How to use this Page

On November 11th, Remembrance Day, at the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we remember them.

"Old Soldiers" which started out as a short story, came about as a result of an interview with some old soldiers/veterans for a newspaper column that I was writing at the time. Was drawn back to the story over time and as is my habit, tweaked it over the years and somehow the main focus of the story, Joe McKenna, seemed to take on a life of his own, along with his service buddies. One of my many (big on this aspect) re-writes resulted in an attempt to turn it as a radio play that was  entered in the BBC International Playwriting Competition.  Needless to say it didn't win but thought I'd share the second scene in this blog. It's still in the editing process (so what else is new). Formatting went askew in places during cut-and-paste.

To set the stage so to speak, JOE MCKENNA is a disillusioned old veteran who saw action and is angry with the world. He and his buddies are relics from another era who are afflicted with a variety of debilitating conditions, and the death of one of them hits Joe particularly hard. He decides to make a personal statement to make his views known at a remembrance day service in a park and along the way fate steps in when he meets up with a young boy (TIM) and his mother.


SCENE: A PARK.

AT RISE: Joe McKenna is slowly making his way to where the Remembrance Day service is taking place in a park. His body racked with pain, he stops to sit down on a bench. A military band can be heard in the distance playing band music and the voice speaking through a loud speaker system.


JOE:                           Look at ‘em all! Sheep – a bunch of bloody sheep!

A short blog entry (where have you read that before?).

As shared here ad nauseum, I've been making a concerted effort to finish my "Old Soldiers" play that I started three years ago. It was and still is my hope to enter it in the BBC International Radio Playwriting Competition this year. However - it's always the 'howevers' in life that get in the way - can't find any link to a 2013 version being held.

Thing is...I'm almost finished the play at last and if the competition isn't being held this year, it will be a real downer. I mean, the play could always be submitted somewhere else but this competition has always been a personal challenge for me having never written for radio. There is still the concern that there's a lack of sufficient sound effects but I was (and am still, hopefully) going to go for broke and enter.

Just came back from the competition site in the hope of seeing the new deadline listed but to no avail. This does not bode well since the deadline is usually early Spring. Oh well... I'm still determined to finish it after which I'll 'put it to bed' for a while followed by a period of tweaking and finally hitting the 'submit' key.

Meanwhile, time is marching on. Joe and his friends would understand.

I'm in angst - again.

In spite of a concerted effort to finish my "Old Soldiers" play in the hope of entering it in the BBC International Playwriting Radio Competition, I've encountered a new and unexpected problem. Content is fine.

"Now what, Eleanor?" Joe is asking me. "How much longer are you going to keep us waiting?"

I know, Joe! I know!

Today for whatever reason, I decided to check the rules in as far as the number of pages and characters allowed.

"All scripts submitted must be a minimum of 45 pages of A4 paper (or equivalent) and a maximum of 65 pages (note, a rough guide is a minute per page; please read and time your play before you send it). The play should have a maximum of six central characters (there may be up to 3 small "doubling" characters too, who don’t have more than a few lines each). Your script must be accompanied by a short synopsis which outlines the complete story of the play. This must be no more than 400 words."

The way that I view it, there could be and then again, maybe not, more than six main characters. It's all in one's definition of "main characters." Do main characters re-occur throughout the play? How does one define a "minor character?" There are give or take a character, nine characters in total. The play opens with the four old army buddies, who definitely are main characters. Then there are other lesser characters who come-and-go but contribute to the over-all plot of the play, that add up to more than the three doubling characters. Eliminating one or two in my mind, would ruin the flow of the play. Everyone has a part to play - excuse the pun.

I've reached the 45 page mark, which is in itself an accomplishment. Really in a quandry as to how to proceed. Maybe the best thing to do is to finish the play, submit it and put it in the hands of fate. Do I have a choice?

A few months ago - seems like longer - I vowed to finish my "Old Soldiers" play, with the intention of entering it (again) in the BBC International Radio Playwriting Competition. The play, based on a short story written a while back, has a magical effect on my psyche and although procrastination has set in, the "gang" is there, calling me.

"So when are you finally going to give us some type of resolution?" one of the characters asks me regularly, just before falling asleep at night."We've been in limbo for years now."

Don't I know it!

The dilemma is deciding upon a plethora of endings and possibilities, and which one would be best suitable for dramatic impact. The characters themselves are well defined and no tinkering is necessary in this area. Then there is the issue of writing for radio.

Radio requires sound effects to propel the story along and although my dialogue is strong (IMHO), not sure whether there is sufficient sound or action. When writing the dialogue, I hear the characters speak and envision their movements but the challenge is how to translate this into audible action.

In any case and for no other reason than to force myself to make a decision, I've decided to choose the ending, good or bad. Since the next deadline would be next April (2013), there is time to work out the details.

The angst of indecision!

Will provide regular updates as to my progress. Where have you read that before?

The "Old Soldiers" keeps marching along, slowly but surely.

"Old Soldiers" status update for those who have been keeping up with the continuing saga of a writer attempting to finish her short play.

Added some more dialogue/content to the play, yesterday. Read the play through in its entirety and it definitely held my interest. As expected, there were some necessary small - accent on the small - adjustments to be made. Still not sure if the play is adaptable for radio, though. That decision will be made once the play is completed.

The play is taking on a life of its own and the latest revision is leading me in a different direction. I've already changed the ending a few times in my mind and the latest update is giving me food for thought and something to chew on (sorry about the puns). I'm at the point where Joe (main character) has had a fateful meeting with two new characters, who could change his mind-set about his self-appointed task.  One of the new characters is a young boy and I want to use him as a positive influence.

Meanwhile, I'm sort-of using his army buddies as a comic foil tagging along for the ride unbeknownst to Joe. Given their friendship and shared past, it seems only logical that they would be part of the conclusion.

Thing is...the writing comes in spurts as my muse dictates. Sometimes it works and sometimes it don't but when it does as I've frequently shared, it's magic!

The end is near for Joe McKenna, in more ways than one. My short play, "Old Soldiers" is reaching a finale, I'm thrilled to report.

"So when did this all occur, Eleanor?"

For whatever reason - desperation to make a deadline springs to mind - I've been adding material/dialogue over the past two weeks. Periodically, there have been re-checks and tweaking to ensure that the flow of words "sounds" natural and things make sense. Overall, things are progressing at a good speed.

"Do you think you can make the deadline?"

I'm aiming for this but one never knows. There is still one existing problem as I view it.

"And that would be...?"

A very serious issue, actually, which is insufficient sound effects. Rather than angst over this issue, I'm focusing on the story and dialogue and then re-examine and add after (she wrote hopefully).

"How many more pages left to write?"

Approximately twenty pages, which will focus on Joe's stand to make a point, his meeting with a young boy and Joe's three friends. In other words, the wind up to the story. Still not sure whether all the above-mentioned aspects will be included, It depends on the amount of space.

Did I mention I'm pleased with myself?

My "Old Soldiers" are getting antsy and so am I. A few weeks to go to finish up their story and I'm experiencing a slight case - not full...yet - of panic.

I've been adding dialogue regularly and am satisfied with the progression of the story line. My concern, however - it's always the 'howevers' in life that will get you - is the lack of sound effects. Normally, my focus would be on the dialogue but given the nature of the medium, obviously sound plays an important part. The dialogue itself (IMHO) is good, I'm satisfied with the character development and the scenes are logical. But...

"So explain the problem(s) and/or concerns for us, Eleanor."

The first scene takes place in a pub and sound effects include the buzz of people chatting, glasses clinking, a juke-box producing music. That's it, folks! Suggestions here would be appreciated!

Subsequent scenes focus on the "gang of three" i.e. Joe's friends, studying Joe from afar from their vantage point in a small sports car, Joe's conversation while travelling on the bus and talking to friends at a park.

Haven't decided yet which scenario to follow leading to the finale. There are three possibilities and I can't make up my mind which one to pursue. Another concern is that for whatever reason, didn't note that the play has a 55 page limit and I was working on a 70-odd page limitation. The play as I write it, is taking on a life of its own and I'm not sure it can be completed as a radio play in the alloted time.

"So what's the probability of it being adaptable for a radio play?"

It could go either way depending on which route so to speak, it goes. Meanwhile, there are choices to be made and decision to be taken. Will share more thoughts as they occur.

Still more progress on "OLD SOLDIERS" - be still my beating heart!

Can't believe I'm writing this but still more progress today.

"So what's happening with "the" play, Eleanor?"

Well...I'm now up to scene 4 or as I number it, Scene IV and even sharing this reality is quite unnerving. I'm always afraid that my writing "roll" will come to an abrupt end.

"Did you amend the time line that concerned you the other day?"

Managed to make some necessary changes to dialogue that fixed this problem.

"So where are you now?"

I"m at the point where Joe is re-visiting the park before the ceremonies take place. Following close behind in the true sense of the word, are his pub pals who have decided to tag along.

"What is it about this play that has such a hold on you?"

The original short story was based on an interview I did with a veteran for a newspaper column. Thinking about his experiences as I wrote the article, the story formed in my mind. Joe McKenna could be any old soldier who has lived a long - maybe too long - life. He feels embittered by his current existence and wants to make a symbolic gesture of his feelings.

More updates to follow - hopefully she wrote.

Still working on the "Old Soldiers" re-write. Today tweaked some more dialogue that didn't feel right or fit into the scenario. Getting stuck or hung up on the time line and trying to make the flow of action logical. Caught an error in that if the remembrance ceremony takes place in the afternoon, the opening in the bar where they're discussing life can't take place in the evening.

Working on a few possible scenarios:

- Joe goes to the park before ceremony to where he and Percy played checkers/chess
- Joe meets up with Percy's grandson and daughter at the park
- The strong bonds of friendship between Joe and his friends.

Thinking over the antagonist/protagonist angle and how or if it will work. Did someone say it was easy to write a radio play?

Will share more as the thoughts come together - hopefully.

Progress at last with "Old Soldiers"!

Now that the art show preparations and show itself is over, I made the decision to give painting a rest, at least for the summer. Thing is that focusing on two different creative mediums at the same time leads to the detriment of one. In this case it was my playwriting, ergo, time to put all my energy into playwriting.

Anybody who follows my playwriting blog is familiar with my moaning-and-groaning, ranting and raving about my stagnant state in as far as the "Old Soldiers" play for radio project is concerned. I'm pleased to report and share that I've added three - count 'em - three scenes today. Still finding it difficult to ensure that there are sufficient sound effects to help carry the story line but there is progress in this area also. While writing, I'm still getting the feeling that it lends itself more to film or TV than radio but I'm not going to make any changes, at least while I'm on a roll. Oh sweet heaven it feels so good to be on a roll again!

While storing my art materials in the supply cupboard, I decided to clean out my writing box. A long time ago as a young mom when I first began writing, I wrote a film script using Syd Field's how-to book. Actually, the end result, "Skate!" was, at least in my humble opinion, quite good. There were many re-writes and today came accross a few versions languishing at the bottom of the box and removed them to the top of the pile. It's been a long time since I last read it and it will be interesting to get a new and fresh perspective many years later. Will share my findings of course.

Back to my current project, so far - so good. Somehow it just feels right and I'm taking that as an omen. You takes your omens as you finds them.

BBC  RADIO COMPETITION IS BECKONING ME - AGAIN

"Two new pieces in your playwriting blog in one day! Must be something really important, Eleanor!"

Yes it is...could be...maybe...one hopes

Anybody who drops by this blog is familiar with my continuous effort and accompanying angst to write a radio play for the BBC International Playwriting Competition. This year my idea and hope was to turn my "Old Soldiers" story into a radio play and enter it in the competition. However - I abhor that word - my intent wasn't realized in producing dialogue and once again what I thought was the deadline for entries, passed. My problem was coming up with sound effects that would carry the story line. Perhaps, in retrospect, I just wasn't committed enough to make it work. It's always the could-have, would-have and should-have that get you in the end.

In any case, just did a routine check on my Facebook page and something exciting jumped up at me:

"Exciting news! The 2012 International Playwriting Competition will open on May 1st. Plays can be on any topic but must be 53 minutes long. Details of how to enter and more information will soon be available at www.bbcworldservice.com/radioplay It’s time to get writing!"

This is really thrilling news because this means that there is yet another opportunity to submit. Perhaps a good idea would be to write something new from scratch. As the blurb advises - "it's time to get writing!"

Yup it is. As in the past, will be providing progerss reports - hopefully.

"So do you think you"ll have the carry-through to enter this time, Eleanor?" my muse just asked me.

Hope springs eternal. Right?