It may sound crazy at first - writing a whole play in just 24 hours? But 24-hour playwriting competitions are not as uncommon as you may think. Why? Because if anything, you will get a complete draft of play out of it, which is more than many - if any - aspiring writers can show for just 24 short hours of work.
Before you jump into such a competition, it's important to be properly prepared. After all, most writers would take a week, if not more, to put 24 hours of work into one piece of writing. In this case, you need to be ready to work without being able to stop for a day, or to sleep off your writer's block. The following steps will help you face the challenge.
Make Good Notes
Most competitions will allow you to bring at least one page of notes to work from. Depending on how you work, you may want to make yourself an outline, write out lists of facts and statistics (if you're working on something biographical or historical), or you may want to bring in the first page of your play, as a starting point. Whatever you choose, make sure that you put time and effort into your notes, so that you are able to make sense of them and use them effectively as a stepping stone towards your finished product.
Get Comfortable
A 24-hour playwriting competition is certainly not the place to be worried about matching your high heels to your skinny leg jeans. Remember that you are in this for the long haul. Wear comfortable clothing. Bring a pair of slippers of fuzzy socks for when you get tired of your shoes. If you have a tendency to feel cold, bring blankets, and while you're at it, bring a pillow to sit on, too. If you wear contacts, bring your glasses along too - a computer screen is guaranteed to dry our your eyes.
Pack Your Inspiration With You
If you are allowed to, bring along things that inspire you, whether it be a photograph of someone important in your life, or your five favourite CDs to listen to on a loop. Music is often fantastic company, as it will bring you a sense of familiarity and comfort, and it will also block out all of the background noise made by the other participants.
Bring Good Snacks
It has been proven that the physical act of chewing helps to jog and rejuvenate your memory. In addition to that, keeping your blood sugar at a healthy level will keep you going, even if you're tired. So pack your favourite snacks, and make sure at least a couple of them are healthy.
Don't Censor Yourself
With such limited working time, the last thing you want to do is constantly stop writing to go back and fix a small logical error or a slight personality trait in a character. The objective in a 24-hour competition is to finish a play, so don't stop and edit as you go along. Let your words flow freely and spontaneously - you'll probably discover something about yourself as a writer in the meantime!
If You Need to Sleep, Sleep
You may want to attempt to power through and write for the full 24 hours without a wink of sleep. For some, this will work just fine, but others will simply shut down mentally when they are exhausted. If you are one of these people, don't be afraid to get a little shuteye. Set an alarm for yourself and take a nap - if anything, you will be able to approach your work with a (somewhat) fresh set of eyes when you wake up.
Good luck to all the playwrights out there!
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