Character Stage Directions

THE PLAYWRITING SEMINARS > FORMAT > FORMAT EXAMPLE > CHARACTER s.d.

Character Stage Directions are placed directly under the Character NAME or between the lines of dialogue of a single speech. Most playwrights use this kind of s.d. sparingly. If you're averaging more than one per page, you're probably cluttering up the dialogue with unnecessary noise. As with everything else in manuscript Format, the visual structure is designed for ease of reading. In this case: clearly separating stage directions from dialogue.


				LARKIN
			(Quietly)
	Doing nothing is the brass ring in this business.

Save Character Stage Directions for those moments when you have an overwhelming need to tell us what the dialogue can't. Here's what they're good for . . .

Physical action to be done as the line is being spoken: (Filling the glass)
Action implying the equivalent of a (Pause) s.d.: (Shaking her head)
Tone of voice or emotional quality of the line: (Distraught)
Clarifying who the line is said to when more than two characters are on stage: (To Joan)

Character Stage Directions are very brief. Odds are you should use a separate Stage Direction if . . .

They're not finished when you hit the right margin.
They describe more than one physical action.
They state what a different character is doing.

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