year.  

It’s also important to enjoy what you read and have fun learning or being entertained by what you’re reading.

Happy Reading, and I’ll see you next time!

Writing Tip #3: Genre Experimentation

Posted on by Ian Dawson

When I was a student at UC Davis, I wrote a very wacky, very goofy play called The Amazing Inspector Pleaseleeve.  We had auditions in September and the show didn’t open until February, which meant we had about five months of rehearsal.  With a joke-heavy show like this and with lots of rehearsal time at our disposal, the cast and I would pitch new jokes, try new comedy bits, and re-write sections of the script all in the interest of making the show funnier.

But at some point over the course of that five months, I got kinda burned out on jokes, puns, one-liners, and sexual innuendos.  I needed a break from comedy writing in some capacity for my own creative health.

So, while we were working on the show, I started to write a drama-based play, something I had never done before, but felt was a needed antidote to the other project I was currently working on.  And I enjoyed working on it.  It wasn’t about punchlines or zingers, it was about real people and real emotions. 

When we write, we often pigeonhole ourselves into a specific genre.  “I’m a comedy writer;” “I’m a sci-fi writer;” “I’m really good at writing fantasy stories.”  This is what we do because once we find a genre that we are skilled in and can write with ease, why would you deviate from that?  After all, the ideas and stories flow out of you, so why change?

Sometimes, even if just for one story, consider writing in a different genre.  You can still utilize your skills as a storyteller over there, but the challenge may give you a new perspective on your own writing that will only enhance it going forward.

For me, writing a drama was a refreshing change of pace.  I had always been a comedy writer, but a change in genre helped me discover new ways of telling a story.  I couldn’t rely on a punchline to get me out of a scene, I had to find another way for the characters to communicate and grow.  It was an effective exercise that showed me that I could do more as a writer than I had allowed myself to do in the past.

Don’t let yourself typecast yourself as a writer of just one genre.  Experiment.  Consider this: think of a basic premise for a short story.  Now, write that premise as a Western tale, a fantasy story, a horror story, a mystery, or a comedy.  Allow yourself to try new genres and you may be surprised with the results.