Challenge #13 - Your Favorite Song

Hi folks

Most entertaining title of a file I was sent yesterday…

“11_11 in which I didn't follow the prompt at all because I didn't like it”

Which is more than fine :)

Write whatever script pages you wish, just as long as you write, everyone.

Happy writing to you all!





Let’s get you that writing prompt…


Challenge #13 - Your Favorite Song

Due: Sunday, November 14th, 8am
(whenever 8am arrives in your time zone; we’ll do the math here in the Central Time zone, no worries :)

You ever have a lyric from one of your favorite songs just stick in your head because you think, “I should be able to do something with that.  That’s a very evocative idea”?  And your brain keeps circling back to it over time?

Just the other day I remembered the start of an old Mountain Goats song:

“There’s bound to be a ghost at the back of your closet
No matter where you live.
There’ll always be a few things, maybe several things,
That you’re gonna find really difficult to forgive.”

And that reminded me of the chorus of another Mountain Goats song:

“And I am coming home to you
With my own blood in my mouth,
And I am coming home to you
If it’s the last thing that I do.”

What song lyrics rattle around in your head, looking for an idea to push out onto the page?

What are your five favorite songs right now?  Is there something in one of them that could springboard you into an idea for a new plot or character or title?  Is there something about the structure that you could translate into script form and play around with?

Take something from your personal playlist and start writing.



How to submit your work for Challenge #13

You have options.  They are:

Save your script as a PDF or Word Doc and send as an attachment to an email sent to ThresholdWritingChallenge@gmail.com

OR

Copy and past your script in the body of an email and send it to ThresholdWritingChallenge@gmail.com

OR

Post your script online (as a Google doc, or in a blog post, on your own personal website, etc.) - email a link to this script to ThresholdWritingChallenge@gmail.com
(If you’re going to Google doc route, just make sure to have the document public, or give permissions to our email address to open it)

When emailing us, make the subject line of your email - Challenge #13
(That just helps us sort through the email more quickly)
(Or, you know, just reply to this email if you want :)

OR

Post the link for the online document option above in the comments section on this very blog post for this challenge on our writing challenge blog.



Again, this is: Due: Sunday, November 14th, 8am
(whenever 8am arrives in your time zone; we’ll do the math here in the Central Time zone, no worries :)

 

And, just to reassure you, no, we are not going to be sticklers about you following these directions down to the minutest detail - the important thing is that you write, and then that you share it with us, so we can keep track of who’s writing every day.

We will be VERY understanding about technical difficulties and how they can screw up making the deadline on the first few days.  No need to fret about anything except the writing (and hopefully that’s not something causing you to fret too much either :)

Also, no, there is no penalty for finishing and submitting early - but it also isn’t a race, so give yourself all the time up til 8am on Sunday to write if you need it.  When you’re done, you’re done.

A friendly reminder - you don’t have to write to the prompts if they don’t inspire you.  You can ignore them and just write whatever you want, just as long as you’re writing (that’s the main thing, not what you write)

Someone had a good question about the overall goal of the month, are we supposed to write a full-length play, or two one-act plays, etc.?  The short answer is no (unless you want to).  The longer answer is here if you’re curious.

For those concerned about format, we’re pretty liberal about that, too - just as long as it’s legible and in English.  More on that here.

Again, remember, it doesn’t need to be great, it doesn’t even need to be responding to this prompt (the prompt is just there so you’re not staring at a blank screen to start with no idea what to write about :)

Doesn't even need to be complete - you could have the beginning or the middle or the end of an idea, maybe two out of three but not all, that's still fine. This is all about getting things started, you can write more later. You have 17 more days to build on whatever you come up with today, if you want. Just get anything on the page, even if won't make sense to anyone else, as long as it make sense to you.

It just needs to be something.

And that something can be:

Lights up.

The ghost comes out of the back of the closet to have a little chat.

Lights down.

The End

That’s always your escape hatch, every day.

That’s your base line.

Build on it.

Have fun.

Don’t stress.

Make an impulsive decision and run with it.

Breathe.

You’ve got the day (and a half).

Just write.