From Aeschylus to Shakespeare to David Mamet, writers have created plays that actors long to perform and audiences love to watch. While plays can make an ethical point or pose a moral question, we really watch them because they give us a tear, a smile, or a perhaps a thrill. Indeed, drama is designed expressly to touch and to stir human emotions. Just as carpenters need tools to build a house with wood and stone, the basic fundamentals of drama are the tools writers need so they can build a play with human emotions.  

 

1. Write What You Know.

 

2. Show! Don't tell!

 

3. Action. 

 

4. Conflict.

 

5. Motivate.

 

6. Let the Actor Act.

 

The next pages deal with each concept and its application.