Writers are by far the hardest-on-themselves group of people I’ve had the privilege of knowing, myself included.  We expect so much out of ourselves, especially in regards to our work.  Not only do we struggle to create (and are we ever truly happy?), we also criticize ourselves for not writing enough, we suffer from a plethora of fears; rejection, the blank page, another rewrite, completion, even success, and then we must endure at least a hundred plus other steps in order to succeed as professional writers.  There are dozens of avenues to explore, and we try them all in the hopes of finding the right one.  And people wonder why we’re “special”…or have the audacity to think it’s easy and that everyone can do it, or that all we do is daydream…these and other ideas like them fall into the realm of “writer’s pet peeves”.

So back to the topic at hand, the recent opportunity I was thinking about and mentioned on Monday – volunteering at the Los Angeles Film Festival by Film Independent.  They also put on the Independent Spirit Awards, so I thought it might be a great way to meet people and network, but when you’re a volunteer, you’re not really allowed to do that.  And then a few things popped up and made it a near impossibility to work the event at all, so I’m striking it off the list and moving forward…but to where?  I was discovering quickly that this year was going to pass me by without any real progress.  That was a devastating realization.

I believe that when you voice your desires aloud, that’s when things start happening.  Obviously we still have to work at it, but making the bold declaration, writing down our goals, and putting them out into the universe help to solidify them in our mind.  They aren’t just these dreams we have, but fully realized goals we can move forward to achieve.  What I needed was a new plan.  Great.  Something else to divert my attention from writing.

So the following night when I was talking to my sister’s boss and she asked what she could do to help me with my career, I told her.  I put it out there.  She and her husband both work with and know lots of people that could help me (including some of the biggest names that would pretty much make me pee my pants if I found myself in the same room with them), but in my mind I had drawn a line.  They are my sister’s bosses and therefore should almost be off limits, that is, unless they offer.  Growing up, we were instilled with this idea of doing things on our own, not relying on others, and making our own way (which I clearly can not do as a screenwriter).  Call it pride or stubbornness or stupidity (which is what my sister’s boss called it), but I got a very quick lesson in asking those who are capable and willing for help.  Bottom line is I’m meeting with them in the next few weeks in order to advance my career.

So I will now voice my desires; my next goal – have my portfolio ready when I meet with those who have offered me help.  Oh, gracious universe, please be kind and let the words flow from my mind to my fingertips without much stumbling.  Please allow my mind to grasp all the elements I need in order to finalize my rewrite…*fingers crossed.  A little forewarning, I may be a little absent as a result, because I have quite a bit of work ahead of me.

So go on, tell the universe what it is you want.  Good Luck!

*And by now you should know, if I can, I will include a picture of either Tom Hiddleston or Benedict Cumberbatch.  So you’ll always have that to look forward to. 😉