Playwright's Process Podcast

How do you keep making work without becoming hollowed out by the conditions of making it?

After an eighteen-month hiatus, Playwright’s Process is back! And we’re jumping straight in with an episode on sustaining a creative career. 

I talk about the unpaid labour artists absorb, the pressure to turn every spare hour into something productive, and how an underfunded arts sector can make systemic problems feel like personal failures. It’s an honest and hopeful chat about creativity, money, parenthood, and making room for writing inside an actual human life.

This episode is for playwrights, writers and artists thinking about how to keep making work over a lifetime.

I share what’s helped me protect my writing time, find joy in building a body of work, make room for rest, and stay connected to a creative community.

Playwright’s Process Podcast is hosted and produced by Emily Sheehan.

To learn more about my work you can visit my website or connect with me on Instagram @emilysheehan__. If you’re interested in working with me as your dramaturg then send me an email at [email protected]. 

Thanks for listening!

In this special New Year episode I invite you to reflect on your writing year and share a practical way to kick off January: Choosing an Artist Word of the Year. I also reflect on my artistic values and share a personal update on life with a newborn.

In This Episode:

A personal update about motherhood so far

Why choosing a word of the year can be more powerful than traditional resolutions

The difference between goals and values in an artist’s life

Exploring Wants vs. Needs - both in storytelling and how this mirrors real life

50 of the most common values (from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Mindfulness)

Consider:

What word would you choose to guide your creative practice in 2025?

How can this word influence the way you show up as an artist this year?

What deeper needs might your creative goals be helping you fulfil?

Thank you for listening! To learn more about my work visit https://www.emilysheehan.info/ or connect with me on Instagram @emilysheehan__. If you’re interested in working with me as your dramaturg then send me an email at [email protected].

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Jenni Medway, Head of New Work at Melbourne Theatre Company. With over a decade of experience in dramaturgy within theatre companies, Jenni shares her approach to developing plays, the role of a company dramaturg, and the unique responsibilities that come with programming new works for a state theatre company. As a dramaturg dedicated to new writing, Jenni has so many wonderful insights on finding your voice as a playwright, writing with a specific audience in mind, and the collaboration between a playwright, director and dramaturg when moving from text into production.

About Jennifer Medway: Jennifer Medway is a dramaturg with over a decade of experience in developing new Australian plays. She is currently Melbourne Theatre Company’s Head of New Work where she runs one of the largest play development programmes in the country. Prior to this, she was Melbourne Theatre Company’s Literary Associate. Her past roles include Resident Dramaturg at the Australian Theatre for Young People, Studio Artist at Griffin Theatre Company, and Literary Assistant at Belvoir Street Theatre.

We recorded today's conversation at Melbourne Theatre Company on Boon Wurrung and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung land. I acknowledge and pay my respects to the peoples of the Kulin Nation who are the Traditional Custodians of the land on which MTC is built.

Thank you for listening. You can learn more about my work on my website www.emilysheehan.info.

How does a new Australian play end up on the main stage? One way is by being commissioned by a theatre company. In today's episode, Dom Mercer, Head of New Work at Belvoir, talks us through this process. We discuss how new plays go from an idea to a story outline, and then through three drafts before they are considered for programming in a main stage season.

Dom takes you step by step through the development process within the commissioning model, and shares his provocations for playwrights going through their own drafting process. As a dramaturg of new writing, Dom has so many wonderful insights that are unique to each specific draft and his provocations for playwrights are some of my favourites.

About Dom Mercer: Dom Mercer is a dramaturg, director and producer based in Sydney. He is currently Head of New Work at Belvoir. At Belvoir his role has a focus on new writing and artist development, including leading the commissions and supporting the creative development pipeline for Belvoir's main stage productions in the upstairs theatre. He also founded and runs 25A; a curated season of independent works made in Belvoir’s Downstairs theatre.

We recorded today's conversation at Belvoir on Gadigal land. I acknowledge and pay my respects to the Gadigal people of the Eora nation who are the traditional custodians of the land on which Belvoir St Theatre is built.

Today I answer your writing questions in an ‘ask me anything’ episode. I cover loads of topics related to playwriting, theatre and dramaturgy.

Here’s what you asked:

- How do play development workshops work, and how do you structure each day?

- What do you do when you're struggling with writer's block?

- How do you organise your life as a writer?

- Do you speak to people about your plays in early drafts, or are you selective? I ask because I find it hard to speak to people about my ideas in the early phase.

- How do you contact and collaborate with subject matter experts and sensitivity readers?

- How do you manage doubt and despair in the creative process?

- How do you switch off from writing?

- Can you suggest some music and playlists to write to?

If you enjoyed today’s episode, feel free to send through your own questions for me to answer in a follow up ep. You can reach out via email [email protected] or on Instagram @emilysheehan__.

AMA (Ask Me Anything) episode is next up! Send me any questions you want answered to [email protected], or via DM on Instagram @emilysheehan__.

We all have ideas for plays (and movies and novels) that never make it to a finished draft. So today’s episode is about the steps you can take to develop an idea into an outline for a play.

Turning your ideas into a play is the process of asking yourself dramaturgical questions, making decisions about the story, then executing on those decisions. This episode covers my thoughts on this process. As well as the dramaturgical questions I'm asking myself as I turn my most recent idea into an outline for a new play.

I reference:
Episode 44. Confessional Writing (Emily’s version)

Other episodes about developing ideas:
Episode 22. Writing a Draft Zero
Episode 19. Writing the Next Thing
Episode 18. Tracking Progress in Early Drafts

Thank you for listening. You can learn more about my work on my website www.emilysheehan.info

Today I’m riffing on Taylor Swift and how as playwrights we can find ways to write in a way that feels incredibly truthful, to the point that it feels confessional. In what ways can we better embrace the cringey, diaristic, oversharing in our early drafts, so that we can move through to subtle, nuanced insights in our polished work? Because you can’t get to sophisticated sincerity, if you don’t nurture your cringe. And if we think being emotional in our writing isn’t intellectually rigorous enough, I think we risk suffocating where a piece of writing might take us…

I reference:
‘All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version)’ by Taylor Swift
‘All To Well’ by Taylor Swift
‘folklore’ studio album by Taylor Swift

I'm doing an AMA (Ask Me Anything) episode next up! Send me all your questions to answer by email [email protected] or on Instagram @emilysheehan__

Should we have multiple scripts on the go? Today I delve into the benefits and challenges of writing more than one idea at the same time. As well as some strategies for focus and momentum when bouncing between stories.

I touch on: 
- The temptation to do 'all the things' when it comes to new ideas.
- The complexities of managing more than one writing project at once.
- Identifying a primary project and side project and letting them ebb and flow.
- Planning your writing week when you have more than one thing on the go.
- Allocating the right amount of time to make manageable and meaningful progress.
- Leaving space for setbacks.

Thank you for listening.

To learn more about me and my work visit my website www.emilysheehan.info, say hi on Instagram @emilysheehan__ or reach me in an email at [email protected].

Having our work reviewed publicly is a strange and unavoidable part of writing. It's something we all have to deal with when we put new work out into the world. In today's episode I talk about reviews, theatre criticism and 'perfect opinions'. I touch on: 

- Writers' different appetites for reading reviews of their work. 

- The difference between theatre criticism and reviews.

- Frustrations with an imperfect reviewing culture.

- How reviews are one small piece of the broader cultural and critical response your work. 

- Knowing what's important to you. Whether that's the audience response, the industry response, the response from the community the work represents, box office sales, awards and nominations etc. 

- Asking who or what art criticism meant to serve?

- My thoughts on writers being part of the broader conversation surrounding their work. 

I reference: 

'Beejay Silcox on literary criticism and the art of judging' on The Garret podcast

Thank you for listening. If you're enjoying the podcast, leaving a rating or a review is a really friendly way to show your support. 

To learn more about my work, visit my website, connect with me on Instagram @emilysheehan__ or send me an email at [email protected].

Today I'm joined by Artistic Director of the Old Fitz Theatre, Lucy Clements, to talk about the rehearsal room for my play Frame Narrative.

We speak about:
- Finding the right artistic team to build out the world of the play.
- The rehearsal process and the role of a director and playwright at different stages.
- The many design elements and working with composition in the rehearsal room.
- Working with an intimacy coordinator to choreograph the work.
- Making changes to the text on the floor.

Come see the show!
Frame Narrative
By Emily Sheehan and directed by Lucy Clements
8-30 March 2024
At Old Fitz Theatre
Book now: https://www.oldfitztheatre.com.au/frame-narrative

Follow Lucy on instagram @lucypodstolski and @newghoststheatrecompany

Follow me on instagram @emilysheehan__