Playwright, dramaturg and former writernet Chair Paul Sirett's Ten Commandments of Being A Writer.
They are as follows:
1. Thou shalt not wait to be discovered. Be proactive, but without being a pain in the arse. We should all be advocates of our own work.
2. Thou shalt know where to send thy work. Get to know which directors, actors or producers to target.
3. Thou shalt enter competitions. They can launch a career.
4. Thu shalt know where to go for advice. Find out about which organisations can help, e.g. Writernet, Arts Boards, Writer’s & Artist’s Yearbook, Writers’ Guild.
5. Thou shalt know who to apply to for financial support. See above. Don’t wait for it to be offered, go and get it.
6. Thou shalt broaden thy horizons. Look into writing in hospitals, prisons, business, schools, etc.
7. Thou shalt not get depressed when thy work gets rejected (see 2 above). Also, do not place too much importance in the content of rejection letters. And later, of reviews.
8. Thou shalt not run screaming from the building when asked to do re-writes. But know when to put your foot down.
9. Thou shalt get together with other writers and thou shalt lobby. For example, writernet, The Monsterists
and The Writers’ Guild. Consider how you can improve your own circumstances: for example the Dead Writer’s Levy once mooted by the Theatre Writers’ Union, the successful playwright’s strike in Scotland in the 1980s. Lobby the government for tax breaks, like they did in the Republic of Ireland. All writers need to get tougher as individuals and as groups. Writers are generally hopeless at getting together – it’s time we got off our backsides and did something, e.g. why is it generallyaccepted that writers can’t be Artistic Directors of theatre companies? Be proactive in fighting for a better deal for all of us.
10. Thou shalt take thy professional development seriously. Aka make maximum use of Writernet |
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