How we yearn for authenticity. In our selves and in others. But how can I claim authenticity for something I’m making up out of my own head? Part 2 of the series of essays I wrote nine years ago about being a writer in the 21st Century. Interestingly, the villains are still the same.

“Hell is empty and all the devils are here…”

Is it possible to find a common humanity in a world controlled by greed and hunger for power?

Part 1 of 13 in a series I made 8 years ago about writing in the 21st Century. Pass it on to anyone you think might be interested.

Eight years ago I wrote a series of essays about playwriting in the 21st Century. Looking back at it, I am shocked to find that the issues are exactly the same in 2025 as they were in 2017. Even the names are the same… I’ll post all 13 here but you can also follow them all on You Tube. They are all quite long so maybe you should equip yourself with a cup of coffe and a biscuit first. Good luck.

May you live in Interesting Times. Well, we are entering some really, really Interesting Times. So what can the writer make of them?

We live in a scary world. We probably need human contact more than ever and the Theatre is an ideal place to do it.

“Why do you write?”  Ok, there are thousands of answers to that but let me put it on a more comprehensive scale.  Why do so many of us have the urge to write?  Poetry, plays, stories? Why do we create anything?  At all? Where, indeed, does creativity come from? And how does it relate to the human-sized Burning Stage?

It started with a shovel in Salisbury. It led me to a life in theatre. What life changing moments have you had? This is part 3 of my series about my approach to theatre called The Burning Stage. Please click on the link and enjoy reading it.

In the second part of my musings on The Burning Stage, I tackle the rules that make up the Classical Unities of Time, Space and Action. Aren’t rules just made to be broken or is there something there to think about?

I write about my attitude to drama called The Burning Stage and suggest that it may provide a model for other theatre companies in the 21st Century

Drama is the interaction between two or more characters in a given situation. That interaction is what we call dialogue. Or what we refer to in real life as a “conversation”. For a playwright, dialogue is the most difficult thing to get right.

If you dissect a human cadaver you will not find ideas, language, the idea behind ballet or the rules of football. These are all emergent qualities of being human. Being Human is the emergent quality of a Human Being.

At the root of drama is empathy. For characters, for the actors that play them and for the audience that we want to connect with.

Theatre is in a bit of a pickle at the moment. In my series about writing for the theatre I have widened the scope to give my views as a Director and Playwright.

I don’t give advice but maybe you may be inspired by a few suggestions I make.

The idea of an Arts Industry is anathema to me. Art is a big Thing. It is an important thing. It encompasses philosophy, psychology, sociology and politics. It tries to moderate thinking of audiences by allowing them to walk in the shoes of others.

Can Golf help with my writing?

Here is part one of an experiment in long Form drama/Poetry, Please play it through to the end.