Writing a play or musical is hard. There's no way around it. For someone like me who came into this process more comfortable with the musical moments, especially the "song spotting" aspect of laying out 17 songs to tell a story, diving into the script to weave it all together was uncharted territory. I'm not sure if "music first" is a typical process for musical theatre writers, but it's what worked for me. And now, with a complete first draft in hand, I can say it was absolutely worth it. And it was absolutely a challenge!
I wrote in Final Draft, which I've come to appreciate - script formatting rules are very strict, and Word/Google Docs just isn't set up for it. Final Draft made that easier. I've written 155 pages. That sounds like a lot, but there is a lot of white space due to how stage direction is coded. I'd estimate I'm roughly at the 2 hour point now, with about an hour of music and an hour of spoken scenes and transitions.
The Joy of Creation
There's something truly magical about bringing characters to life on the page. Finally putting into words the scenes that have lived in my head for so long—seeing them materialize into dialogue, action, and emotion—is so rewarding. There's a particular kind of joy that comes from building a world, populating it with complex human beings, and watching them surprise you as you write.
And they did surprise me. Some questions I wasn't sure I had good answers for clarified themselves as I got deeper into the writing. Some characters emerged as far more central to the story than I originally intended. The organic way the narrative shaped itself was both humbling and creatively satisfying. For me, there was no better way to force those loose ends to be tied up then to get it down on the page, think about it, rewrite, etc., until it made sense.
The Heart of the Story
There are beautiful, sweet, deeply moving, and sometimes extremely funny moments in this story which emerged in the writing process. Some were planned, some were discovered along the way. My cast has become real to me in a way I didn't anticipate. Jade, in particular, has become a star—she's bold, hilarious, sometimes inappropriate, deeply emotionally intelligent, and absolutely essential to the heart of this piece. Even my "otherworldly" characters feel human and relatable. They have flaws, hopes, humor, and vulnerability.
There are sad moments too, and I'm not ashamed to say I was emotional during the writing process. I'll write another blog soon about my inspirations for this work, but grief has a starring role in my show, and I've written in some pretty heavy themes. Writing this show has been part of my healing process.
Is my script perfect? No. And by no, I mean hell no. There are rough edges, moments that will need refinement, scenes that will be reworked (or maybe jettisoned entirely) in subsequent drafts. But it's a damn good first stab at it... it's genuine, it's original, it's from the heart, and it's mine! I'm proud of that. I have a story to tell, and these characters and their story deserve to be heard.
And frankly, dear reader, some of the music is really fucking good.
What's Next
I'm encouraged and energized as I move forward into the next phase of this journey. "If I Could Go" is now being submitted to festivals for review and consideration for workshop performances. There's so much potential here, and I'm excited to get into the marketing part of it (another piece I'm more comfortable with, given my "day job").
To anyone out there working on creative projects of their own: yes, it's hard, and now I can relate. But there is satisfaction in getting it onto the page. Keep going.