The Writing Life x3

Sunday, December 28, 2025

Writing by the Numbers 2025

The Kittie Knox Plays felt like a triumph this year. (Photo by Benjamin Rose Photography

This year got off to a rough start, as the Trump administration's attack and gutting of the National Park Service put an end to Plays in Place's Suffrage in Black & White project with the National Parks of Boston. This meant that our production of A New Era by Miranda ADEkoje scheduled for July was canceled (as well as our production of Nothing But Victory! by Ginger Lazarus in 2026). This squelched the telling of important, powerful stories about the intersection of race, abolition, and the movement for woman suffrage in America. Financially, it was blow to our company, erasing a third of our planned budget for both 2025 and 2026.

Our other projects kept going, and we had a busy spring, with sold-out concert readings of my plays Blood on the Snow and A Light Under the Dome in Northampton, in partnership with Historic Northampton and the Unitarian Universalist Society of Northampton. Both of these plays were hugely important to me as a playwright, and it was a joy to see them reach audiences in my new hometown. Both were directed by Brianna Sloane and produced by Talya Kingston for Plays in Place (PiP). My play, Hot Love in the Moonlight, made a return visit to Mount Auburn Cemetery for the 10th anniversary of their Artist in Residence Program. My work at Mount Auburn has made a huge impact on my life and career.

My play Revolution's Edge made a spectacular appearance in Boston in April as an outdoor concert reading for the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of Paul Revere's famous ride. We saw more than a thousand spectators crammed into the Prado pavilion behind Old North Church. Producer/director/ASL coordinator Jess Meyer led this project that ended up being one we won't ever forget and included visits from Governor Healey and Boston Mayor Wu.

Yes, that's me sitting next to the Governor.

The Summer got off to a big start with a workshop production of Mox Nox (or soon some the night) directed by Alexandra Smith for Moonbox Productions Boston New Works Festival. Even though it was technically a workshop production, the team went all out in every aspect--set, sound, lights, magic (led by my pal Evan Northrup), and a totally committed and talented cast. This play's initial production was squashed by the pandemic and had waited to finally reach the stage. This year's process was boosted by being part of Gloucester Stage's Water's Rising Festival in the spring.

Dustin Teuber and Marleena Garris in Mox Nox (photo by

Jenine Florence)

We managed to raise the money for PiP to produce The Kittie Knox Plays, a series of three one-act plays by me, Claire Gardner, and Kirsten Greenidge, about the barrier breaking bi-racial cyclist Kittie Knox and her friends in the 1890s. Our large team included 9 actors, 3 musicians, 4 understudies, and many others, all skillfully led by director Michelle Aguillon, producer Hannah McEachern, and stage manager Katelyn Paddock. The plays were produced over three weeks in three different spots in three towns. It was a project that took years to make happen, in partnership with MassBike, and it was a fabulous experience.

Hampton Richards, Beyonce Martinez, and Rebekah Brunson in The Kittie Knox Plays. Photo by Benjamin Rose Photography

In November, we produced my play A Revelation of Character, about Boston abolitionists Maria Weston Chapman and Lydia Maria Child and their friendship which was battered by the fight for abolition in the 1830s and 1840s. This piece was commissioned by the Associates of the Boston Public Library and focused on letters and writings from the Anti-Slavery Collection in the BPL's Special Collections. Designed to be presented as a concert reading in Rabb Hall at the Main Branch of the BPL, we had a killer cast led by director/producer Lisa Rafferty. (This project is quite portable, and we have high hopes it might appear elsewhere in 2026).

Jennifer Drummond, Emma Friend, and Amie Lytle in A Revelation of Character. Photo by Benjamin Rose Photography

I feel extremely fortunate to work with a such a great team of artistic collaborators at Plays in Place. My kick-ass producers (Jess Meyer, Hannah McEachern, Talya Kingston, Jessica Chace, Nicole Young-Martin, and Lisa Rafferty) make it possible for us to have so many high quality projects in development and production at once.

Productions of my published plays were lower than usual. I don't know if they're just too old within the catalogs or if the market has softened overall. I send out many fewer of unproduced plays to theaters because most of my energy is focused on work for PiP.

Next year will be extremely busy, with four new PiP productions in three states, plus a big consulting gig we're doing in Texas (on five sites!), plus a commission that I'm writing for Central Square Theatre and the MIT Museum. And we're going to publish a paperback book of The Kittie Knox Plays in the spring. I've got all the work I can handle.

I share these statistic with the hope that others will do so, too, and that aspiring writers (aren't we all) will get some data points about the writing life and business.

Live music was an important part of The Kittie Knox Plays. Lee Forrest, Elise Brown, and Nick Chieffo did great work.

My writing/life stats for 2025:

Performances/Audience.

Number of Productions/Readings: 19 (18 full productions and concert readings, 1 developmental reading).

These were of 15 different plays, including 5 different full-length scripts, in 7 US states.

Number of Performances: 47. This includes published plays. This is almost half of last year's total, but that's because our productions at Plays in Place had very limited runs.

Previous Years' productions and performances:

2024: 20 productions and readings, 91 performances

2023: 43 productions and readings, 141 performances

2022: 18 productions and readings, 33 performances

2021: 26 productions and readings, 60 performances

2020: 14 productions and readings, 21 performances

2019: 46 productions and readings, 310 performances

2018: 42 productions and readings. 259 performances.
2017: 48 total. 227 performances.

2016: 40 total. 106 performances.

2015: 49 total. 151 performances.

2014: 44 total. 123 performances.

Estimated Audience for 2025: 4,685 total.

My audience numbers were up just a tad from last year. Plays in Place had strong audiences, but fewer performances overall than in past years.

Previous years' audiences:

2024: 4,529

2023: 7,293

2022: 1,760

2021: 3,300

2020: 1,607

2019: 12,077

2018: 11,424

2017: 13,092

2016: 6,000

2015: 11,578

2014: 13,411

(For published plays I estimate 50 people/performance, which is probably low. I don't track plays used by students in competition, so the actual number is higher. )

Book sales remain tiny. However, Steering to Freedom just came out as an audio book from Audible, which has me motivated to get more people to listen and read this story. (I've been listening to it and it's REALLY compelling.)

Books sold: 10
Previous Years' book sales: 10

2024: 10

2023: 8
2022: 22
2021: 15
2020: 76
2019: 35
2018: 77
2017: 40+
2016: 60+
2015: 350+
2014: 78

Marketing:

Almost all my marketing time is spent securing new Plays in Place projects, which leaves little time for other submissions. The Playwright Submission Binge remains a useful reminder to make sure I take some time to market my non-PiP work.

Submissions:
Total: 17 (up from 12 last year)

Carpentry projects provide a break from writing and theater work. I'm still in the process converting the loft of our barn into a rehearsal space.

Writing output:

This year I had commissions to write a couple new plays for Plays in Place.

I wrote A Revelation of Character, an historical play about Lydia Maria Child and Maria Weston Chapman for the Associates of the Boston Public Library, which was produced at the BPL in November, directed by Lisa Rafferty.
Wrote a new one-act play for Historic Deerfield, Sparks on Dry Tinder, which we'll produce there in July 2026
Wrote a new ten-minute comedy for next year's Boston Theater Marathon.
Finished one-act play, For Love and Glory, which Plays in Place will produce at Hunter House in Newport in June.
Wrote The Slippery Truth: Prisonbreak at New-Gate, a new full-length site-specific play which Plays in Place will produce at Old New-Gate Prison and Copper Mine in Connecticut in July.
LOTS of research on new historical projects.

In the coming year, I have two big full-length commissions to write.

Inputs:
Plays watched: 19 (saw 31 in 2024)
Movies/TV series watched: 45 (37 in 2024)
Plays read: 11 (10 in 2024)
Books read: 21 (25 in 2024)

Plus more than a dozen concerts and museum visits. I saw many fewer plays than in a normal year because I was in rehearsal or at performances a LOT this year. Next year will be the same.

Live music was an important part of The Kittie Knox Plays. Lee Forrest, Elise Brown, and Nick Chieffo were so much fun.

Patrick's writing $$ for 2025

Gross Income:  $38,729
published plays performance royalties: $186
non Plays in Place play production royalties: $1,795
film projects: $0
play commissions & Plays in Place playwright pay: $23,040
teaching/coaching/consulting: $570
my books: $7
Prizes/fellowships: $0
Producer work for Plays in Place: $13,129
misc. (essays, panels, editing, other): $0

Expenses: about $2,625

Net Income: $36,104 (before taxes)

Past years:

2024: Gross income: $27,278 Expenses: $3,600 Net: $23,678

2023: Gross income: $22,765 Expenses: $13,000 Net: $9,765

2022: Gross income: $22,025 Expenses: $7,095 Net: $14,930

2021: Gross income: $11,394 Expenses: $5,866 Net: $5,582

2020: Gross income: $14,162 Expenses: $5,822 Net: $8,340

2019: Gross income: $19,511 Expenses: $7,500 Net: $11,761

2018: Gross Income: $23,192 Expenses: $14,227 net: $8,965

2017: Gross Income: $31,343 Expenses: $9,715 net: $21,628

2016: Gross Income: $25,857 Expenses: $11,472 net: $14,385

2015: Gross income: $8,662 Expenses: $4,979 net: $3,682

2014: Gross income: $7,974 Expenses $5,580 net: $2,494

2013: Gross income: $7,767 Expenses: 5,758 net: $2,029

2012: Gross Income: $3,844 Expenses: $2,808 net: $1,063

2011: Gross Income: $2,638 Expenses: $4,665 net: $-2,027

This was a good year for my writing/producing income, my best ever, and a step up from last year. Depending on how you look at it, I'm still not earning as much as I should be for my producing work (works out to about $10/hour), but I make up for that on the writing/commission side.

My income is highly erratic, as I tend to get paid last on a project, after all the other expenses and paychecks have cleared. That's the peril of owning and running a small business.

Anyone will tell you that it's almost impossible to make a living as a playwright. This is my best attempt.

A Revelation Character was written specifically for Rabb Hall, but it's pretty portable. (Photo by Benjamin Rose Photography)

My time stats for 2025:

Total working time: 2,052 hours total transit time: 211 hours

Time spent on writing stuff: 1,759 hours

actual writing and research: 400 hours

reading for work (not project research): 18 hours

play attendance: 35 hours

rehearsals/meetings/consulting/teaching: 99 hours

marketing and admin: 30 hours

Seven Devils New Play Foundry board work & Play Incubation Advisory: 25 hours

Plays in Place: 1,153 hours (this includes all aspects of production, including rehearsals)

Time spent on Home/Barn Renovation/Projects : 293 hours

Overall, I put in about 100 more hours of work this year than in 2024. (I need to watch out for hours creeping up too high.) My writing/research hours were down slightly, producing hours were up. I've had to step back from some of my volunteer board work--with four big shows coming for PiP, I'm going to be stretched pretty thin in 2026.

I don't count vegetable gardening and making maple syrup as work, but I did track my hours, and I spent an additional 151 hours on these hobbies.

How I spent my time in past years:

2024: 1,918 total work hours. 1,694 writing work hours (422 writing/27 reading/58 play attendance/87 rehearsing & meetings/43 admin & marketing/12 board & organization time/Plays in Place 1,045. 202 in transit. 224 hours on home renovations & real estate.

2023: 1,904 total work hours. 1,597 writing hours (421 writing/12 reading/56 play attendance/108 rehearsing & meetings/96 admin & marketing/27 Seven Devils/Plays in Place 585. 260 in transit. 307 hours on home renovations & real estate.

2022: 1,705 total work hours. 1,340 writing hours (409 writing/18 reading/44 play attendance/130 rehearsing & meetings/127 admin & marketing/60 Seven Devils/Plays in Place 844. 167 in transit. 365 hours on home renovations & real estate.

2021: 1,698 total work hours. 1,358 writing hours (480 writing/11 reading/48 play attendance/189 rehearsing/156 marketing/27 Seven Devils/37 Dramatists Guild/9 Media Work/ 451 Plays in Place. 157 in transit. 339 hours on home renovations/real estate.

2020: 1,882 total work hours. 1,382 writing hours (580 writing/21 reading/55 play attendance/129 rehearsing/176 marketing/36 Seven Devils/106 Dramatists Guild/200 Plays in Place. 78.5 in transit. 519 hours on home renovations/real estate.

2019: 2,119 total work hours. 1,619 writing hours (394 writing/31 reading/83 play attendance/375 rehearsing/210 marketing/11 New Play Alliance/79 Dramatists Guild/437 Plays in Place. 294 hours in transit. 500 hours on home renovations/real estate.

2018: 1,905 total works hours. 1,905 writing hours (546 writing/30 reading/89 play attendance/553 rehearsing/373 marketing & admin/41 New Play Alliance/110 Dramatists Guild/164 Plays in Place). 282 hours in transit.

2017: 2,018 total work hours. 1,338 writing hours (371 writing/23 reading/468 rehearsing/347 marketing/129 New Play Alliance and Dramatists Guild)+680 hours on house renovations

2016: 2,096 total work hours. 1,223 writing hours (416 writing/28 reading/438 rehearsing/274 marketing-admin/67 New Play Alliance)+873 on house renovations.

2015: 1,596 total work hours. 1,035 writing hours (262 writing/52 reading/295 rehearsing/303 marketing-admin/123 New Play Alliance) + 561 on moving and house renovations

2014: 1,556 total work hours. 1,426 writing hours (452 writing/109 reading/342 rehearsing/396 marketing/127 New Play Alliance) + 130 hours farming.

2013: 1,898 total work hours. 996 writing hours (394 writing/308 rehearsing/294 marketing) + 902 hours farming

2012: 1,630 total work hours. 896 writing hours. (386 writing/278 rehearsing and meeting/231 marketing) + 734 hours farming

2011: 818 writing/work hours. My kids were a lot younger back then.

That's it. I hope you find these stats are useful or interesting.

Thanks for reading. I hope you all have a Happy New Year!

I'm lucky--I get to make plays in amazing places with amazing people, and often learn a lot about history and life along the way.

Here are some links to other end-of-year posts by my playwright friends:

Monday, December 30, 2024

Writing by the Numbers 2024

Amanda J. Collins in A Light Under the Dome, photo by Nile Scott Shots.

In 2024, almost all of my creative energy was focused on my work with Plays in Place (PiP). Pulling at the Roots played for a second sold-out year at Historic Northampton, and Revolution's Edge returned to Boston's Old North Church for 11 weeks this summer. My full-length play, A Light Under the Dome, premiered in the Senate Chamber of the Massachusetts State House, for what felt like a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The team was amazing, audiences were enthusiastic, and by the final performance we had more than 200 people on the waiting list. This was part 1 of a 3-play series, Suffrage in Black & White, that we're creating for the National Parks of Boston.

Plays in Place reached almost 2,500 audience members with our shows, over 59 performances in 2024. Plus we were workshopping our new bike plays, The Kittie Knox Plays, which we plan to produce in 2025

Myka Plunkett and Will MacAdams in The Optimists Razor in Northampton, photo by Tom Kelleher

We are currently working on projects with the National Parks of Boston, MassBike, Old North Illuminated, Historic Northampton, Old New-Gate Prison & Copper Mine (State of CT), Historic Deerfield, The Preservation Society of Newport County, the Texas Historical Commission, the Associates of the Boston Public Library, and others.

I feel extremely fortunate to work with a such a great team of artistic collaborators at Plays in Place, and it's been a joy to watch the company continue to grow (our budget almost doubled from 2023 to 2024).

Outside of PiP, my number of productions was way down from last year. I had a small handful of short plays produced by companies here and there, and my published short plays saw a little action but not much. One big highlight was the creation and production of Leap/Fly with my friend and magician, Evan Northrup, for the Boston Theater Marathon. This was my 20th appearance at the festival and it was exciting to bring a play that was a magic show, too.

Part of the reason for so many few productions outside of PiP is that I've mostly stopped writing and submitting other scripts. My number of submissions is my lowest since 1990. Instead of sending out script submissions, I spend a lot of time meeting with museums and other potential clients for Plays in Place, and networking now involves presenting at museum conferences. My writing and research schedule is a bit overfull at the moment, all for projects that are commissioned work. I'm at the point where i have to decline to take on new gigs because I just don't have enough hours in the day. Even so, I still feel a little guilty about not marketing my other plays as much, like I've abandoned them somehow.

As always, I share these numbers with the hope that others will do so, too, and aspiring writers (aren't we all) will get some data points about the writing life and business.

Stetson Marshall in Revolution's Edge at Old North Church, photo by Ben Rose

My writing/life stats for 2024:

Performances/Audience.

Number of Productions/Readings: 20 (20 full productions, 0 readings).

These were of 18 different plays, including 2 full-length scripts, in 10 US states and 3 countries (US, Canada, plus my first show in Argentina!).

Number of Performances: 91. This includes published plays.

Previous Years' productions and performances:

2023: 43 productions and readings, 141 performances

2022: 18 productions and readings, 33 performances

2021: 26 productions and readings, 60 performances

2020: 14 productions and readings, 21 performances

2019: 46 productions and readings, 310 performances

2018: 42 productions and readings. 259 performances.
2017: 48 total. 227 performances.

2016: 40 total. 106 performances.

2015: 49 total. 151 performances.

2014: 44 total. 123 performances.

Estimated Audience for 2023: 4,529 total.

These numbers are way down from last year. But I feel good about the quality of experience my audience is receiving, especially from our Plays in Place shows. That being said, I'd sure like to get back to more than 10,000 a year, but I can't see that happening for a while.

Previous years' audiences:

2023: 7,293

2022: 1,760

2021: 3,300

2020: 1,607

2019: 12,077

2018: 11,424

2017: 13,092

2016: 6,000

2015: 11,578

2014: 13,411

(For published plays I estimate low--50 people/performance. I don't track plays used by students in competition, so the actual number is higher. )

Thomika Bridwell, Marge Dunn, and Regine Vital in A Light Under the Dome , photo by Nile Scott Shots

My novels have all been out for a while now, so sales are tiny.

Books sold: 10
Previous Years' book sales: 8

2023: 8
2022: 22
2021: 15
2020: 76
2019: 35
2018: 77
2017: 40+
2016: 60+
2015: 350+
2014: 78

Marketing:

Almost all of my marketing time is spent securing new Plays in Place projects, which leaves little time for other submissions. The Playwright Submission Binge remains a useful support to make sure I take some time to market my non-PiP work, but even then my numbers are WAY down. If I can find the time, I want to send more copies of published work to companies in 2025.

Submissions:
Total: 12 (down from 45 last year)

queries for plays: 0
play scripts submitted: 12

Carpentry projects provide a good break from writing and theater work. I'm working hard on converting the loft of our barn into a rehearsal space.

Writing output:

I was mostly doing a lot of research and revision this year, but I did some new drafting.

Wrote the first draft of For Love and Honor, a new site-specific one-act, scheduled for production in 2026.
Started the first draft of a new historical play on a commission. Schedule for production in 2025
LOTS of research on new historical projects.

In 2025, I need to write at least three new historical plays on a commission--two full-lengths and a one-act, plus revise a few already in progress. PiP has a LOT of productions already lined up for 2026, so those are being written this coming year.

Inputs:
Plays watched: 31 (saw 26 in 2023)
Movies/TV series watched: 37 (51in 2023)
Plays read: 10 (10 in 2023)
Books read: 25 (25 in 2023)

Patrick's writing $$ for 2024

Gross Income: $27,278
published plays performance royalties: $642
non Plays in Place play production royalties: $271
film projects: $0
play commissions & Plays in Place playwright pay: $8,360
teaching/coaching/consulting: $785
my books: $20
Prizes/fellowships: $0
Producer work for Plays in Place: $17,200
misc. (essays, panels, editing, other): $0

Expenses: about $3,600

Net Income: $23,678 (before taxes)

Past years:

2023: Gross income: $22,765 Expenses: $13,000 Net: $9,765

2022: Gross income: $22,025 Expenses: $7,095 Net: $14,930

2021: Gross income: $11,394 Expenses: $5,866 Net: $5,582

2020: Gross income: $14,162 Expenses: $5,822 Net: $8,340

2019: Gross income: $19,511 Expenses: $7,500 Net: $11,761

2018: Gross Income: $23,192 Expenses: $14,227 net: $8,965

2017: Gross Income: $31,343 Expenses: $9,715 net: $21,628

2016: Gross Income: $25,857 Expenses: $11,472 net: $14,385

2015: Gross income: $8,662 Expenses: $4,979 net: $3,682

2014: Gross income: $7,974 Expenses $5,580 net: $2,494

2013: Gross income: $7,767 Expenses: 5,758 net: $2,029

2012: Gross Income: $3,844 Expenses: $2,808 net: $1,063

2011: Gross Income: $2,638 Expenses: $4,665 net: $-2,027

My income rose a fair bit this year, with almost all of it coming from Plays in Place work. Plus, my writing expenses now come out of the Plays in Place budget, so my net income is MUCH higher. I don't get much of a "salary" just for being Producing Artistic Director, but I do get paid for my work as a producer on various projects, and I get paid for researching, writing, revising, and rehearsing the plays we create. There are couple big question marks about 2025, but if things go well, my income should increase again.

Claire Gardner, Kirsten Greenidge, and I have been writing plays about cyclist Kittie Knox

My time stats for 2024:

Total working time: 1,918 hours total transit time: 202 hours

Time spent on writing stuff: 1,694 hours

actual writing and research: 422 hours

reading for work (not project research): 27 hours

play attendance: 58 hours

rehearsals/meetings/consulting/teaching: 87 hours

marketing and admin: 43 hours

Seven Devils New Play Foundry Board Work: 12 hours

Plays in Place: 1,045 hours

Time spent on Home Renovations/Projects : 224 hours

My overall work time stayed about the same this year, and I made my goal of 400 hours of writing/research time. The amount of time I spend on Plays in Place work just about doubled--almost all my work time is spent on PiP, though I'm still carving out time for home and barn renovations.

How I spent my time in past years: