Challenge #27 - She Blinded Me With Science

Hi folks

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Again, sending you two prompts from the future again today, so you can work ahead for the holiday weekend if you wish.

This prompt is the one you would be writing Saturday to be turned in on Sunday morning, but just label your email for prompt 27 and you can turn it early and I’ll credit it ahead.

And of course, you can always use the mini-play at the bottom of the email and blog post as an escape hatch for the day’s writing.




Let’s get you that writing prompt…


Challenge #27 - She Blinded Me With Science

Due: Sunday, November 28th, 8am
(whenever 8am arrives in your time zone; we’ll do the math here in the Central Time zone, no worries :)

Now, I don’t know about you, but science was never my strong subject in school. I got by OK, but it didn’t engage me in the same way that writing did.

However, I was always impressed, and continue to be, by folks who can write a compelling story that centers on science.

The playwright Lauren Gunderson does this a LOT, and I find her work fascinating (so do a lot of other people apparently because she was the most produced playwright in America in 2017 and 2019).

And there are a lot of calls out there for plays that focus on science and scientists, so I keep getting drawn back, both by my admiration for Gunderson, and by the fact that there are so many stories yet untold, about people whose work improved the world, that it seems silly not to explore (and perhaps educate myself in the process).

As an example, here’s some of the info that’s part of the annual call for proposals from the Ensemble Studio Theatre’s Science and Technology Project collaboration with the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.  They’re looking for ideas for plays...

“delving into how we view and are affected by the scientific world. These plays examine the struggles and challenges scientists and engineers face from moral issues to the consequences of their discoveries.
 
The Project is designed to stimulate artists to create credible and compelling work exploring the worlds of science and technology and to challenge existing stereotypes of scientists and engineers in the popular imagination.

The EST/Sloan Project is open to a broad range of topics related to the issues, people, ideas, processes, leading-edge discoveries, inventions, and/or history of the "hard" sciences and technology.

HARD SCIENCES INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING AREAS:
    •    Mathematics
    •    Physics (geological, nuclear, theoretical, etc.)
    •    Biology (evolution, zoology, animal behavior, ecology, molecular, genetics, etc.)
    •    Chemistry (industrial, biochemistry, etc.)
    •    Neuroscience
    •    Anthropology and Archaeology

TECHNOLOGY INCLUDES:
    •    Computer Science
    •    Software Development, Computer Development
    •    Engineering (civil, chemical, mechanical, electrical, aerospace, vehicle design)
    •    Space Research

AREAS NOT CONSIDERED FOR COMMISSIONS INCLUDE:
    •    Science Fiction
    •    Medical Conditions and/or Victims of Disease
    •    Psychology and Human Behavior

Another interesting science-related theater opportunity to check out is MACH 33: The Festival of New Science-Driven Plays at Cal Tech - https://tacit.caltech.edu/mach33

When I see something like this, I then think to myself, “well, what if I went looking for a queer scientist’s story, something that intersects with the other focus of my writing - that could be intriguing.”

So a jumping off point for LGBTQ+ scientists could be this one, which has a lot of other useful links:

And if you’re looking for women scientists, well, I landed here first (also with some handy additional resource links)

But type “(insert name of group here) scientists” in a search engine, and you’ll come up with all kinds of options to get you started.

Find your own way in but (just like with the history prompt a couple of days ago) it doesn’t need to be more than an idea that interests you.  Obviously this would take more than a day to research and start writing - though perhaps the idea of a scene or part of a scene, might come to you.  See what bubbles up.

And if not, you can always ignore this prompt and do whatever you want, just like every other day in November.

Just write.  Something.




How to submit your work for Challenge #27

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 #27
(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 28th, 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.  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 3 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.

A scientist makes a discovery that saves the world, but isn’t in time to save them, or someone they love.

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.