Not sure 2022 would qualify as either the best of times or the worst of times, but it was a memorable year as a playwright.
The numbers first:
I wrote 2 new full-length plays this year (and a big chunk of a third), and new 1 ten-minute play. No new monologue pieces. My focus has shifted almost exclusively to full-lengths.
I had 25 readings or productions, so the total was a bit lower than 2021 and 2020:
4 live productions of 3 different full-length plays (including 1 premiere and 1 world premiere)
3 readings (zoom) of 2 different full-length plays
1 live production of a one-act play (premiere)
15 productions of 8 different ten-minute plays (most were live)
2 1-minute plays produced (zoom)
I was a "finals" judge for 2 playwriting competitions.
2 short plays and 2 monologues were published.
It was my second-best year for playwriting income: Royalties, guest playwright gigs, and writing awards amounted to just over $9,000.
I made (with a couple of days to go) 174 play submissions or queries this year, down from my usual 200.
My percentage of acceptances is currently only 8% for the year, down from 2021's 16% and the unreasonable 24% in 2020. I attribute the drop to the fact that I've been focused on sending out full-lengths since the middle of 2021 and to the fact that I have yet to hear from a lot of the 2022 subs.
Other highlights:
Full-length Queen of Sad Mischance received both the Judith Royer Award from The Kennedy Center/Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) and the Louise Wigglesworth Award from The Laboratory Theatre of Florida. I was interviewed about the play as part of the ATHE Conference and was the responder for the short plays being workshopped.
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, a solo adaptation of the Washington Irving tale, was my first "official world premiere" (it's based on length of run, professional status of the theater, previews and official press opening, etc). It was the largest venue/longest run I've had, and it accounted for about half of my writing income for the year. More importantly, it was a joy from start to finish.
A Monogamy of Swans was part of the Lanford Wilson Festival in Missouri, and was both anthologized by the festival and later produced by students at the college that hosted the event.
As the year ends, I'm working out details of a commission for a new play with a local theater I've long wanted to work with. First full-length commission for me and for the theater. Their request came about largely because of the success of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I guess they liked what they saw. I hope to provide details about that soon.
The numbers first:
I wrote 2 new full-length plays this year (and a big chunk of a third), and new 1 ten-minute play. No new monologue pieces. My focus has shifted almost exclusively to full-lengths.
I had 25 readings or productions, so the total was a bit lower than 2021 and 2020:
4 live productions of 3 different full-length plays (including 1 premiere and 1 world premiere)
3 readings (zoom) of 2 different full-length plays
1 live production of a one-act play (premiere)
15 productions of 8 different ten-minute plays (most were live)
2 1-minute plays produced (zoom)
I was a "finals" judge for 2 playwriting competitions.
2 short plays and 2 monologues were published.
It was my second-best year for playwriting income: Royalties, guest playwright gigs, and writing awards amounted to just over $9,000.
I made (with a couple of days to go) 174 play submissions or queries this year, down from my usual 200.
My percentage of acceptances is currently only 8% for the year, down from 2021's 16% and the unreasonable 24% in 2020. I attribute the drop to the fact that I've been focused on sending out full-lengths since the middle of 2021 and to the fact that I have yet to hear from a lot of the 2022 subs.
Other highlights:
Full-length Queen of Sad Mischance received both the Judith Royer Award from The Kennedy Center/Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) and the Louise Wigglesworth Award from The Laboratory Theatre of Florida. I was interviewed about the play as part of the ATHE Conference and was the responder for the short plays being workshopped.
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, a solo adaptation of the Washington Irving tale, was my first "official world premiere" (it's based on length of run, professional status of the theater, previews and official press opening, etc). It was the largest venue/longest run I've had, and it accounted for about half of my writing income for the year. More importantly, it was a joy from start to finish.
A Monogamy of Swans was part of the Lanford Wilson Festival in Missouri, and was both anthologized by the festival and later produced by students at the college that hosted the event.
As the year ends, I'm working out details of a commission for a new play with a local theater I've long wanted to work with. First full-length commission for me and for the theater. Their request came about largely because of the success of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I guess they liked what they saw. I hope to provide details about that soon.