Give It A Rest
After a production or reading, not jumping immediately into rewrites has its own benefits
Sometimes the best thing for rewriting is letting things simmer on their own for a while.
Case in point: I just finished the 2nd production of my new play, "Nobody Goes Caroling Anymore." As both director and prompter, I took extensive notes during the rehearsals and performances.
As it turned out, I was also asked to be in a different production before that one was over, so I began rehearsals the day after my production closed, and have had no time to even review my script notes yet.
But I am not despairing. Allowing a bit of distance can be beneficial. Neil Simon started "The Odd Couple," hit a snag, and then left it in a drawer for seven years before he pulled it back out and finished it.
And I'm not being idle in the meantime. I always have scripts calling for my attention, and until I'm ready and able to jump back to this script with sufficient time and inspiration, I can work on other scripts. But the prominent script continues to be in my mind, churning, options being considered and evaluated, and changes being formulated, so that when I do sit down to begin the next revision, I'll have plenty of ideas and a major approach to accomplish the task.
So don't fret about "writer's block," which is a really not a condition as much as a state of mind, or a lack of planning. Each script demands its own approach and each script needs to be considered independently. Like children, each should be considered as an individual and approached as a unique creation.
