Right then. If you’ve been telling yourself you’ll “get back to that script soon”, consider this your friendly nudge.
My next block of WriteForTheStage online playwriting courses kicks off next week. I’ve condensed university-level learning into accessible 5-week courses, so if you’re preparing your script for a competition or performance, you’ve got time to hone your text.
These courses are practical, supportive, and designed to help you actually write — not just talk about writing. Whether you’re wrestling with your opening, stuck in the swamp of Act 2, or trying to land an ending that doesn’t feel like you’ve run out of steam, there’s something here that’ll move your play forward.
The First 10 Pages
This one’s all about getting your script to the top of the reader’s stack — literally. But, essentially, the course also aims to help you craft the most impactful opening that will hook your audience as soon as the lights go up.
Those first pages decide everything: tone, rhythm, character, the promise of the story.
Across five weeks, we dig into:
- Openings that leap off the page and onto the stage
- Characters who arrive with purpose
- How to create tension without waffle
- How to write great dialogue
- Stage directions that help, not hinder
If you’re sending work to theatres, competitions, or development schemes, this is the course that gets your script noticed.
Or if you’re preparing your show for performance at this year’s Greater Manchester Fringe, make sure it opens with a bang.
Act 2
Ah, Act 2. The place where many perfectly good plays go to die.
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
Together we’ll look at:
- Escalation driven by objective during the Rising Action
- How to introduce a subplot that pays off in the Falling Action
- Scenes that turn, not drift
- Actioning your dialogue
- Keeping the audience leaning in rather than checking their watches with Crisis, Conflict, and Resolution
If your middle feels baggy, confused, or like it’s stalling, this is where we sort it.
Act 3
Endings matter. They’re what the audience carries home. In this course, we work on:
- Endings that feel inevitable and surprising
- Confrontation, revelation, and resolution
- Shaping a final image that actually lands
- Avoiding the “and then it just… stops” problem
Perfect if you’ve got a draft that needs a proper, satisfying finish.
☀️ Summer School
Or if you fancy something a little more condensed, enjoy a whole week in August dedicated to your writing.
Daily sessions, space to write, and a group of playwrights all working alongside you. It’s focused, friendly, and a brilliant way to either start something new or push a draft over the line.
⭐ Reviews
Here are some reviews from the First 10 Pages:
Ready to get writing?
All our sessions are online, friendly, and full of practical exercises that get you writing rather than staring at the screen.
If you’ve been waiting for a sign, this is it.
Full details and booking: WriteForTheStage.co.uk/our-online-courses
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