Even more important than writing - VOTING in the election this year.
As I type this, my voting’s done - Minnesota (which Threshold Theater and I call home) is great with early voting options, so I reviewed my ballot online ahead of time and hit the early polling location for Minneapolis on the first day of early voting September 18th.
A great many of you live in states where early voting is already available. Please take advantage of it.
However, if you haven’t voted by the time November 1st rolls around, the November Playwriting Challenge is not going to be standing in your way.
Any day from November 1st through November 3rd, if time spent voting prevents you from having the time you need to write, just let me know that and the noon Central Time deadline doesn’t apply to you for the day’s writing which is impacted by your going to the polls.
This will also apply the day after the election (November 4th), since I know the lines are liable to be longest on Election Day on November 3rd and that could snowball through that day’s writing, due by noon Central Time on November 4th.
So, please make your voices heard and VOTE.
Even though it’s the midterm election this year with all of the House and a chunk of the Senate up for grabs, some states also have governors up for election, and many cities have mayors and city councils on the ballot. School boards and city and state government have an even greater impact on our day to day lives often than the federal government does. Choose the people exercising power over you. That’s your power. Choose people who are going to address issues that matter to you. I have.
Your Secretary of State’s website will have voting information for you. For instance, here’s Minnesota’s where you can find out how to register to vote, where you can early vote or where your polling place is on Election Day, and what’s on your ballot:
https://www.sos.mn.gov/elections-voting/
Good national resources include:
I Will Vote - https://iwillvote.com/
Vote Save America - https://votesaveamerica.com/
VSA can help you figure out how to vote - https://votesaveamerica.com/be-a-voter/
Where you can volunteer to help campaigns - https://www.mobilize.us/vsa/?utm_source=web_vsa_menu
How you can donate to make the biggest impact - https://votesaveamerica.com/donate/
How to build community - https://votesaveamerica.com/action-hub/
In addition to getting out there and voting, because we call can get in our own way so easily, here’s some words of reassurance on the basics of this month, handy tips gleaned from the three previous years of the challenge:
Friendly Reminders - Answers To Common Questions:
(Follow the links to read me expounding on these items :)
Don’t Stress About Writing A Full Play
Don’t Stress About Format
Don’t Stress About Sticking To The Writing Prompt
No. Really. I Mean It. Don’t Stress About Sticking To The Writing Prompt
Don’t Stress About Finishing An Idea (You Can Add Later)
Don’t Stress About “Succeeding” or “Failing”
Don’t Stress About What You’re Turning In Each Day
Don’t Stress about November 26th (however you recognize the holiday weekend)
Matthew A. Everett
Literary Director
Threshold Theater
(he/him/his)
"Write. Find a way to keep alive and write. There is nothing else to say."
- James Baldwin
"Writing is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as the headlights, but you make the whole trip that way."
- E.L. Doctorow
"When we speak we are afraid our words will not be heard or welcomed. But when we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak."
- Audre Lorde
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