Paul William Kruse is a playwright and media artist who tells queer love stories. He draws from his Catholic roots and his evolving experience of family. Paul's work is influenced by his background as a videographer and documentarian. He explores themes of queer love, strange and odd experiences, and the different forms of storytelling. Paul's creative journey began with acting in theater and later transitioned to writing plays and films. His work has evolved over time, with a focus on ephemera and the things that are often dismissed as petty or spectacle. Queerness informs Paul's creative life and practice, and he explores queerness in narrative and story outside of traditional forms. Paul's creative process involves starting with a moment of spectacle and then using structure to shape the story. He values revision and feedback, taking in all notes and deciding what makes sense for the script. In this conversation, Shannon TL Kearns and Paul W Kruse discuss the process of revising and completing a play. They explore the challenges of knowing when a play is done and the importance of trusting one's own instincts. They also discuss the role of trusted readers and the difficulty of finding the right people to give feedback. They share their own revision processes and the impact of social media on their creative work. They debunk creative myths and discuss the spiritual element of their creative practices. Paul shares his upcoming projects, including a podcast about queer experiences of family.
Takeaways
Paul William Kruse tells queer love stories that are influenced by his Catholic roots and evolving experience of family.
His creative journey began with acting in theater and later transitioned to writing plays and films.
Paul explores themes of queer love, strange and odd experiences, and the things that are often dismissed as petty or spectacle.
Queerness informs Paul's creative life and practice, and he explores queerness in narrative and story outside of traditional forms.
His creative process involves starting with a moment of spectacle and using structure to shape the story, with a focus on revision and feedback. Knowing when a play is done is a challenge, and it often comes down to personal instincts and a feeling of certainty.
Trusted readers are important for getting feedback on a play, but it's crucial to find the right people who understand your vision and can provide valuable insights.
The revision process can be difficult, and it's important to find a balance between relying on others for feedback and trusting your own instincts.
Social media can impact creative work by fracturing attention spans and reducing capacity for deep work, but it's important to actively work on maintaining focus and deep writing processes.
Creative myths, such as the idea that artists have to be miserable or that writing every day is essential, should be challenged and reevaluated based on individual experiences and needs.
Creative practices can have a spiritual element, and they can shape how one listens, observes, and moves through the world.
Paul Cruz is working on a podcast about queer experiences of family, and he has upcoming projects that explore the lives of women he grew up with.
For more about Paul, check out his website.
For the books mentioned in this podcast, check out this link.
To get creative support (and to support this podcast) check out Patreon.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Paul William Kruse
02:07 Telling Queer Love Stories
09:05 From Acting to Writing
13:36 Exploring Queerness and Ephemera
16:08 Queerness as a Driving Force
27:42 Creative Process and Revision
28:07 Knowing When a Play is Done
30:41 The Revision Process and External Feedback
34:00 Trusted Readers and Feedback
37:15 The Impact of Social Media on Creative Work
39:08 Debunking Creative Myths
44:37 The Spiritual Element of Creative Practice
54:43 Upcoming Projects