How To Write A Vignette

Bite-Size History Plays for All

You can write, you can tell a story - you are a playwright in the making!

Overview

Writing a vignette must be fun, both for you, and for the audience who will eventually see your play!

As with any story, the vignette ahs to have a:
- beginning
- middle (body)
- end
Of course, you could have guessed that!

Your story is short so we need to get to business straightaway and set the scene. What happens in the beginning? If you are writing about the great fire, you could have two characters on stage, one saying, "I smell smoke, do you?"

Then you have to ask yourself what happens in the middle? What is the specific purpose of your story? Maybe you want to relate how your main character rescues a dog, for example.

So of course you need to have a main character (called the protagonist in play technical parlance) and a few (very few) supporting characters.

And then, how does it end? It needs to be exciting, inspiring, surprising, funny, unexpected.

Don't look for perfection as you write - that can easily kill inspiration! Just keep going, one can always do the editing later.

Finally, once you are done, you will need a title. The title summarizes the vignette - it is typically short and catchy but does not give the plot away.

Step by Step

From How to Write a One Act Play

Step 1
Choose a subject to cover in a brief one scene act play. A short story works best. Remember to give the one act play the necessary plot, action and characters to make it a complete story. Research other one act plays to get ideas and inspiration for yours.

Step 2
Develop the action first, then compose the dialog before you decide anything else. Keep the plot simple for a one act play and it should move consistently throughout the play.

Step 3
Develop the characters. Write out a character sketch beforehand to help you flesh out your characters and bring them to life. Give your characters a motive in life (or lack thereof) and up the stakes by making them face a problem. This is central to any story.

Step 4
Generate the setting. The setting for a one act play will be one scene, but you have to still develop the scene so the audience sees everything about the story line. Include as many of the five sense as you can. Lighting helps the setting. Make sure you write in notes about how the lighting should look.

Step 5
Add in the stage directions after you write the action. Write notes about how each character should respond and what props you'll need. For example, if the characters should be facing another direction and talking to another character, note it in the script.. 

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Remember, the Backroom Theatre Club is your best resource! In a relaxed atmosphere over a glass of wine, or whatever, we can discuss your idea. We can read your play in the privacy of a club setting to see how it works, and what changes/improvements may be needed.

We meet every Thursday. Drop us a line. Hope to see you soon!