Gail Aldwin's Blog, page 23

Big Heads staged at Bridport Arts Centre

Over the past couple of years, Sarah Scally, Maria Pruden and I have been co-writing comedy sketches. Once we had sufficient material, Maria approached a group of local actors who agreed to perform the sketches and Bridport Arts Centre offered to stage it. The premiere of Big Heads & Others was on Thursday 8 November 2018.

The first sketch we completed was called Killer Ladybugs – this was drafted during a workshop led by Christine Diment of Juno Theatre. The sketch clashes the invasive behaviours of harlequin ladybirds with Donald Trump’s America First policies. It was topical material at the time of his election yet two years later and (unfortunately for the world) the material remains fresh.  This sketch was originally staged by Cast Iron Theatre in Brighton, so we were confident the writing was entertaining. Our actors Declan Duffy (Borderbug) and Lee Wyles (Ladybug) brought a new and exciting interpretation to the sketch.

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Another sketch called Baby Love also had a previous outing, this time at the Salisbury Fringe where it was performed as a scripted reading. This gave us ideas on how to stage the sketch at Bridport where a woman (Lee Wyles) waits for the X54 bus and chats to Lauren (Sally Hunt) who is obsessed with her little one, Dasiy-Waisy.

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Big Heads was the most experimental of the pieces and took our audience to Easter Island where they learnt what the famous statues were thinking. This was a static piece which relied on voice, silence and facial expression to convey meaning. Our actors Sally Hunt, Dewi Lambert and Declan Duffy performed this brilliantly and audience reaction confirmed it to be a popular sketch.

The three sketches were tied together with a linking piece that used physical theatre to tell the story of a hapless charity envelope collector (Declan Duffy) and his encounters with others.

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The evening was held as a charity fundraiser for the Bridport Arts Centre. All tickets for the show were sold and we had a warm and receptive audience. Thank you to everyone who came along and laughed in all the right places. This was the first time Maria, Sarah and I had directed a performance and we were incredibly grateful to Lee, Sally, Declan and Dewi for their ideas and input. We also had additional roles to ensure the performance went well: Sarah  was responsible for sound effects and lighting, Maria for narration and prompting, I was backstage assisting with costume changes and we all helped as stage hands.

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Gail Aldwin, Sarah Scally, Maria Pruden

 

It was a splendid collaborative effort by performers and writers, one that we plan to repeat in 2019 with further comedy sketches.

Thanks to Peter Roe of Wessex Media for the fabulous photos.

 

 

 

 

 

One-to-one with the Dorset Growth Hub

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I’ve just had a one-to-one session with digital specialist David Allison from the Dorset Growth Hub. We met at the Duchess of Cornwall in Poundbury to discuss ways to enhance my use of social media for marketing purposes. As a result, I have now taken advantage of the additional facilities on this WordPress blog including use of the poll below. When you have a minute, can you give me some feedback?

If you’re based in Dorset and need help to gain skills and confidence to market your  work as a writer, it’s worth getting in touch with the Dorset Growth Hub, to see how they can help you.

 

Take Our Poll

BridLit Fringe

I’m really chuffed to be sharing a few of my stories at the Bridlit Fringe alongside this talented group of local writers. If you’re in Bridport on the morning of Friday 16 November 2018, do drop into the Literary & Scientific Institute for a chance to hear a fantastic range of poetry and prose. Tickets are a bargain at only £5 and are available here.

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I hope to see some of you in the audience!

Helen Corner-Bryant at the Dorchester Literary Festival

I was delighted to introduce Helen Corner-Bryant’s session ‘On Editing’ at the Dorchester Literary Festival last Sunday. As Chair of the Dorset Writers’ Network, I worked with festival co-director, Janet Gleeson, to arrange this input. Helen is a wonderful speaker who has substantial experience in supporting writers, firstly as an editor’s assistant at Penguin, and then in setting up the Cornerstones Literary Consultancy. Helen seeks to help writers overcome the creative barriers they encounter and with her team, they offer support that might otherwise take a writer much time to work out for themselves.

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Some top tips offered in the session include:

If you don’t feel confident writing dialogue it may be because you don’t know your characters well enough. Try interviewing your character or letting them have conversations in your head.
Make sure there is a point of tension on every page of your novel
Novels work well using a three act structure
When you come to a stop with your writing have a think about what this might mean for the work. Could it indicate a problem with the structure, plot or characterisation?

Did you know Cornerstones welcome submissions of the opening ten pages of your novel with the synopsis for a free evaluation?

Because Q&As are so valuable to writers, Helen has devised an ‘ask a literary consultant’ session where she outlines her role then opens the floor to questions. I am now working with the Dorset Writers’ Network to find a date and venue to offer this input. Follow the Dorset Writers’ Network on Facebook and Twitter for updates and/or subscribe to the newsletter on the website.

Helen’s book On Editing: How to edit your novel the professional way is an invaluable resource and is available from any good bookshop or can be purchased through Amazon.

 

The String Games has found a good home

I’m delighted to share the news that my contemporary novel The String Games has been accepted for publication by the lovely people at Victorina Press. It’s been a long journey to reach this point which has involved all sorts of creative and academic diversions. Little did I know that when I started writing the novel, I would end up being awarded a PhD in creative writing!

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The String Games tells the story of the abduction and murder of a boy from the viewpoint of his older sister. Rather than a crime novel, The String Games focuses on the legacy of loss for the protagonist, as she moves from childhood to the teenage years and into adulthood. This three-part structure is rather like a triptych in that it allows the protagonist to look back on her younger self and struggle to recognise the child she once was. It is by engaging with her personal history that Imogen is able to address issues of unresolved grief and integrate the loss of her brother.

Here is the opening page to prick your curiosity:

2013

An idea strikes. Imogen turns around on the stairs wanting to hurry back, but strangers stand like prongs. She battles through to reach the office where she jostles for projects and promotions. Heaving the door open, she sprints to her desk. Heads turn but Imogen ignores her colleagues. Her fingers slip on the keyboard and she has to retype the password. Breath churns from deep in her lungs and her heart beats like a hammer. Why didn’t she think of this before? Turning the screen, she doesn’t want anyone to see what’s she’s doing. It’s a private matter. While she waits for the homepage to load, she glances through the rain-stained window and onto the Thames. Water rucked like a crinkled cloth brings to mind a recurring image from her childhood. A little boy with wet hair shivers, wearing only his trunks. She wants to reach for him, press her arms around his shoulders, draw Josh into a hug. A big sister should keep her brother safe.

Typing his name will bring up the usual lilac lettering that tells Imogen she’s used the same search term time and again. Her stomach clenches and is knotted like a ball of string. Gathering confidence she enters the name of the girl she used to be into the search bar: Nim Mashard. Clasping her hands, she waits to see whether this will locate new information about Josh’s case.

The String Games will be published in May 2019 and I look forward to working with Victorina Press to make this novel the best it can be.