Letters to a Young Playwright: Practical and Impractical Advice on the Art of Playwriting

Adam Szymkowicz is that rarest of things: a working playwright. At a time when the entire business model of American theatre seems on the verge of implosion—and most dramatists survive only through soul-sucking day jobs, the largesse of patrons or their own families, or writing for television—Szymkowicz has carved out a distinctive niche for himself without relying on big institutions or the brass ring of a Broadway production. Each year, his body of work—over 20 sharp, funny, pop-culture-inflected plays animated by an unabashed romanticism—is staged everywhere from major urban theatres to colleges and high schools. In Letters to a Young Playwright, Szymkowicz dispenses hard-earned, unsentimental, and entertaining advice to early-career dramatists. Modeled on Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet, it covers topics like writer’s block, self-promotion, and the pluses and minuses of pivoting to Hollywood in insightful and digestible short essays. Perfect for beginning playwrights as well as mid-career writers looking to reinvigorate their craft and career, it contains endlessly useful advice and reflections from one of the most-produced living playwrights in America—as well as a handful of select excerpts from the over 1,100 interviews he has conducted with playwrights since 2009.