We were lucky to catch up with Jon Fedkiw recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jon , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?

The idea came from O.P.P. (or Old Pueblo Playwrights); a writer’s group I attended for many years in Tucson AZ. I simply transplanted the model when I moved from Tucson to Lakeland FL. That was October 2017. The first step in bringing the idea to life was finding a place to meet – which we did at the public library. The room was too small – not very private – but it made the idea real. Given the shortcomings of the environment, we asked around and were allowed to use the back room of a friends’ boutique. It was a step in the right direction because we gained privacy, but the physical size of the room was still too small. So, we started the inquiry process again and ended up finding a local business owner who (unbelievably) had a stage room in the basement of the building he was operating in. Roughly eight weeks had gone by at this point and now we needed more writers. The material I was bringing in for table reads came from writers I knew back in Arizona who were supportive of the new organization. It wasn’t enough. I took the hunter approach and hit my contact lists, social media, and other writers’ groups in the surrounding areas letting them know we existed. It worked. Writers began to submit their pieces to us and attend the workshops in person. As a result, we produced our first live theater experience in June of 2018 and have not looked back.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am currently a small business owner as well as the President of Just Write! Lakeland. I produce film and theater on the side. This story starts in Tucson AZ. It was there I attended Mark W. Travis’s directors’ workshop. He encouraged the directors to direct theater! Believing he knew something I didn’t, I started to attend O.P.P. It was through this organization that I learned the power of the table read and critique process for writers. I also met actors and found scripts to direct. After faithfully attending O.P.P. for years, the corporate carrot called me to Lakeland FL, which is located right between Orlando and Tampa. Wanting to find local talent in my backyard that aligned with my filmmaking passion, I decided to produce and direct a short film (from a script that I read and critiqued at O.P.P.). After completing the film, I realized two things – yes there was talent here, but I needed more scripts. In order to get scripts, I started Just Write! Lakeland. Just Write! was established as a writer’s workshop allowing them to hear their plays/screenplays read out loud and then be critiqued by their peers. The goal is twofold: one, give the writer constructive feedback they can use to improve their piece, and two, help us (Just Write!) find a play/screenplay we can produce. The service we provide gives the writer a new perspective on what works and what doesn’t. Our goal is to assist writers in plot formation, character development and any other areas of frustration. I am proud to say that since we started, we’ve table-read over 300 plays/screenplays (all of different lengths) from writers around the world. We’ve also taken original pieces, nurtured them through the critique process, and produced them locally. The production arm of Just Write! has produced 7 live shows, 3 staged readings, and 1 film festival so far and is looking to do more.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

The mission of the organization is to provide a comfortable and safe haven for writers to workshop their plays or screenplays with the assistance of peers and actors. My goal is to produce quality performances (stage or film) from work that is inspired. I want to embrace a unique perspective in our productions… be different.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

We survived Covid. The lockdowns forced us to answer the question: what do we do now? We were still meeting in person up to that point and I had to decide; shut everything down or find another way. I found another way. Zoom not only kept the organization going but opened us up to a global market. As a result, we’ve had writers from all over the world submit their work and attend the workshop. All I can say is, things are good with the workshop, and we are now gearing up to get our production arm off the ground again.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.justwritelakeland.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justwritelakeland/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/justwritelakeland/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/justwritelake

Image Credits
All photos taken by Jon Fedkiw.