This week’s question comes straight from one of our readers:
“In the face of fast & upcoming contest deadlines, does it help any if the playwright indicates whether they’re submitting ‘First Draft’? ‘Second Draft’? Does that help your chances at all? Or even just in regular submissions?”
Here’s my take.
When you send out a script on submission, it’s generally assumed that you’re submitting the strongest, most polished version of your play that you can. That means, ideally, you don’t want to send in a first draft. Give yourself time to refine, hear it out loud, and fix the rough edges before putting it in front of decision-makers.
You may only get one chance to grab their attention, so make sure your work shines as much as possible.
That said, if you’ve got a contest you really want to enter, and all you have is a first draft that you believe in…I say go ahead and submit it. It’s far better to take the shot than to miss the deadline altogether. Just send it in confidently—without disclaimers about which draft it is.
Just don’t label your script’s “draft” number. It’s not commonly done. Plus, the words “first draft” might plant a bias in the reader’s mind that the work is unfinished (even if it’s excellent).
Let the play speak for itself.
Bottom line: Always aim to submit the most polished version of your play that you can. But if the choice is between sending a promising draft or nothing, submit the draft without mention of what draft number it is.