Tech Week, a Play Written by a Friend, and Scrivener

So, the play that we are doing for theatre competitions this year is called Nemesis. It is a play written by a dear friend of mine about Lizzie Borden. Considering the high school that I teach at is the city where Lizzie lived its rather an interesting choice of topic. It is made even more interesting by the family ties that Janie has to both factions at the time, those who thought she did it and those who didn’t. We show Lizzie as the murderer and propose that it was actually another person, Palmer, who embezzled money from Andrew Borden, showing how that theory works. I have learned a lot doing the play. All I had known about Lizzie before was that she lived somewhere in MA and had killed her parents. I think I am now beginning to agree with Janie that Lizzie has gotten a bad wrap. Would I want to go stay in her house? No. Do I find it disturbing that it’s a B&B? Hell yes. But it is an interesting point of history for the city and an interesting mystery.

We are currently in tech week for this show. On my vacation I am working 9-4, if not longer hours. Yes, as we’ve already discussed (and my former roomie commented on) I am a workaholic. However, as this is my vacation I have been doing my own writing while I am at work as well. When I am not typing copious amounts of notes for the students (3+ pages a day because we are perfectionists and really do want to win) I am working up a storm on Scrivener. For those of us who are not challenged with writer’s block but are instead challenged by the lack of time and an inability to organise paper on an epic scale this program is a Godsend. I have been using it for a little more than 7 months now and I ADORE it.

If anyone has seen my writing process (that would mostly be my dear, darling ex-roomie Kid) they know that I have TONS of notebooks and print outs. They know that I have so much stuff that I cannot keep any all of it straight to save my life. This is what happens when you’ve been writing or editing a series for nigh on 14 years. Sometimes the details escape me. With this program I’ve got everything I’ve ever typed in my Notes section, all the character details colour coded and organised in my Research section, and my chapters in my Draft section. I am constantly reorganising and improving the writing. Probably one of the best and worst things one of my professors at BC told me was that I should never feel like I was done with my writing. With a poem, writing and rewriting is a little more manageable. With novels, I’m a bit of a moron because I never stop and I really need to say, “Okay, I’m done now” at some point. Due to Professor Gerald Dawe, my writing has improved a thousand-fold. But I am a workaholic in all respects and so, I am eternally grateful to both my old professor and the program Scrivener. Now, at least I’m organised about it all. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. If I keep working like I’m working on both my writing and my teaching, I will end up finally finishing my books to the point where I can publish them and I will become a better teacher.

I know…I know… that was a bit of a ramble but now I’m off to work (and thanks to Scrivener, I can mean that both with my writing and working on a play with the kids).