Product Description

The Playwright's Survival Guide is written for both aspiring and established writers looking for an emotional, spiritual, or just plain practical connection back to what's important - the writing. It's a "how-to-be" book - with thoughts, stories of inspiration, a few tricks of the trade, a few outlets for venting frustrations, and a reassuring voice that speaks to all the doubts with an "I know. I've been there. This is what you do . . ." Gary Garrison demystifies the playwriting process, speaking honestly, poignantly, and with humor about the lessons he's learned along the way. He explores the issues playwrights face every day, including:

• inspiration
• criticism
• self-doubt
• relationships with teachers and mentors
• the art of self-promotion
• writer's block
• staying healthy in the art after your fingers are off the keyboard.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1424169 in Books
• Published on: 1999-09
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 144 pages

From Library Journal
Published playwright Garrison, associate chair of the Dramatic Writing Program at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, offers an entertaining if somewhat salty personal narrative of life as a professional playwright. Not a "how-to-write-a-play" book, this is instead an insightful look at "how to be a professional playwright." Garrison's experience shows. As he writes, "When I walk into the classroom, I can offer my students my experiences with my agent, my relationships in the industry, the lessons I learned as a writer from the theatre that just produced my play, the process of the actor who helped me discover the weakness in my script, and so on." He offers the same to his readers. Beyond Garrison's witticism is a serious, inspiring look at what it means to be a professional writer. Recommended for theater and writing collections.ALaura A. Ewald, Murray State Univ. Lib., KY
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author
Gary Garrison is a published and produced playwright fearlessly slugging it out in New York City. His plays include Old Soles, Oh Messiah Me, Cherry Reds, An Angel in the Early Bird Special, The Big Fat Naked Truth, and When a Diva Dreams. He is Artistic Director and Division Head of Playwriting for the Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, National Chair of Playwriting for the Kennedy Center's American College Theatre Festival, and the recipient of the 2005 Outstanding Teacher of Playwriting for the Association of Theatre in Higher Education.

Customer Reviews

Only if you're really blue....
This book seemed to be really interesting; after I've read it, I feel to have wasted my time. I don't know who could find this work useful; the author writes in a pleasant way, but the content is really poor.
If you're a dramatist -and you feel blue- this book can help you; but you'll never find here any practical suggestion - only encouragements.

Putting it in perspective
Whenever people ask me how to be a playwright, I point them in the direction of this book (which makes me sound more like a veteran than a greenhorn, but that's neither here nor there). Gary Garrison does a terrific job of laying out the realities of writing plays without making them cliche. It's one thing to hear, "You will have writer's block." Everyone says it, but that doesn't make the experience of writer's block any easier. Garrison takes it one step further when he talks about sitting at home, eating Cheetos with rubber gloves on (don't ask), staring at an empty screen. By providing that context, he makes it real in a way that many of the experts never manage, and this does make it easier to deal with.

Garrison manages to apply this treatment to the entire writing process. From writer's block to agents to opening night, he takes the issues that every playwright faces and gives it context, not to mention a healthy dose of wit. At the least, readers learn that they're not the only ones dealing with these problems. Better yet, there's the possibility of finding an answer or three. Best of all, you might get a good laugh at it. I have to admit that the Cheetos image still gives me a giggle.

Got Scripts?
This is a must-read for anyone who takes their writing seriously and wants to progress past the page and onto the boards. This is the heart and soul of craft and business savvy -- Read it or be left behind, scratching your head and wondering what happened to your promising writing career.