Name: What is a Play? What is Story?
Uploaded: 2023-08-30T21:41:24.810Z
Duration: 4 min 39 s
Description: You can't start writing your plays until you know what makes a play! In this video I clearly and simply explain the three elements of a play (story, performance, and stage space), and go into more depth on exactly what IS a story! With examples from well-known stories THE WIZARD OF OZ and TOY STORY.

You can't start writing your plays until you know what makes a play! In this video I clearly and simply explain the three elements of a play (story, performance, and stage space), and go into more depth on exactly what IS a story! With examples from well-known stories THE WIZARD OF OZ and TOY STORY.

Creative Writing

I'm an award-winning writer with a master’s degree in Dramatic Writing from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), a certificate from CMU’s Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence, and a BA in English and Theater from Loyola University Chicago. I have been teaching for over 10 years, both in and outside of the classroom. I am passionate about meeting students where they are in order to help them get where they want to go!

As a tutor, I go the extra mile to personalize lessons. I specialize in working with adult and teen students on English, essay and creative writing, personal statements, and GRE/ACT/SAT test preparation. I always treat students as individuals, identifying challenge areas and generating personalized lesson plans to target learning goals. I prioritize student buy-in, working to ensure that content is engaging. I believe in helping students find their own answers, fostering critical thinking skills through thoughtful discussion. Learning is a lifelong process and I am always learning from my students.

I have worked with students from middle schoolers to corporate executives. At CMU I taught undergraduate playwriting; I also taught advanced screenwriting at Houston's High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. I have completed hundreds of hours of tutoring on other platforms.

Above all, I want to help you thrive. I will always be timely and specific in my communication as we figure out together how to meet and exceed your goals. I can't wait to get started!

What is a Play? What is Story?

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ACT English

Writing

Essay Writing

ACT Test Prep

Screenwriting

ACT Reading

Elementary

Middle School

High School

College

Sloan/CMU Screenwriting Award

Kennedy Center National Student Playwriting Award

Received via the Future Faculty Program, which included:
-instructional courses
-development of a teaching philosophy statement
-supervision of curriculum development
-in-person teaching feedback

Teaching Certificate

•	Crafted curriculum introducing students to a wide variety of dramatic genres, structures, and scales
•	Formulated rigorous writing and revising schedule for students to generate and polish 1-act scripts

Instructor: Advanced Screenwriting

•	Designed syllabus to satisfy university objectives for both Theatre and Women’s studies credit
•	Fostered expansive writer toolboxes through lecture, practical exercises, and targeted feedback
•	Examined foundational dramatic and feminist texts through reading and guided discussion

Instructor of Record: Introduction to Playwriting

•	Taught middle- and high- school students organization tactics and tools to help with list-making and task completion looking ahead to college preparedness

Workshop Instructor: "Hack Your To-Do List"

•	Taught monologue-writing and Irish Theater masterclasses
•	Worked as teaching assistant in movement and acting classes
•	Assistant-directed student production of The Language Archive directed by Laura Schellhardt

Faculty Associate

•	Created curriculum incorporating TX standard learning objectives for 3rd grade science into theatre 
•	Encouraged concept-retention through movement and engagement, assessed weekly in 4 classrooms

Teaching Artist

•	Taught general theater to a rotating group of students from 3rd through 7th grade

•	Tutored students from middle school through high school in english, grammar, writing, and reading comprehension

Tutor: English

Do you want to find your creative voice? Is there a book, a play, a poem, a screenplay itching at the back of your mind? I can help you find the tools -- and the words -- to become the storyteller you want to be! As an award-winning, published, and produced playwright, screenwriter, opera librettist, and essayist, I have practical experience writing and refining creative content. After more than 10 years of teaching students of all ages and experience levels, I also have an extensive toolbox of exercises designed to help you generate ideas, structure narratives, and level-up your craft. Get in touch to discuss how I can help you get started!

I enjoyed my lesson with Brandy; she was very encouraging and positive and made me feel more confident in my writing.

In thirty minutes Brandy has given me a strong sense of what I need to do to move my story notes forward in a clear manner that helps me break down a big project into doable tasks. Excited to see where we can go with my project.

Brandy is very knowledgeable about Screenwriting and is the best with the fundamentals. I learned a lot about screenwriting from her and enough to get the ball rolling on making my own script.

Brandy's knowledge of dramatic structure (for both playwriting and screenwriting) is as definitive as it is nuanced. Without being prescriptive, she guides her students to examine their work through thoughtful questions and dialogue, encouraging burgeoning artists to think for themselves and unleash their own creativity. She is knowledgable, professional, and utterly capable, with a history in undergraduate teaching as well and literary management/editing. Fabulous teacher.

Having Brandy give feedback on scripts of mine is always such a positive and engaging experience.  Her critical eye yields for me comments and questions about my work that are so useful and really stick with me as I edit. Her perspective and understanding of dramatic plot structure and engagement in the macro and micro thematic and character aspects of scripts has been super valuable both in early stages of writing and on later drafts in the process. I would absolutely highly recommend Brandy!

I don't know what to say about Brandy's course other than WOW! Her patience, guidance, and knowledge of the craft of screenwriting have really opened my eyes to what I can expect in this career.

We discussed outlining a screenplay, discovering a theme, and figuring out WHY I want to tell this specific story. 

10/10. I'm definitely coming back for more lessons in the future!

I explain the basics of formatting all the essential elements of a screenplay, including scene headings, action description, dialogue, and character introductions. I also go over the purpose of certain formatting standards, and offer a few content tips!

How to Format Your First Screenplay!

I offer a more in-depth explanation of story structure, following the classic "Hero's Journey" structure. The explanation covers important story milestones, like conflict, action, inciting incident, dramatic question, climax, and resolution. Using a thorough analysis of TOY STORY as an example.

What is Story Structure?

I explain the 3 sub-types of Sentence Completion questions: those with 1 blank, 2 blanks, and 3 blanks, and offer some quick tips for how to find the answer for all 3 question types!

Brandy C.

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