A Weekend of Shakespeare

Me at the competition years ago. Being dramatic as usual.

This past weekend I attended the Shakespeare Competition at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. This is an acting competition on the secondary education level, and it is a HUGE deal. Even though it's held in southern Utah, acting troupes from California, Arizona, and even as far as Milwaukee, attend and compete. I traveled down with my husband and his advanced acting students and helped coach them on their ensemble scene, monologues, and duo scenes. It was so much fun!! It brought back memories of when I was a senior in high school and won first place in monologues at this competition. It felt like an Oscar. :-)

This year, we also saw the festival repertory company's production of Hamlet, which was beyond amazing! I haven't seen theatre of that caliber since I saw a play at the National Theatre in London over fourteen years ago. They brought so much humor into the production, which made the contrast to the really dramatic moments spectacular.

All of this acting and directing and fabulous Shakespeare once again reaffirmed to me all the qualities good storytelling has in common. Here are some that stand out to me...

• Conflict and tension. There always has to be a problem, even in the lightest of scenes. And each character should want something and go about getting it in several different ways. The characters should always be getting in the way of each other. And characters should be trying to reach their objective through the other character(s) in their scene. That communication separates a mediocre scene from an excellent one.
• Clear transitions. Shifts in emotion and why characters choose to change tactics should be apparent and believable.
• Frame of reference. Plots aren't unique, but characters and settings are. (Shakespeare borrowed all of his plot ideas.) I've seen Richard the Third, and then at this competition, I saw Richard the Third set during the Holocaust with Richard portrayed as Hitler. Same plot, entirely different effect on the audience. Fresh characters and settings make all the difference. This also goes hand in hand with caring about the character and being grounded in the setting before the conflict of the story kicks into high gear. We added a quick and silent addition to the beginning of our ensemble scene from A Comedy of Errors to establish to the audience that there are two sets of twins before we launched into a scene with one of those sets. Then the audience would be in on the joke and possibilities for mayhem from the beginning.
• Static scenes are boring. It's a snooze to watch a scene where the actors aren't creatively blocked (the "action" in the scene, the way the actors move), just like "talking heads" are not dynamic in a novel. I watched a scene where two actors were having a cell phone conversation with each other, so neither was in the same room as each other in the scene. It was a horrible choice because the actors could never interact with each other (though they could've pulled it off if the actors were creatively blocked to stand near each other or do similar things, even though they weren't in the same "space" in their respective worlds).

The husband, me, and Shakespeare

All in all, it was a fabulous weekend. I saw Shakespeare celebrated through many art forms--acting, music, visual arts, dance. And I felt like I was in a little corner of England with SUU's Globe Theatre replica and everyone walking around in Shakespearean garb. Oh, and my husband's acting troupe won first place with one of their duo scenes and placed fourth as a school in their division. Pretty impressive!

Do you enjoy other art forms, and what connections have you found between them and writing?

Why I Write

Call me Pandora

I used to act in plays all the time, then as I had each of my three children, I began declining those opportunities. Being in a play usually equates to six weeks of rehearsals, three hours each evening, and (where I live) 4-6 weeks of performances. That's hard on moms and kids. By the time my youngest child was one, I hadn't performed in three years. I was still heavily involved with theatre, helping my drama teacher husband build sets, order costumes, find props--but I wasn't creating something that spoke to me, something that I could give and communicate to the world.

During that time, I stumbled on a box of old journals, poetry and short stories from years past, and I realized how vital writing had been in my life (though I didn't know it at the time). And I got that innocent and explosive idea (you writers know the one I'm talking about)--the one that says, "Hey, I could write a novel." Yes, I opened Pandora's Box. There were definitely demons in there, but there was also this raw, untapped part of myself bursting with ideas and an obsessive and unquenchable thirst to create.

Here's why I started to write back then:

• As mentioned above, I desperately needed a creative outlet. I am an artist, through and through.
• I needed to heal, physically, mentally, spiritually. I was in recovery from donating a kidney. And while writing truly did heal the aftereffects of that particular event, it opened up a whole new set of insecurities and challenges.
• I needed to feel control. We had just moved to the other side of the U.S. My husband had a new and demanding job. Everything was different. And even though things were good, there was so much change, which led to lots of stress. My imagination was a realm I naively thought I could control. Little did I realize what power struggles I'd have with my characters!
• I wanted a new challenge. I was crazy insane busy back then, but I wanted a struggle of my own choosing. It had to do with being proactive about something I wanted, rather than just doing the million-and-one things I needed to do.

Guess what? I still write for these very same reasons. However, here are some other reasons that have been added to the mix:

•  I write because I'm supposed to. Because I promised myself I'd get in 1000 words a day. The truth is, sometimes we writers don't feel like writing. But because it's important, we get our butts in the chair. Sometimes the duty sucks pleasure from the desire, but I try to strike a balance.
• And--uh, oh--the WORST reason: I write because I hope to make money at it. My family and I are POOR. I won't bore you with the details, but let's just say my husband and I have lived at the bottom of the barrel for a looooong time. Making money is a strong reality in our lives. But it wars with my artistic sensibilities that demand I write what's in my heart, and I write to express truth. In the end, the artist in me wins, and I keep writing with that integrity. I just cross my fingers, in the meantime, that my stories will speak to many others as well.

Some days I get bogged down with life, I compare myself to other writers, I feel impatient, I think my writing sucks. Some days the "noise" of the Internet is too loud--the thousands of blog posts, tweets, Facebook updates. Some days it's hard to see where my part is in all of this, or if I'll make a difference. Some days I pull away and go into hiding. And it's then I remember--after lots of quiet reflection--why I started writing in the first place. And above all those initial reasons, the first and foremost is, I need to create. That's it. Simple. But with creation comes division. Separating lightness from darkness. It may be a foggy journey in the twilight, but I'll keep my flame burning. That's enough for me to see one step ahead of myself. And I'll keep striving to find joy in the journey.

Why do you write?

My Favorite Films

I am a huge movie buff. With my acting background, I love to watch films and analyze the characters. And now that I'm entrenched in writing, I have fun breaking down the film story structures and the screenplays. Here are some of my favorite movies, why I adored them, and why they haunted me long after I watched them.

To Kill a Mockingbird

I fell in love with this film first by its film score. My dad played the record when I was a little girl, and I ran around the family room acting out the story as he told it to me, in his own words. I pretended I was Scout and Jem sneaking around, finding treasures from Boo Radley, and being caught in tight corners by Bob Ewell. When I saw the film, it lived up to my imagination, and later the book did, as well. My favorite part of the movie is when Scout discovers Boo behind the bedroom door at the end. Robert Duvall plays Boo brilliantly, and I cry in that moment every time. To Kill a Mockingbird is an amazing story to me because it deals with racial prejudice, rape, incest, suicide, and a mob mentality all in an non-graphic yet unflinchingly honest manner, as it is told through the magical and innocent eyes of a child (and a stellar creator, Harper Lee).

Roman Holiday

This has got to be one of the most charming films ever made. Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck have perfect chemistry together. She is pure enchantment to watch, and he is one of the best actors ever. This movie begins rather lightheartedly and as a kind of wish-fulfillment, fairy tale type story--which makes the serious turn and bittersweet ending all the more poignant. Gregory Peck's facial expression as he's walking away at the end...WOW. Roman Holiday is my curl-up-in-a-blanket-on-a-rainy-day movie.

Edward Scissorhands

This film had a huge impact on me in my teen years. I haven't experienced anything quite like that feeling of sitting in the darkened theater afterward, just stunned and heartbroken and inspired all at once, and not understanding why. Now, looking back, I can see how strongly I identified with Edward at that time in my life. I was in the middle of my horrible junior high school days, when I didn't think I had a true friend in the world, and where I felt everyone acted insincerely and lived to play the popularity game. I retreated into myself, skipped a lot of school, and spent each lunch period by myself in the library. So this lonely, scarred, scissor-handed boy was me in so many ways. Watching this movie changed me, helped me recognize some things about myself and the world, and gave me the courage to step out of my shell and give myself and people a second chance.

The Fellowship of the Rings

I watched this film in the theater seven times. Seven! I hadn't read The Lord of the Rings, but I did right afterwards. This film struck me to the core and made me discover, with firm conviction, that fantasy is my element--it's the way I love to filter themes and relationships the most. For some reason, being removed from the real world at that level helps me explore close-to-my-heart life struggles in a safer and somehow clearer environment. I absolutely adore Frodo. His relationship with Gandalf is simple and impactful; and with Sam, it is beautiful and pure. This is a definite good versus evil story, and I love to see how someone so small and seemingly insignificant, with his little band of friends, triumphs in the end. The Fellowship of the Rings is my favorite film of the trilogy. It has more of the amazing world of the elves with Rivendell and Lothlorien, and the way the Black Riders are depicted is more frightening than any other scare-factor in the next two installments.

Bright Star

When asked what my favorite film is right now, I tell people, Bright Star. This is a true story about the poet, John Keats, and the love of his life, Fanny Brawne. It's a Romeo and Juliet story, an I-will-do-anything-to-be-with-you story. These lovers are desperate for each other, they suffer when they're apart, they punish themselves when they feel thwarted. They cry and throw fits and can't eat or sleep without each other. And somehow all this works for the story. Somehow these are strong characters, and not weak ones. I study this film, again and again, trying to figure out how this is so. I think it's because, in the beginning of the story, both characters are established as capable, unique, independent, and fearless. This makes their transition into becoming "slaves to love" heartwrenching and meaningful. Bright Star is a quiet and breathtaking film (and a fantastic tearjerker). I highly recommend it!

What are some of your favorite films, and why do they resonate with you?

Acting, Writing, Creating Something

College:  Rosalind in As You Like It, my favorite role ever!

Okay, heads up. I'm going to go off about old times and acting for a bit here, but it's all going to come back to writing. I promise. Stick with me.

I was a fairly confident kid in elementary school. Never struggled to make friends. Always felt like I had a "place." Then junior high came. None of my friends were in my classes. They were also gymnasts and became cheerleaders. They didn't ignore me or anything, but it wasn't the same anymore. We weren't moving in similar circles. Suddenly I didn't know where I fit. I didn't know whom I could sit with for lunch, so I'd go eat alone in the library. I started cutting class. A lot.

College:  Katarina Cavalieri in Amadeus

I was enrolled (against my will) in both a speech class and a communications class (the latter was like this conglomeration of acting and social skills). My first assignment was to answer twenty questions I'd written for myself. I had to stand up in front of the class and give all my questions and answers aloud. I was shaking so badly, I couldn't even read my paper! I cried several times after leaving those classes. And it never got easier. To say I had stage fright is an understatement. I'd never made any friends in junior high school. Not. A. Single. One. I was pretty miserable.

In ninth grade, I eventually resorted to hanging out with my neighbor and a group of her friends, who were all a year younger than me. It felt like a desperate attempt to fit in. It was. I won't go into details, but one day they ganged up and did something to me that was incredibly rude and embarrassing. I went home absolutely furious and hurt. And I realized just how stupid I'd been for the past three years. How I'd let my fears eat away at me and make me so worried about what people thought. I'd had enough. Everything clicked together, and I suddenly stopped caring about what people thought. It's not that I became inconsiderate or rebellious, but I just wasn't afraid to be myself, and I didn't become anxious over being accepted anymore. The next day I randomly walked up to a girl in the lunch room and asked if I could eat with her. This was a very brave move for me! In my school, you didn't just casually pop in at someone's table. I didn't know this girl well, but she always seemed nice. She acted pretty shocked when I sat down beside her, but in a minute none of that mattered. We had so much in common! She became my best friend throughout high school. We still keep in touch. I'll always consider her a best friend of mine.

Maggie in The Man Who Came to Dinner

Later, in high school, I purposely signed up for an acting classes. And my stage fright was gone. I could get up in front of people, make myself vulnerable to the emotions my character was feeling, and express myself like I couldn't before. I auditioned for plays and worked up from being in the ensemble to getting lead roles. Even in performing for large audiences, I felt comfortable. I would never want to relive those depressing junior high days, but the lesson I learned from them has been invaluable.

Fast forward several years. I'd acted in college, England, and had many wonderful roles. Then I got married, had a child, and still found time to act now and then. Then I had another child, and another. I couldn't justify acting anymore, not with three young children. Being in a play requires about two-to-three months of rehearsals, six days a week, three hours every night. I didn't feel right about leaving my kids for that long. So about two years went by with no plays, no acting, and I started to feel this emptiness. It ate away at me for a long time. I became depressed again. And then I got the idea to write a novel. I never thought I'd love something as much as acting, but I do. I love writing even more. My favorite part of acting is the rehearsals, the digging into character and "creating." Writing a book is like a super long rehearsal and "discovery" of character. It can be frustrating and is long work, but then, like an acting rehearsal, you suddenly peak and all that struggle weaves together into something wonderful--what you were striving to achieve all along.

Kate in The Taming of the Shrew, first lead in high school!

It's interesting that to rise above any kind of darkness, you have to do something about it. You have to "act." You have to use your mind and heart and body to create something. Although I love my children and love being a mother, I have so much within me that I want to explore. I think everyone does. I've noticed people who are truly happy create. There are thousand different ways to do so. Anything can become "art" to someone. My story, The Rowaness of Shalott, is about this in many ways. That mortality is a means for us to do something and act in a way we couldn't without a body.

I'm grateful for the creative paths I've taken in my life and for what they've given me. I'd love to hear about yours!

Let's Talk Dialogue

Dialogue is a powerful tool in writing. It effortlessly shows rather than tells, it's more often than not used "in-scene," and it usually improves pacing. BUT writing dialogue and all its mechanics is a tricky business. Agents often skip to dialogue-heavy sections of novels they're considering because dialogue reveals the skills of a writer instantaneously.

The times I'm most engaged as a writer is when I'm writing dialogue.I write slowly by nature, but with dialogue, I can't write fast enough! I usually skip the dialogue tags and action beats between the lines, just trying to stay on top of the words my characters are spewing back and forth to each other. I often know what they say in the middle or at the end of a conversation, and I bounce back and forth trying to capture everything. Once I finally get their words out, I go back and plug in the necessary tags and beats.

While I don't pretend to be the know-it-all master of dialogue, I can tell you some of my tried-and-true tricks.

I'd say good dialogue comes down to two rules: it needs to sound natural and it needs to be compact for the purposes of tight fiction (which is not how people speak in real life). The two rules oppose each other, and it's the writers job to strike the right balance.

Natural Dialogue

When I was little girl, my siblings and I would record our voices onto audio cassette tapes. Then in my early teens my dad bought a video camera. So in some format or another, I was constantly recording improvisational scenes. If you haven't tried improv acting before, I'd highly recommend it. Even if you'd rather be an observer, you can attend local improv comedy troupe shows and LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN to the dialogue that comes naturally and on-the-spot from these actors. (Listening to real conversational speech is beneficial as well, but be careful because "real people" don't speak compactly...more on that later.)

In high school I began acting in plays and did so throughout college and beyond. Because plays are 95% dialogue, I was forced to analyze, line by line, scene by scene, what I was required to say and how to make it work. I had to find the objective, motivation and tactics for my character. I had to know what I was really saying between the lines. And there was nothing worse than trying to act well while delivering a badly written line. I constantly considered whether dialogue (especially written by amateur playwrights) was something my character would really say--if it sounded believable, natural.

Then throughout high school I wrote in volumes upon volumes of journals. My average was ten pages a day, and on really good days, I would write up to fifty pages (and these were large-paged journals, not tiny pocket-sized ones). I wasn't thinking dialogue, dialogue, dialogue as I wrote these entries, but that's what they mostly were comprised of. Somehow I recalled conversations from the day, and I recorded them in my journal, not in a summarizing fashion, but moment for moment, word for word--"in-scene." I would skip to the part of the conversation that got interesting and start there (and I'd stop writing before the conversation got dull again). Which brings us to the next point in writing good dialogue:

Compressed Dialogue

It would sound natural (but would be painstakingly boring) if we wrote dialogue just as it is in real life. It would read like this:

"Hey."
"Hey."
"What's up?"
"Not much."
"Nice day."
"Yeah. Might rain later."
"Mmmm."
"So..."
"Yeah?"


This is small talk. Not much tension or conflict. The best dialogue--even between characters who like each other or are on the same side--must have conflict. So here is where we bend the law of natural dialogue to include only the most interesting parts, which again, must have conflict. I have to now go back to the dialogue I wrote where I let my characters endlessly banter and go off on tangents and trim it down to fit the purpose of the scene. And if my character felt the need to make some big speech (and you can only get away with so many of these), I need to liposuction that as well, and then break it up with beats, interiority, and reactions from the other character(s).

Check Your Dialogue

The most important thing you can do to test the quality of your dialogue is to read it aloud--or even better, have someone else read it aloud to you. Become actors and stage the scene you wrote. As you speak aloud, see where you or your friend stumble on the wording, or where your ears--and not your eyes--tell you something is wrong. Additionally, make sure your characters have different voices, patterns of speech, etc. And make sure the dialogue mechanics are helping, not hindering, the conversation of your characters. Get rid of dialogue tags when you can--but not all, as not to exhaust your reader. If you use beats in place of a dialogue tag, and in where it's otherwise unclear who is speaking, it's best to write the action beat before that character starts talking. For example:

"Are you going to tell me what happened last night?" Jane said.
Michael fiddled with his shoelaces, not meeting her eyes. "What's for dinner?"

The above example also works for misdirecting the conversation, which is another great dialogue tool. Rather than have your characters speak plainly back and forth to each other, it's nice when they try to change subjects, interrupt each other, trail off, beat around the bush, speak in fragmented sentences, and answer a question with a question. All these tactics add tension, conflict and believability to the scene.

Some other quick reminders:

• Make sure your stick to "said" as much as possible in your dialogue tags.
• Don't use physical impossibilities for speaker attributions. (A character doesn't "laugh" or "grimace" a line of speech. They SAY it. So none of this: "Let's have a picnic," Teresa smiled.)
• Paragraph your dialogue (a new paragraph for each person speaking). For the most part, this rule applies for character reactions too. So if one character is speaking and the other character reacts rather than says anything back, place that reaction in a separate paragraph, as if it were a line of dialogue.
• Don't explain in your interiority or action beats what is apparent by the dialogue alone. Interiority is best used when it's revealing thoughts that are in opposition to the dialogue--or at least a completely different line of thought.
• Get rid of adverbs in dialogue tags (he said lovingly) unless they actually modify the verb "said" (quietly, softly and clearly are okay, if you really need them).
• Beware of melodrama in dialogue. Hopefully you can identify this by reading your dialogue aloud. Then make sure your scene isn't all at the same pitch; make sure it builds into a tense moment and there's contrast within the scene. Then compare all your scenes and make sure there is an arc to them--that they're not all at the same emotional intensity.
• Beware of exposition/back story in dialogue. This is okay, but only if it is something the characters would naturally say to each other, and not just a device for the author to divulge necessary information to the reader.
• Don't spell out dialects or accents in language. You CAN use language improperly or irregularly, though. (Like, "You don't got no business talking to me" if a character isn't well educated, or "Please to tell me what you mean" if a character is a foreigner.)

So what are your struggles with writing dialogue? (For me, it's in compressing it down. I could let my characters talk all day!) Do you have any tips or thoughts on writing dialogue you'd like to share? I'd love to hear them!