Getting Yourself Published

You know the adage that goes "it's not what you know, but who you know"? I think that may be more of a truism than an adage (although, frankly, I'm not sure I could tell you the difference between the two.)

I've written a book aimed at the Middle Grade audience (no, not Hobbits...that's Middle Earth). It's a good book, a historical adventure set aboard a sailing ship in 1727. You can find a chapter of it at my website,www.reinharthouse.com.

It turns out, however, that writing the book was the easy part. Getting the thing sold...ah, there's the rub!

The first step in selling your book is to go to the bookstore and see what else on the shelf is similar to yours. You do this for two reasons; to test your commercial viability and to write down the names of the publishers. Chances are you'll see a book remarkably similar to yours; a potential commercial viability problem. If you don't see a kissing cousin to your book on the shelves, jot down the names of the publishers of those that are similar to yours.

Logic would dictate that you then approach the publisher with your book. No so fast! Publishers will all tell you they don't accept submissions from regular folks. Can you imagine how many shlocky manuscripts would come flooding through their doors? Instead, the publishers will tell you they much, much prefer to look at your work when submitted by a literary agent.

Now your task is to find one of those. There are many good online resources. I found three that were extremely helpful:
www.AgentQuery.Com - They have a nifty search engine that lets you find agents by genre, by location, and a variety of other variables. Their site is easy to use, too.
www.QueryTracker.Com - You can set up a listing of the agents you've queried, and track your results. The site runs a little slow, but they have over 1,100 agents in their database.
www.LitMatch.Com - I've only used this site a couple of times, but their information is good. It took me a while to get the joke;you see, they match up literary elements, like writers to agents. The result is a Lit(erary) Match. Hot, huh?

Next, you've got to write your query letter. You'll find a lot of references for that, too. Google "how to query a literary agent". There's a lot of information on the web about what to do and what to avoid.

Finally, get to work. It's not easy to send out a stream of queries. Make sure you look at each one before you send it...I sent out a dozen with an enormous typo in the middle. Remember that each query you send is all the agent will know of you. A big typo in the middle of your query makes you look like an idiot.

You need to send out roughly a gajillion queries. You'll see a bazillion rejections. Don't worry. Every no will eventually lead to a yes. One of them will come back from an agent who is interested in your book. But you won't find that agent if you don't keep focused, and keep sending out queries.

Eventually, you'll find an agent that will work with you. She'll represent you to a publisher, and you'll be on your way. But the publisher looks at your work not because of the work itself, but because the agent is there to represent you.

See? It's not what you know, it's who!

Leave of Absence

I must apologize for the recent dearth of articles relating to drama ministry. As you'll note from my previous post, I've had to deal with a variety of issues in the ministry, the most important of which was the departure of my most valued players.

My mentor on the ministry, the executive pastor of the church, had lunch with me recently to discuss it. We talked of course about the never-ending need for recruitment. But most importantly, we talked about God's time. He explained to me that ministries go through expansions and contractions within churches...people get comfortable in their existing service and want to branch out, people move, all kinds of reasons...so th contraction of my ministry, although heartbreaking, isn't abnormal. He said that this must be the time in which God wishes us to reflect on what to do next.  That made a lot of sense to me. I've been praying, and trying to seek His will on this ministry.

In the nonce I've written a book, called Phineas Caswell! You'll find a chapter of it at my website, www.reinharthouse.com. It's an adventure story set in 1727. Although aimed at the "youth" audience, ages nine to fifteen, I think you'll find it an enjoyable read. 

I'm seeking a literary agent. If you know of one, or are one, I would appreciate hearing from you! I can't help but think that God has driven me to this time-out, and thereby to this book. I pray for guidance there, too!

When the Crew Jumps Ship: The Need to Recruit

I've written a lot about how to build a strong department, how to work with amateurs, how to write for your cast, etc. But I haven't written much about attrition.

If you've had a drama department running for a few years, you know that people come and go. A church, a good one that is growing, is like a growing business. New positions are constantly opening, and talented people are always needed to fill them. If you've done your job correctly, some of the best and brightest talent in the church will be in your department. That means that they will eventually leave your group.

Hearing that a cast member is leaving is hard to take. Sure, they'll be valuable to the church in another capacity. Sure, they'll be serving the Lord more fully. But, why do they have to leave your department? The rejection hurts on two levels; first is that they are abandoning you and your work. Second, and more perplexing, is that question of where your are going to get an actor to fill that person's shoes. (I have no need to remind you to be gracious in that moment, or to remember that this person is a volunteer, and therefore not required to work with you, so be nice!)

I write this from the perspective of having lost nearly all of my talent in the space of a month. One couple, mainstays that have been with me from day one, left to develop a ministry for the hearing impaired. One actress left because she has outside educational pressures. Another couple left to pursue the children's ministry. Another actress left because of job stresses. My remaining mainstay actor just announced last week that he's moving across the country. Ahhh! My department now consists of myself, an actress in the same age group, a 70 year-old gentleman, and four teens, ranging from 12 to 15.

It's hard to know what the Lord is trying to tell you when your cast jumps ship. Obviously, it's a time to reflect. A time to take a good look at goals and objectives. A time to pray and ask God for direction.

It's also time to recruit. In marketing there's a joke that says the two best times to advertise are when business is bad and when business is good. I recognize that I failed to make recruiting a priority for my department, and that this is the price to pay for it. You need to make sure that you are always drafting new talent for your group. It's critical to the survival of your group, to its continued viability, and to the train of succession, when you yourself need to move on. Ultimately, it is the best job you can do for the church itself.

I hate recruiting. I tend to avoid performing at church these days. I don't mind doing monologues and stand-up bits, but it is extremely difficult to both perform in and direct a skit successfully when you're working with amateurs (see Why Don't They Laugh?, my April posting). So, I do everything I can to get out of it.

But, as director and producer, my job, just like yours, is to do your best to bring new members in. In my church, that means putting an announcement in the bulletin, and doing commercials. If I ask nicely, the pastor lets me do a little bit of stand-up at the end of the service, while the collection is taken place. I slick my hair back, put on a white suit and a red ascot and my best Ricardo Montalban impression and invite people to join the ministry. It's hokey, but it works!

At the end of day, when the crew has jumped ship, you have to remember that story about the Chinese symbol for crisis. It's actually two symbols; calamity and opportunity. Once the sting of the calamity has abated, start asking God how to exploit the opportunity you've been given. It might just be the gift you've been waiting for!

Ideas on Building a Strong Drama Ministry

A drama department can be a powerful tool in a church's arsenal for reaching the lost. A good drama can make a congregation feel the point of a message, rather than just hear it. Ultimately, a good drama department can become a powerful outreach tool to help the church fulfill its mission. When I first began my church's drama department many years ago, I had no idea what I was doing. Now, eight years later, I've learned a few things that might help you in your struggle to do the Lord's work with your department.

Be Aware of What You're Getting Into

Running a successful drama department is no piece of cake! It takes a lot of hard work on your part, possibly in skill areas you probably haven't pursued. Here's a sampling:

-Producer: Every aspect of every piece is under your control, from writing to casting to staging, to scheduling. That makes you the producer.

-Director: Responsibility for each piece will ultimately lie with you. You will need to cast and direct each piece. You will need to envision the final result, and pass that vision on to your troops.

-Actor: You are going to have to appear in some of your pieces. When I first started out, I was all by myself, and was therefore in everything. Volunteers eventually came along, and now I do everything I can to stay off the stage...it is extremely difficult to direct a piece in which you are playing.

-Writer: You will be called upon to draft pieces for certain messages. Unless you're a Neill Simon already, your first pieces will make you cringe to read. Don't worry. You'll get better.

-Set Designer: Be ready to paint backdrops, and build papier mache rocks. There are those who volunteer to do this, and you will be blessed if you find one.

-Stage Manager: Although there are people who prefer this thankless job, you will most often be the one making sure the props are in place, the cast members are in their places, the stage is set, the light guys are ready...the list goes on and on.

-Coach: You've got to pull the theatrical talent out of people that don't know a key light from a nightlight. You've got to inspire them to do a greater good, and get them to work together as a team.

-Diplomat: There are factions in every church, and you will find representatives in your department. You've got to get them to work together as a team.

-Preacher: At the end of the day, each piece is about the message. You've got to make sure that each cast member understands the message to ensure that they present it correctly to the audience.

-Parent: It's true. You have to mete out discipline and love in good measure to help your people reach their potential. You have to love the art, love the artists, and love the venue. Out of that love will come respect and focus.

-Manager: In truth, all of these things are under the aegis of a good manager. In this job, your people skills are just as important as your theatrical skills.

Define Your Mission: Before you can successfully do what you are going to do, you need to know what you are supposed to do. A good visit with your pastor will help you fully understand his goal for you. Search your heart for what you want to accomplish. In our church, my drama department's mission is to illustrate and support the pastor's messages, provide a tool for the church's outreach program, and to provide a creative outlet in which church members can serve the Lord.

Begin Each Rehearsal with a Prayer: It is important to remember that your department is a ministry. Your job is to help flesh out the pastor's message. Remind your cast and yourself that you need the Lord's help to do His work, and that only comes through prayer. I ask a different member of the group to lead the prayer each week - it helps in team building and in encouraging a walk with God.

Assign a Secretary: I'm an actor and a writer. I'm not an organizer. I have the big ideas, and I can see the details that will bring them to life. But I'm not the guy to make sure everybody knows when the next rehearsal is, or make sure everybody gets a copy of the script, or to keep track of phone numbers. There are people who actually volunteer for this job, and they are a blessing. Find one for your department. They are worth their weight in gold.

Everybody's Idea Deserves Some Air: I look at each of our endeavors as ensemble pieces. I have the entire department read through a script before we even choose it for performance to make sure everyone is comfortable with it. I can tell you that as a writer, you will have some very un-comfortable moments when your ideas are read by others who don't like it. Be patient, be generous. Remember: it's not about you; it's about delivering the Lord's message.

Having the entire group review each piece helps the members function as a team, and insures constant buy-in to the department.

During rehearsal, too, try to be open to ideas from cast members and lookers-on about how things might play. If you don't want to use an idea, be generous in your explanation as to why you're not using it. "Because it's a dumb idea" won't fly, but explaining how the idea telegraphs a joke will.

Write for Your Cast: When you are called upon to write a piece, write roles that will be easy for your actors to play. This doesn't mean that you should dumb-down your language or drain the value of your characters. But, for example, I have one actor who is narcoleptic. He's a terrific actor, and he has a heart of gold. If he has a narcoleptic episode at any time prior to his performance, his memory goes out the window. When I write a piece for him, I always make sure his character has a reason to be sitting at a table, or referring to a newspaper. We print his lines on the table or in the newspaper so that he can keep up. Write your pieces to capitalize on the strengths of your actors, and to mitigate their weaknesses.

Cast Wisely: When you assign your cast members, cast carefully. Rotate your "juicy" roles to make sure that each cast member gets at least one shot at a good dramatic part. Avoid the temptation to throw the best roles to your best actors. Your job (see "Parent", above) is to help your actors grow. The good roles will help them do that. Rotating the good roles, too, keeps actors engaged and interested. That being said, be careful not to torpedo a good message for the sake of training an actor.

Make Friends with the Technical Staff: The adage is that not every member of the audience will like you, but none of them will like you if they can't hear you. Your sound guy is your best friend...well, right there with your lighting guy. And if you are lucky enough to have video in your church, your video guy is also your best friend. Work with them as you stage your pieces prior to rehearsal, and include them whenever you can. They are just as much of the team as your actors. Praise them often, and thank them sincerely.

Replace Yourself: Nurturing actors is a part of your job. Setting up an organization that will survive you is another. CEOs of the big corporations come and go, but their organizations continue anon. Your department should be like that. Your job is to grow another director from within your ranks. This works in your favor for a variety of reasons. One is that you can now produce twice as many pieces as your normally would, because there are two directors. Another is you help an actor grow in his service to the church. And, hey, wouldn't you know it, you now have a replacement should another opportunity befall you!

Have Fun: I've said it so many times it makes my eyes water, but there is no finer business than that of acting. It's freeing, challenging, and so deeply rewarding; it's always a surprise to me that more people aren't acting. So, have fun with your department. Laugh often - we had a moment in a piece where the boss storms angrily off stage, and then returns with the line "oh, and don't forget your bananas!" But the actress often left out the "and". It became a joke. Once she came back on and said "Oh, don't forget your bananas" and one of the other actors said "and". So she said "and". Everybody cracked up. The joke from that point on was to say the line "Oh, don't forget your bananas! And!" The performance was flawless, and we all had a great time

You are the Director: Don't forget that your job is to carry the department's mission forward. Your department can have a democratic flair, but it cannot be a democracy. It can be a benevolent dictatorship, perhaps, but not a democracy. You are responsible for delivering the pastor's message, not for making sure everybody agrees with how to do it. You can solicit input, but always remember that the final decision is yours.

About Fame

When I started acting, I really wanted to be famous. Big city, bright lights, all those flash bulbs, all the awards. It wasn't the money, although that would have been nice. It was the fame. I didn't want to die with no one knowing who I was.

Is this you? Do you want to become famous someday as a world-class actor? Is your church theatrical adventure just a stepping stone to your Hollywood career? Here are some thoughts that might help you in your quest.

Fame Is Where You Find It
I was famous in high school. Not outside the school, mind you, but everyone inside knew who I was, and had seen or knew about my stage work. I was famous. I was famous in college for my radio work. I wasn't a campus icon, but I was famous at the radio station. I was famous in the voice-over crowd in Hollywood for awhile. Have you heard my voice? Then I'm not that famous! I was famous in the community theater circuit here in Ventura County. I'm famous at my church. The point is that fame comes in many shapes and sizes.

You performance should engender applause and recognition. I'm not sure those two things don't qualify as fame.

Fame is Fleeting
I suffered a stroke while performing in community theater. I went from being an oft-requested actor to a liability in the space of just one Saturday morning. My fame changed from being a great romantic comedian to the guy who had the stroke. I'm not in the least bitter...but it's a great example of how quickly fame can drift away!

You Can Be Anything You Want...
I have a relative who is a rather famous actress. She told me once that you can be anything you want, as long as you are willing to forgo being everything else. In your pursuit of fame, make certain to keep your eyes, and your heart, open for the many opportunities life will bring you.

99.99999999 Percent of All the People Who Ever Lived...
...went to their graves unknown. We live in a age where celebrity is worshipped and idolized. But it is only this age. Think of the uncountable billions of people who have lived and died without their name ever having been written down. If you have appeared on stage, you are light years ahead of them already!
This thought, too, took the pressure off me in my pursuit. The number of famous people is so small, so chimerical, that failing to attain it is not a crime. It's a statistic!

Love the Art
Finally, ultimately, don't pursue acting if you are seeking fame. Pursue acting because it makes you feel alive, because it frees your soul, because it teaches you about yourself and the people around you. Pursue acting because it is an art, and, in performing, you are giving back to the audience. Pursue it because you can create a work of art that lasts only as long as the words are spoken, because God has given you this spectacular gift. Pursue acting because, in that moment when you've connected with the house, and your character's problems weigh heavily in the audience's heart, and you could hear a pin drop in your dramatic pause...in that moment, with the bright lights, and the settling dust, and the audience spellbound, you are famous.

Acting 101

Advice for New Actors

Acting is one of the best things you can do with your life. It frees your soul, opens your eyes, and brings you a confidence you would never have thought possible. You’ll learn about yourself and your world, you’ll learn about others, and you’ll teach others a new way of looking at the world. And it’s fun, too.

There are some basic things you should know when you start out, things that, if you don’t know them, make you look like a yokel. Here are some tips:

ACTING IS STORYTELLING- The purpose of drama is to tell a story. Each character has a story to tell, and all of the character stories weave together to complete the story of the play. Your job as an actor is to help your character tell his story. That’s your whole job. That’s it.

ACTING IS BELIEVING- When you sign on as an actor in a scene, you’ve signed up to tell the story through the eyes of your character. You will find your acting career much easier if you believe what the author wrote for your character. Believe that the character has a life, and that the things that happen to him have meaning. Let those events have meaning to you. Perhaps another character calls your character a bigot. How should your character react? How would you react if someone called you a bigot? That’s a start. Now add in your character’s background and temperament, and you’ll have an honest reaction. When you believe in your character, the audience will believe it, too. It’s a golden moment when the audience stops seeing actors and sees only characters.

IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU- One of the best parts about working with actors is that you’re all in the same boat. Even though everybody comes from a different background and brings in different experiences, you’re all there for the same goal; to tell that story. Now, there are good actors and bad actors. The bad ones are the actors that are worried about themselves, about how they sound or how they look or how everybody’s thinking about them. Bad actor. Bad. The good actor is focused on what the character is trying to say, what will bring that message out, on feeling what the character feels. In Acting 101 we leave ourselves and our petty woes at the door. Instead of worrying whether or not people are staring at you, worry instead about feeling what the character you’re reading feels. Worry about helping your character tell his story.

IT’S ABOUT THE ENSEMBLE – To be cast in a piece is to join a team. Just as your character fulfills a specific duty in the story of the play, you, too, fulfill a specific purpose in the cast. No member of the team should be there for anything more than telling the story the author has written. When you join the cast, then, do your very best at all times to be helpful, to be focused, and to help the team succeed.

BE GENEROUS – Acting is hard work. What makes it hard is the level to which you expose your feelings. When we talk about acting honestly, it can sometimes be hard to reach down and display your honest feelings for everyone else to see. You open yourself up to potential ridicule, and that’s hard. As a good team member, remember that every other actor in the piece is feeling exactly the same. Be magnanimous towards them and their exposed feelings. Some deep emotions can make actors cry. When their scene is over, have respect for the feelings they shared with you. Be gentle, and be generous.

BE BOLD - If the director tells you to read a line, read it like you mean it. Even though you are just reading, don’t be afraid to mean what you are saying.

BE LOUD - As an actor, not everyone is going to like you. Nobody will like you if they can’t hear you. You might be tall, you might be gorgeous, but if they can’t hear you, you might as well be part of the set.

USE YOUR UPSTAGE HAND - Here are some basic terms. Picture yourself standing in the middle of the stage, looking out at the audience. Your left hand points to stage left, your right hand to stage right. If you walk toward the audience, you cross downstage. If you back away from the audience, you cross upstage. Stuff behind you is upstage of you. Stuff you can see, if you’re facing the audience like I told you, is downstage of you. SO, when you are facing across the stage and must wave to somebody, use the arm that is farthest from the audience, your upstage arm. If you use your downstage arm, you’ll block your face. It seems dopey, but it’s true that audiences don’t react well to an actor who blocks himself. The same is true of your hair. Your emotions play out on your face. If the audience can’t see your face, they miss your emotions. They don’t believe you. You might as well be part of the set. So, pin your lovely tresses back and show your face.

A truism: use of the downstage arm makes you look like a rube.

MOVE WITH PURPOSE- In the real world, most people don’t drift about. They go to the door, they go to the cabinet, they stand up, they sit down. They do it all with purpose. When you are playing your character, make sure you move with purpose. If, for example, your character is supposed to leave but gets called back by another character just at the last moment, don’t be ready to be called back. Be ready to leave the stage…that’s what the character was intending to do, so that’s what you should do. Believe me, the actor will stop you in time. If he doesn’t…hey, that’s why they call it live theater!

REACH INSIDE - As a director, it just floors me when an actor asks me what they should look like when their character is supposed to be mad. What do you look like when you’re mad? What are the attributes of being mad? Your blood pulses, your body tenses, your movements become sharp and definite, and maybe your voice quavers. Why would your character do something different?

LEARN YOUR CUES – You know you need to learn your lines. That’s a “well duh”. But learning your cues is equally important. It’s the only way you’ll know when to say your lines. Learning your cues at the same time as learning your lines will help cement your lines in your heart, because, most often, your cues help you with the intention in your lines.

FOCUS FOCUS FOCUS - You know that acting is not about you. You know to move with purpose and use your upstage hand and be loud. So, what else should you do? Focus on being your character. Focus on being part of the team. And focus on being honest.

Finally, have fun. That's the point, isn't it? Relax, and have a good time. You're going to learn a lot about yourself!

Writing Evangelical Drama

In writing for my church, I’ve been asked to write many, many evangelical pieces. The purpose of Christian drama is to reach the lost, and what better way to reach them than with a theater piece that invites them in? But evangelical drama is a double-edged sword. Unless your piece is truly an outreach piece, it will most likely be performed in front of a congregation that’s already heard the Word. Here are some ways I’ve found that might help you in crafting your next evangelical drama.

TARGET YOUR AUDIENCE – For whom are you writing your piece? The congregation or an outreach program? What message are you trying to deliver? I’m often looking for ways to show the impact of the Christian life on the average person. Even though I’ll have a specific message to deliver, my underlying motive is to never stop trying to reach the lost, to evangelize.

BE REAL – The purpose of your piece will determine the setting. The more realistic your setting, the clearer your message will be. Your goal is help the audience focus on your message. Your challenge is to deliver your message in new and innovative ways. Always make certain that the circumstances of your piece are realistic enough that the audience can take it seriously. This doesn’t mean that you can’t put your characters in exotic locations…just make that they are realistic exotic locations. I’m working on a piece right now that takes place in the cockpit of C-47 during World War II. It’s taken a huge amount of research to get the setting, the language, and the intentions of the characters right, but I know the audience will expect a realistic piece.

Your character’s development must follow a realistic track, too. Most folks don’t receive the Good News and find themselves instantly saved. It takes a while, it takes thought, and it takes growth. Give your characters time to reveal these emotions realistically.

BE SUBTLE – Until I found the Lord, I wouldn’t go into a church to save my soul (literally). On the one hand, churches seemed scary and closed off to me. On the other, the people in the church seemed to belong to some sort of club. I can’t remember how many church people told me I had to believe in the Lord. It took my sister’s simple logic to get me to let down my barriers and open my heart. Remember that this is how the lost might view the church, too. Hitting them over the head with your evangelical message won’t work, because the lost tend to tune out overt evangelism. Your piece, too, will be more effective if you approach the subject indirectly, allowing the audience to complete the evangelistic picture.

Your congregation will reject an overt message, too. I know this because I’ve written many of them, and they have consistently flopped. They already know the evangelical message. Instead, I look for ways that my characters find different circumstances in which to witness to the lost. Even though a church drama may be preaching to the choir, there are still many messages you can give them that will help them in their mission field.

LOOK FOR GROWTH – An alcoholic won’t stop drinking until he’s hit bottom. A drug addict won’t seek help until he’s realized that he’s helpless. A lost soul doesn’t accept the Lord until he realizes his earthly existence is futile. The alcoholic and the drug addict begin to grow when they realize that they’ve hit their bottoms. Your protagonist, too, will be believable when he turns a corner and has an opportunity to grow.

At the same time, non-growth can be very powerful. There’s a sadness about a character that refuses to see the truth that everyone else can see. That sadness can be a powerful dramatic tool you can use to drive a point home. Although your character doesn’t see the point of the piece, his failure to see it can drive the point home poignantly for the audience.

FINALLY, AVOID FAIRY TALE ENDINGS – They simply don’t play out for the audience. The Christian message is one of hope. The audience won’t buy a piece in which the character accepts the Lord and suddenly finds her rent paid, her car fixed, and a new promotion at the office. But a guy who finds all the world against him, who hears the Word, and who realizes that he can brave the storm as long as he’s got the Lord’s word in his heart…THAT the audience will buy. That’s the piece that will deliver the Christian message with honest and realism. And, that’s the piece that will touch the heart of the lost soul sitting in your church.

Touching the hearts of the lost. Isn’t that what evangelism is about in the first place?