What I would like to do with my project this semester is stretch my knowledge for different writing genres and develop a few different styles. I realize however that this is a broad goal that I should definitely narrow down! I am mostly interested in writing a one act play to further my ability and appreciation for an art I am already involved in (I'm a BFA Acting student). I really want to work on dialogue and learn how to make a character apparent in a short amount of time. This is partly the reason that my second choice (if the first dosen't come along fairly soon) is to write a short story. If I did that I would really want to explore mood, setting, and imagery. These things are important for a one act as well, but they are used I think in a one act more to create a theme in a short amount of time.

As far as the one act goes, I've chosen a setting. I would like to do something that takes place on top of a roof in the city (probably Chicago). I have a few vague ideas for the characters. But I would really like them to be two adolescents. Anything from 13 to 17. Beyond that, I'm still processing.

If I were to end up doing a short story, I would like to explore the gothic style. I would enjoy the research and be able to work with a few characters that I have been working on for a while. The setting would be France in an age when serial killers could still go undetected. The protaganist is a serial killer and there is a woman that he slowly wants to control instead of kill. It would be a big challenge. More pyschological than anything and a lot of symbolism. That would also open up a lot of research possibilities. I look forward to hearing your recommendations!-Julie

The genre of the one act play is very different from any other writing format because of how quickly the action must take place. If anything, I would compare it to a short story because in both genres the focus is on the action of the story. There is very little time to set up characters and give much background to the setting. The exposition is more important in a one act because it provides the set up for the main struggle that we see. It usually occurs in the very beginning. Unlike longer stories, one acts don’t have the benefit of flashbacks. One acts also differ from short stories in the fact that the setting is more vital to the plot. One acts allow you to see characters in only one setting; one scene, and therefore the circumstances and conflict of the character usually deal with the place they are during that short amount of time. Frequently the obstacles and conflict come from the place itself, or at least they are very close to it. The character’s struggle is usually how to overcome their space.

As a contrast, I would like my one act’s conflict to be a reluctance to leave the setting. I think the conflict of my one act will be that the main character is moving away from his familiar apartment where he’s lived his whole life. The scene will take place on the apartment roof in the city. The roof is the equivalent of the city kid’s tree house and I would like to explore that last lingering moment of childhood. A best friend will join the main ch4aracter for a last talk on the roof like they’ve had many times before. I’m thinking they will be a boy and a girl just so there’s a slight bit of adolescent tension, but really nothing more than a platonic friendship.