I’ve learned directing gives me confidence.

It’s kind of ironic. My latest job title is “director,” and yet it’s as a volunteer community theater director that I was unsure.

What I do for a living is directing, being the one to manage employees and facilities, to answer to families, agencies and my bosses. And yet it was play directing that gave me pause.

Several years ago, I took a directing workshop offered by Wisconsin Rapids Community Theatre. During the course of several weeks, we studied both by book and instructor. Additionally, we had to choose a scene, find actors and produce it for an audience of family and theater peers.

After that, I co-directed a holiday show, but at the time I felt more like a glorified stage manager.

And soon after that, I changed up a lot of things in my life and moved away for a couple of years.

Circumstances, COVID and family have brought me back to central Wisconsin, at least for a while, so I volunteered to work on the community theater website.

Next thing I knew, I was asked to direct some Robert Frost poems as skits to be recorded for a production called “Winter Frost.”

Apparently, I don’t know how to say no. Because at the same time, I was closing on a house I purchased with my son and then helping my kids move, clean, paint and repair. This was on top of my regular job in assisted living, my freelance writing and other obligations to family and friends.

Had it been a full show, I’d have known to say no. But it is not a traditional show, and the timeline was short.

Despite socially distanced rehearsals and a lot of time running lines on Zoom or Google Meets, I learned I can direct. I can take a vision in my head and make it reality.

My directing style is coming into focus, too. Like my sets and staging (and life), I keep it simple, with a single goal or concept each time we gather. Character development drives me. I want to know why they do what they do. I sent questions and prompts to my actors to get them to think about their characters. It helps build greater meaning and lets the actors dig deep and make multi-dimensional characters rather than flat or stereotypical ones.

Years behind a camera also helped me plan for simple performances that could be done in one take. That was my goal, but it didn’t quite turn out that way for all three of the poems I directed. Before we were sure how it would be recorded and produced, I made sure that my backup plan was a simple one that I could do: Borrow a camera and tripod from Wisconsin Rapids Community Media and record it myself.

Instead, we’ll have top-notch production from WinterSpring Studios. I thoroughly enjoyed filming the poems with Dan Smith. It was like old times on a movie set, except I got to call “cut” and ask how it looked through the camera lens.

The thought of directing a full production myself is still a little daunting, but I’m much more comfortable with the idea now. I know I’d have lots of resources and people who are willing and able to help. My confidence has grown, and I’m no longer hesitant to direct. Now, I just need to find the right show.

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How to Be a Better Writer Tip

Keep it simple

As writers, we sometimes take on too much. We want to talk about lots of things, and we have many ideas we want to share. That can lead to clutter and confusion in our minds and in our writing.

During my directing experience, I realized I needed to keep things simple. Why? Because I like it that way. I prefer things to be simple, basic, stripped down, even plain. Here’s something else I’ve learned: I’m better able to achieve what I need to if it’s simple. Isn’t that true of everyone and everything?

Simplicity can translate to your writing, too. Find a narrow topic, if possible. If you’re writing something complex or broad, then find ways to break it down into simple steps, segments or sections. Focus on one area at a time.

You even could use a newspaper trick and make every new idea a separate paragraph. Keep each paragraph short – no more than three sentences. Additionally, you can write short sentences so they are easier to understand.

Of course, writing that way for an entire piece can be choppy and hard to read, and variety is important.

But consider how you can keep your writing simple and let me know what you think.