Bøker av Erik Patterson

"Erik Patterson's strange new play is one that takes you by surprise and ravishes you."-Rob Kendt, Backstage WestElliot is lost in a world of sex workers-late night house calls from hustlers and phone calls with call girls. Becky is torn between two worlds-her day job as a stripper and being a mom to fifteen-year-old Rose (a Goth girl who wants nothing to do with her). And then there's Little B, who has stripped away every piece of herself until all she has left is her obsession with Icelandic pop singer Bjork. This troubled family's shared past holds unspeakable horrors and they must join forces if they ever want to heal.WINNER, Backstage West Garland Award, Best PlaywritingFINALIST, PEN USA Literary AwardPlay DetailsYellow Flesh / Alabaster Rose is a full-length play in five acts, with one intermission.Cast: 5 female, 4 maleGenre: dark comedyKeywords: family, Bjork, LGBTQ, abuse, love, sex work, siblings, trauma, healingCharacter BreakdownELLIOT, a man in his early thirties. Sometimes known as Tom.LITTLE B, his sister, fifteen.BECKY, a woman in her thirties. Sometimes known as Hunter.ROSE, her daughter, fifteen.MOM, a mother in her fifties. Named Rose Silverstein.JUSTIN, a hustler in his late twenties to thirties.BROOKE/KRISTEN, a phone-sex operator in her twenties to thirties.MIKE, a hustler in his fifties.DR. MARTIN PERKINS, DR. ALBERT ELLIS, DR. STEARN, a professor, a psychologist, and an ER doctor (all played by the same actor)FATHER, a voice/memory (played by the same actor who plays Mike).

"Take an ordinary, screwed-up family--okay, maybe not so ordinary but definitely screwed up--and allow them to be honest with each other for the first time, and you have a powerful evening of love, American style. A mother researches every nuance of gay life (from sex toys to Matthew Shepard) in order to understand her son, a sister becomes Bjork to deal with abuse-trauma, a daughter/mother/lap-dancer finally finds herself, a brother falls in love despite his tortured past. Every member of this extended family steals your heart as they daringly begin to recognize their own. Dark, funny, and searingly insightful, playwright Erik Patterson is on the road to great renown."-- Flavorpill.net, Lee BradleyA gay clown. Two lesbian strippers. A pregnant Goth teen. A deadbeat dad. A horny mother. And a girl who thinks she's Bjork. In this stand-alone sequel to Yellow Flesh / Alabaster Rose, the Silverstein family journey towards healing is abruptly halted when Elliot becomes the victim of a brutal gay bashing.NOMINEE, LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards: Best PlaywritingRed Light, Green Light is a full-length play with one intermission.

Pop Prompts Showtunes uses musical theater classics to awaken your creative spirit.Every writing prompt in this book was inspired by a specific showtune. Listen to the song at the top of the page before you write. Let the song set a tone for your writing session. Think about what the song means, think about what the songwriters want you to feel. Feel those emotions! Let the song fill you up. Then read the accompanying writing prompt and start working.For every showtune, there are four writing prompts. Depending on what you're writing, you'll follow a different path through the book:If you're a songwriter, focus on the Musical Prompts. All you need to do is develop a song from each chapter and you're well on your way to creating your own musical.If you're writing a book, play, or screenplay, look at the Fiction Prompts. They'll take you on a journey through character and plot development, and help you find your voice. Do one prompt from each chapter and you'll have the skeleton of your story in no time.If you want to think deeply about yourself and the world around you, dive into the Journaling Prompts. These prompts pose questions that will take you on an introspective journey. Forget about shadow work-I'd rather have my trauma healed by showtunes!If you're a drama student, the Stagecraft Prompts give a framework for understanding how musicals function. These showtunes represent the development of musical theater over more than 100 years. Discover how to make drama through song. Listen, learn, and write.You can deviate from your path. If you're writing a musical but you want to do one of the fiction prompts, do it. If a fiction prompt inspires some self-reflection, get journaling! If one of the journaling prompts inspires a song for your musical, wonderful.The book ends with a Master Class, where we'll take a close look at the musical Fun Home.Wake up your inner theater geek and get creative. It's time to make your writing pop."An inspired and inspiring invitation to creativity, this book is a gift to any writer facing the twin terrors of the blank page and the blinking cursor, and an expert guide to the how and why of great musical theater storytelling." - Steven Levenson, writer, Dear Evan Hansen, 2017 Tony Award Winner"Erik Patterson is a brilliant, hilarious, and soulful writer as well as a gifted writing teacher. With Pop Prompts Showtunes, he channels his wit and intelligence into clear, focused, actionable mini-writing assignments that will infuse your writing process with joy. Looking for inspiration? It's right here. This book will change your life." - Bridget Carpenter, writer, Freaky Friday: The Musical"Erik's writing prompts have been vital in breaking me out of creative confinement and into inventive thought. For any writer who wants to breathe life into their stories and characters, this book is a game-changer." - Sydney Lucas, writer and actor, 2015 Tony Award Nominee, Fun Home"What a treat. On a single page you get a perfectly distilled look at a song's structure and function, followed by multiple angles and perspectives from which to approach that same song-getting your creativity, individuality, and emotional life fired up!" - Rebecca Naomi Jones, actor and singer, Passing Strange and Oklahoma! on Broadway

Pop Prompts For Swifties uses the songs of Taylor Swift as a source of endless inspiration. Every writing prompt in this book is paired with one of Taylor's songs from the first "era" of her storytelling journey, from her debut album Taylor Swift(2006), to Fearless (2008), to Speak Now (2010), to Red (2012), and all the way through 1989 (2014). Go find the song on Apple Music or Spotify (or wherever you get your music), let the song wash over you, then do the accompanying prompt. The idea is to let Taylor's music be your muse, and see where your muse takes you!Whether you're jotting down extemporaneous thoughts in a journal or you're a published author looking for a way to shake up your writing routine, or anywhere in between, Pop Prompts For Swifties is for you. These writing prompts were designed to help you find your voice. Taylor's music will give you an extra dose of inspiration.Don't be fooled by the title: there are actually more than 99 writing prompts in these pages. Every prompt includes multiple questions, laying out plenty of emotional terrain for you to write about. If you aren't a die-hard Swiftie, you're among the lucky ones who get to discover Taylor's music while getting into a writing groove. But you don't even have to think of yourself as a writer to do these writing prompts. Anyone can use them as a tool for self-expression and reflection.As a bonus, each prompt includes blank journal pages. Pour your heart out. First thoughts are often your best thoughts, so use the blank journal pages in this book to get those down. Then if you want to write more, you can dig even deeper in another stand-alone journal.Inspiration is only a song away. Put on your favorite Taylor Swift album, pick a prompt, and start writing!DISCLAIMER: This book is meant for educational, scholarship, and research purposes. By taking a critical look at the themes in Taylor Swift's work, we aim to inspire writers to create their own unique works of personal writing and fiction. Writers using this book are encouraged to research their own hearts and psyches in order to become scholars of their inner selves. Song titles are referenced in the spirit of Fair Use and readers should seek out and purchase Taylor Swift's music on their own as a supplement to the original writing prompts in this book. Taylor Swift has no involvement with this book. The use of her name is merely descriptive and should not be interpreted as a sign of endorsement.

Pop Prompts is a collection of therapeutic writing prompts that will help you break through creative blocks. Each prompt is paired with a pop song. Let it be your muse as you work on your memoir, novel, script, poetry--or even your own songs.

David needs to get laid, Gary could use a drink, and Tim would like you to take your top off. Carla craves cocaine, Jeannie's got God, and Pamela keeps digging herself deeper into the funny and frightening world of hypochondria. But when one of their own gets sick for real, they're all going to have to face their greatest fears and grow up.NOMINEE, LA Weekly Award, Outstanding PlaywritingPlay DetailsSick is a 90-minute play with no intermission.Cast: 3 female, 3 male, 1 childGenre: comedic dramaKeywords: hypochondria, mothers, leukemia, sexCharacter BreakdownPAMELA, a twenty-eight-year-old woman.DAVID, her husband.MICHAEL, their ten-year-old son.BROWN, his doctor. Handsome, charming.GARY, Pamela's brother.CARLA, his wife.JEANNIE, an addict, a sales clerk.

Our lives can change in an instant. One moment you're getting engaged, and a few surreal moments later you're sitting with strangers in an ICU waiting room, praying your fiancé will survive a brain aneurysm. While waiting for Frank to wake from a coma, Ada meets Julia, Paul, and Josh, who are waiting for their mom to wake up. A tenuous friendship is born. I Wanna Hold Your Hand looks at life, death, and recovery, and what it means to try your hand at living again...NOMINEE, Stage Raw Awards, Best PlaywritingPlay DetailsI Wanna Hold Your Hand is a full-length play in two acts, with one intermission.Cast: 3 female, 3 maleGenre: comedic dramaKeywords: stroke, recovery, family, infidelity, health care, loveCharacter BreakdownJULIA, 30s, an actress.PAUL, 30s, a good son.MARY JEAN, 60s, their mother. Recovering from a brain aneurysm.JOSH, 30s, also an actor.ADA, 30s, a book editor.FRANK, 30s, engaged to Ada. Recovering from a brain aneurysm and a stroke, suffers from aphasia.

An encounter between a white, gay playwright and his black, straight "shirtless maid" goes disastrously wrong when signals are misinterpreted, lines crossed. Handjob explores the aftermath of their meeting, as it reveals deep layers of discrimination, discord, and discontent among people who should be allies. How can you know when you've gone too far if you completely ignore other people's boundaries?NOMINEE, LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards: Best PlaywritingPlay DetailsHandjob is a 90-minute play with no intermission.Cast: 2 female, 4 maleGenre: dark comedy, dramedy, edgy, modern classic, dysfunction, new plays, subversive, provocative, radical, boldCharacter BreakdownEDDIE, 20s, black, handsome, fit. Straight.KEITH, 50s, white, a writer, disheveled. Gay.BRADLEY, 20s, white, beautiful, fit, confident. Fluid.KEVIN, 40s, white, a writer, disheveled. Gay.SUSAN, 30s, a woman of color, passionate. Queer.TREVOR, played by actor who plays Kevin.JEFFREY, played by actor who plays Bradley.KATE, 20s, a woman of color. Queer.

It's the early 2000s, before PrEP. Ted is new to Los Angeles, and newly out of the closet. He goes on a journey through Hollywood back rooms, nightclub bathrooms, and Internet chat rooms-where he meets and falls in love with Henry. But Henry doesn't yet know how to navigate the dating landscape with his new HIV diagnosis, so he breaks things off with Ted...who then makes a desperate decision to win Henry back. He Asked For Itasks how far are you willing to go for love? And how much will you forgive?NOMINEE, Outstanding Los Angeles Theater, GLAAD Media AwardsNOMINEE, World Premiere Playwriting, Ovation AwardsPlay DetailsHe Asked For It is a full-length play in two acts, with one intermission. This edition of He Asked For It includes a BONUS third act that further expands the story. The play can be performed with or without Act 3.Cast: 1 female, 6 maleGenre: Drama, Dark Comedy, Edgy, New Plays, Subversive, Gay Theater, Queer Theater, Provocative, EpicKeywords: LGBTQ, gay, romance, HIV, Hollywood, tragedy, forgiveness, radical, bold, love story, suicide, coming out, hate, hate crimes, gay life, dysfunction, redemption, loss, remorse, intimacy, intimacy coordinator, sex, nudity, cancer, loneliness, West Hollywood, WeHo, nightlife, chat rooms, family, love, Grindr, AOL, graphic content, acting, representationCharacter Breakdown: TED, an actor from Wyoming (20s)NEAL, a buff, gym dude (20s to 30s)RIGBY, gaffer from Encino (30s to 40s)MARCUS, Ted's agent (30s to 50s)SOPHIE, Ted's sister (16)HENRY, not an actor, a romantic (20s to 30s)STEVE, an athletic stud (20s to 30s)"This is a brave, worthy take on a difficult topic."- The Los Angeles Times

A paraplegic woman plays outrageous power games to get something she desperately wants in this dark, twisty, sexy play that takes office politics to new extremes.WINNER, Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award: Best PlaywritingWINNER, Arts in LA Sage Awards: Best PlaywritingNOMINEE, LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards: Best PlaywritingNOMINEE, Stage Raw Awards: Best PlaywritingPlay DetailsOne of the Nice Ones is a 90-minute play with no intermission.Cast: 2 female, 2 maleGenre: dark comedy, satire, workplace comedy, modern classic, dysfunction, dramedy, edgy, new plays, subversive, provocative, radical, boldKeywords: intimacy, body image, eating disorders, diet culture, body dysmorphia, BDD, Body Identity Integrity Disorder, sexual harassment, Me Too Movement, self-image, self-esteem, patriarchy, power plays, power dynamics, disability, identity politics, ethicsCharacter BreakdownTRACY, a white woman in a wheelchair. She is a shark who smells blood in the water.ROGER, her boss, a cis straight white male. The epitome of privilege.NEAL, a co-worker, a man of color. Genuinely nice, honest, good.COLLEEN/WANDA, a client, a woman of color. Done being nice. Fuck nice.