Not exactly breaking NEWS

I spoke to Susan a few days ago. There is another woman in West Virginia who wants to write a musical based entirely on The Gospel Truth, one of Susan's albums. Susan, being the considerate person she is, immediately contacted me to give me a heads up and see if it was okay.

She's offered me advice, suggestions, thoughts... I love it. There were things I was worried about, small concerns really, but it was still a huge relief to hear that everything was fine the way I was doing it.

Mainly, I was concerned that she might be upset if I changed a lyric or two. There aren't many changes I've HAD to make, but there are some. They are all for continuity, none because I simply thought it sounded better. So, when I asked her if that was alright, I was THRILLED when she got back saying "patti do what u want to do with lyric changes and if i can't take it i'll rewrite them with and for you to make the piece work. don't sweat that." You read that right "with and for". AWESOME!

I have never met a more accommodating person. She keeps reminding me, this is my piece - I can do with it what I want. She's honored. That's her word, not mine.

So the work continues.

Thinking small

Act 2 is now completely blocked out. I've added... a LOT! All very little vignettes. This makes me happy. I like vignettes. For one thing, they're short. I don't have to fill page after page after page with dialogue. Additionally, they are sweet. They are tiny morsals of information that are easy to follow and they allow for a better and freer flow for the words. It's amazing how chaacters can grow and say more, faster, when they actually speak and do less.

There are about seventeen vignettes in the Act. I know that seems like a lot, but some of these scenes are a minute long - if that. Some scenes are made up of three or four smaller bits that get strung together by a song. I'm excited.

Oh - Brill!

Not.

I started thinking a few days ago that I wasn't too keen on some of the names I had chosen for the characters in the piece. They weren't bad - but it simply wasn't working as well as I thought it could.

So, I changed some.

And now - as I TRY to write, I keep using the old names. Habits. They die hard.

If I would just suck it up and type up the 6 pages I have scribbled down that might be decent and the three more that are pretty awful... but have potential, I might actually get somewhere.

I need a device. I have to figure out why one of the women is such a judgmental bitch. I know part of it, but I can't figure out the rest of it. It feels forced and trite and I am getting upset.

It is also pretty late - or early. Maybe I'm just tired. I have a HUGE number of days off next week and I plan on using them to my fullest advantage. I want to go somewhere. But where? And with what money? I think that maybe a change of scenery would help me see the through line clearer.

I spoke to Susan a few days ago. She gave me some ideas, suggestions, answers to some questions I'd posed. She also asked if I ever sleep. It made me remember; even if nothing comes of this, even if this little piece of mine never goes beyond a small community theatre somewhere in Fairfield County, CT, that's okay. I'll have written it. I'll have made a contribution.

And then, at least I hope, the NEXT one might be easier to write.

Coming together...

I went back and changed Act 1 a little. It's feeling better to me now.

Act 2 is... well, I'm just not motivated. I'll get there. I have a busy day today but can probably get to the Library before it closes for some writing time. The outline that I have is good. But it wasn't finished when I started writing. Once I did, the outline changed... False starts, three. It makes it hard to keep it all straight.

And it is HOT today! Very.

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

I actually KNOW I can. I'm just out of steam. I am physically exhausted lately. I am getting together with Kelly tonight and that should get things moving again.

I have a good start on scenes for Act 2. I started it a few times and reworked as I went. All I need to really do is type up what I have. I'm just. so. tired.

I think I will take a shower and a nap. Maybe I can type the few pages I have up after that.

Whoop it up!

Act 2 is blocked out. I know, this is probably not as thrilling for you as it is for me. I don't really care.

I figured it out... and have started to run out of steam. I think I'm just tired. Whatev- I'm allowed a break. Right?

ok now...

I'm kind of stuck.

I just finished blocking out Act 2. It's only 8 scenes long. Now, granted, it is only an outline and it can grow. There are 7 songs which can easily take up some time. BUT, with a first Act being 13 scenes long, even though some of them are connected without fade outs, and some are really short... I wonder. I suppose that I should just write.