This one’s not so much a quote, but a way of looking at the life of a creative.
Have a wonderful week everyone!
Tag Archives: The Journey
Quote Monday and a Big Thank You!
Happy Monday!
I had another rejection for advancement in a screenwriting competition. I didn’t take it nearly as hard as I did the first time, although it has caused a bit of introspection on my part, especially while I drive to a dead-end waiting job that has caused irreparable damage to a few body parts.
I’m not going to rant, much, but I’d like to be at least a little happy (not even excited) about going to work until things start happening in the writing department. The introspection was in regards to the same thing it always is – Am I a good writer? When I asked a professional writer-friend to read my first script last year, he suggested I make it more of a romantic comedy and completely change the format and timeline. I gave it some thought, but that was not at all the route I was taking with the story. I wanted it to be different, and yes, while it is chocked full of romance, it’s a drama, and I liked the format I had specifically chosen for this story.
So I stuck with my choices, rewrote the third act completely, and submitted it. And the rejections started rolling in. Should I doubt myself because a few readers didn’t respond to my story? The answer is a big whopping “NO!”. I am passionate about this story, and eventually someone will take notice and feel the same way. So for the quote of the week, in case you’re feeling like you’re in the same boat, I offer you this:
Posted @ QUOTEZ.CO
If you’re confident in your storytelling, don’t let anyone sway you to think otherwise. Advice does not need to be taken verbatim. It’s meant to be helpful, to help you find holes and mistakes, but if you love your story then follow your heart! Your passion will find itself onto the page.
As to my BIG Thank You, I have reached 300 followers, and I would like to thank each and everyone of you for your support. I have loved this space as an outlet to share my obsessions, geek out moments, and passions, while finding so much inspiration and creativity through your work. Thank you for making me want to be a part of this circle; to send out positivity and get some in return. *I couldn’t resist using this image. 😉
I apologize for my lack of interaction as of late, but I’m hoping to find some semblance of order and routine again soon.
I wish you all the very best and hope you are finding ways of working towards your goals!
xx, Rach
GisHWheS 2015
The first week of the month was the crazy, creative/inventive, do-gooding time known as the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen aka GisHWheS. The Sis and I participated again, our third year, although due to a maddening work schedule, I had very little hand in doing much this year. My only contribution was an item that required we make an evening gown out of construction paper, and a minor role towards the completion of a couple other items. The rest was all The Sis.
She did an amazing job of making Princess Leia out of bread, an Italian landmark out of food on a pizza, a kale hat, Hoover Dam out of cake, a Winter Soldier arm for our cosplay, and my personal favorite, a dog of mass destruction which we based on an episode of Doctor Who, entitled A Town Called Mercy, and a few other things like doing an impression of June Cleaver vacuuming the lawn, making a video called Tai Chi Breakfast, and writing a Yelp review for the hunt.
If you’re interested in finding your creative side and discovering how far you can push yourself in a week to go out side your comfort zone and do things you thought impossible, visit the website to learn how you can become a part of the madness. The teams consist of 15 people, but if you don’t have 14 friends who are willing to be as crazy as you are, you will be matched with a team, or you can create one with those you do know, and by the end of the registration period, the empty slots will be filled with those other abnosome people around the world who want to be a part of it.
It’s a great time that is really hard to explain. Here’s my Yelp review for a little insight. 😉 I wrote it with about 15 mins to spare.
You don’t need to wait for this one time of year to be creative or do nice things for others, but you’ll find yourself more inspired to continue to do such for quite sometime afterward. The event sort of changes your perspective and you’ll make great friends with people you may never meet, but find you have a lot in common with. You’ll look at mundane objects differently, wondering if you should save them for next year’s hunt, just in case. You’ll consider buying a stormtrooper costume, want to learn how to sew, and begin stockpiling random information that may prove useful in the future. Seriously, so much fun and so exhausting.
As next year’s hunt starts registration, I’ll send out the word again, and maybe, we can work together!
Have a great weekend everyone!
Quote Monday
Last week was the craziness that is GiShwHeS (I’ll post more about it this week). In addition to working a scattered six day work week, early mornings and closing shifts, I discovered, not that I needed a reminder, that I am not 22 anymore, and that this type of schedule wreaks havoc on my body and sleep cycle. I was unable to get to the computer to do anything more than upload photos to get scavenger hunt points, so no blogging. The house is in shambles, the kitchen looks like a bomb went off, and my poor pups have been rather ignored. Thankfully, I have today off to get back to normal, or my version of normal anyway.
I’m still in zombie mode as I write this, but since getting the new job, I’ve been terrible about getting on any sort of schedule. No more. Here’s this week’s quote, partially inspired by GiShwHeS (yes, I’m writing it this way on purpose, we were told to). One of the items on the scavenger hunt was to: Post messages of love or support on or in lockers of students that you think might need it. We could all use a few words of inspiration now and again, and that’s what I want to put out in the world.
Have a great week, my friends! Best of luck to you in all of your endeavors!
Dealing with Rejection, Badly.
I have been rather busy the last couple of weeks, and many things have been pushed to the back burner, causing a bit of stress.
In an effort to pay it forward, The Sis and I agreed to allow a friend from out of town stay with us for a bit while he got back on his feet (my best friend and like-a-sister let us stay with her when we first returned to town). In a matter of weeks it has quickly become a source of contention, especially where the furkids are concerned. My girl doesn’t really seem to like him and hasn’t warmed up to him at all, so there’s a lot of noise, at all hours.
There’s more to be said on the subject, but we’ll leave it at that.
We had family in town, and amidst all that, I have been on the job hunt. Regardless of the fact that I was applying to a lot of jobs that were actually looking for people, I never received a response from any of them. Not one. And I’m quite qualified for what I was applying for. I applied for positions online that had questionnaires and psych evals upward of 120+ questions. Ridiculous. It’s a bartending job, not working for the government. In a last ditch effort I walked into a local bar with my resume and they gave me a call the next day. So yay. I got a new job, but this is where it all starts to go wrong, so to speak.
The same day I got the job as a server by the way, not a bartender (because beggars can’t be choosers), I got my rejection letter from the Nicholl Fellowship. My script was not advancing to the quarterfinals. Although one of my scores was high, it wasn’t high enough to push it forward for a third read which would have given me a chance to proceed within the competition.
I took it hard. I still sort of am. Yes, I know about accepting rejection and moving on – I’m sure I’ve even discussed it here. All writers face rejection, often many, many times. It is the perseverance to continue that provides us the success we desire. I know that. Doesn’t make the rejection any easier to bear initially.
I didn’t necessarily need to win one of the top five spots offered, but I wanted to advance enough to use that as leverage as I send out my script to agents, etc., and yes, the money would’ve been nice. I try to be positive in this space, but sometimes I just need to vent and hope it helps alleviate the stress because my life is so far from where I want it to be. The combination of becoming a server again (at my age) and not feeling like my screenwriting career is going anywhere is really affecting me in general at the moment.
I just don’t ever feel like I’m getting ahead.
Now, I realize I haven’t hit the market with all the fervor I should have by now (I only just recently got my first script to a point I was happy with), so my feelings of inadequacies are completely unfounded, but they are there nonetheless. I don’t want to think that I should perhaps choose a different life, become a “responsible adult” and take care of all those things I want to by settling – leave the creative life behind…
I want to be a writer. Dammit, I am a writer.
The last two mornings I’ve had to stare at myself in the mirror and remind myself that rejection is a part of the so-called “game”, that this is just a bump in the road, a lesson to be learned, blah blah blah. Even in the letter I received from The Academy, they tried to reassure the rejected by saying the following:
A lack of success here may not have any bearing on your reception in the marketplace where a sale is the ultimate measure of success. I’ll even venture a prediction: several non-advancing writers will become professional screenwriters in the near future.
That only mildly soothed the pang of rejection.
I have two more opportunities I’m waiting to hear back on, Final Draft’s Big Break and the NYWIFT Writer’s Lab, so here’s hoping for something positive. Not to sound dramatic, but I almost need a little something, an external force to remind me I’m on the right path.
When I read the rejection letter, The Sis immediately responded with, “Your writing is really good.” and “Are there any words of encouragement I can offer?” Oddly, that almost made me feel as bad as the rejection itself. She has been so supportive of my career choice, and we take care of each other. This has been one of my driving desires to succeed, so I can help her achieve her own goals.
Ugh. I’m not sure I feel any better yet, and she’ll read this in her inbox later this evening and offer me some more encouraging words, and I’ll probably feel a bit worse again, but thanks, Sis, in advance. I know you’re trying to help. 😉 I know I’ll be determined to “show ’em” in a few days, but for now it is what it is.
How have you handled rejection, my fellow creatives?
Quote Monday
I’ll just leave this here… 🙂
Have a great week!
Quote of the Week
Hello, fellow creatives!
I’ve enjoyed my time off, but now it’s time to get back on track. Yesterday sort of passed me by before I even knew it, so Quote Monday has been bumped.
I’m pining away for news about the screenwriting contest, fellowship, and lab I entered and it’s at least another month before I hear anything, and the internal struggle is real. I cannot help but check my email, Facebook, and Twitter fairly often for a status update or hint of any kind.
The Nicholl Fellowship posts top scoring script comments from readers nearly every day on Facebook, and I read each one hoping it might sound like mine, or I try to twist and turn the vague positive comment into some form that could resemble a review of my own script. This is what too much time on one’s hands will do. 
I decided to look up quotes on patience, and for the most part, they’re kind of lame. That “patience is a virtue” or “patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting” stuff is not what I want to hear. And you’ve probably heard it a thousand times too at this point. It’s hard to wait for action on the part of others, but having a little understanding of how things work in Hollywood, having patience, or practicing having patience, is a good thing, because it’s something that will have to be mastered.
It may seem as if things move quickly in Tinsel Town, but in reality, it takes sometimes years to make something happen. There’s a phrase, “the 10 year overnight success” which is used in regards to screenwriters who seem to find success out of nowhere. They’ve been working, for a long, long time. Everything takes time, and waiting for news about the advancement of my career is just one such test of my endurance.
If you’re in a similar boat, I suppose there is some comfort in the knowledge that there are others who are feeling the same. My advice, which I am taking to heart, work on something new. Pour yourself into a new project. As an aspiring screenwriter, we can absolutely not have only one story in our arsenal, because of the question we are all supposed to be prepared for…”What else have you got?”
That story you’ve always got at the back of your mind, that one where you randomly see or hear something and tuck it away as part of that world, start to develop it. We only become better writers the more we write – we are better able to develop our style and voice.
I’m working on my space odyssey pilot and rewriting my second script. I love the development aspect of a story, thinking about characters and scenes. I had an idea this morning, a fun scene between two characters that I haven’t even created yet, and it’s created an eagerness to get them into action to start exploring this relationship. Squee! (Yep, I’m giddy.)
I wish you all the best of luck as you continue forward! And if you need a chuckle, there’s always this:
How do you handle the waiting game? Advice and tips welcome!
I’m on Holiday….sort of.
Hello, my friends!
I am currently enjoying the freedom I have attained by quitting my suck-y (on so many levels) job. I’ve been “spring cleaning” the house, reorganizing every facet of my life – from my cabinets to my computer and everything in between – rewatching Game of Thrones (like I need the pain), and getting caught up on so many things that I may be a little absent over the next week or so.
Hopefully, when I return, I’ll have lots to share as I look through the files I’ve kept in regards to writing notes, tips, etc.
I hope you are continuing to work towards you goals! I wish you all the best!
*I really wish I was sitting on that beach right now, instead of the 110+ degree heat of the Vegas desert…ugh. I did not miss this.
Quote Monday
I once jumped without a parachute, figuratively not literally. When The Sis and I moved to Los Angeles, I worked for a restaurant chain that allowed me to have a job upon arrival and to change locations with each subsequent move around the city. Unfortunately, with each move, the money worsened until at a total loss, I up and quit, feeling there had to be something better on the horizon. It was LA after all.
Nearly 2 1/2 years later, I could not find a job to save my life. I sent out nearly 250 resumes in the first year and only ever received 2 responses. Those are some pretty bad odds, especially for a girl from Vegas. I was lucky in that I had the support of The Sis who eventually told me to stop worrying about finding a job and to do what we had moved there to do in the first place – for me to become a working screenwriter.
Easier said than done.
The only problem with that was that the guilt of not working nearly ate me alive. At my age, having my baby sister take care of me was a big pill to swallow, and the screenwriting career took a hit. How does a fairytale writer write happily ever afters when they are wallowing in self pity and depression?
Cut to living in Las Vegas, again, and working for a company that is legitimately shady. Nearly 7 months of trying to find another job have failed to produce any results…again, seriously?! But this time, I’m taking the moral high ground. I will not continue to work for people that A) do not respect their employees B) operate under suspicious terms and C) do things that are, in fact, illegal.
Besides the mind numbing effect of the work, I don’t make enough money to support The Sis which is why we decided to move back to Vegas in the first place, so that she could go back to school. I don’t write my own things when I get home because I’ve stared at a computer for 8 hours writing nonsense. Sorry blog. I’m usually brain dead, and to top it all off, I think I’ve gained weight because I sit around all day. Sheesh.
So here I am, ready to jump without a parachute, again. I’m choosing to be brave and to expect good things. ((crossing my fingers)) I hope this will lead me to bigger and better…please let it get better!
The life of a creative is a difficult one, always trying to balance work with what we really want to do. Maybe when I’ve found some measure of success (of what I consider for myself), I’ll look back on these days with no regrets. As of right now, it’s tough to endure. Am I making the right decision? I have lifelines here, but I feel making this decision on the grounds of self respect is, well, a bit haughty.
I’ll let you know how I feel about it next week when I find freedom…in the mean time wish me luck!
How about you? Have you ever made a leap of faith? What was the outcome?
Quote Monday
I would like to thank those who took the time to share my post regarding my furkids’ recent behavioral changes. It truly means a great deal! Although we’re still waiting to hear back from a behaviorist, things are slightly better.
It’s hard not to get bogged down in all that life has to throw at you sometimes, but it’s important to still do things for ourselves. It’s not selfish, it’s self-preservation…or so I’ve heard. 😉
This is one of my favorite quotes, and I think I’ve shared it before, and today it definitely felt apropos.
Here’s to the start of a great week! ((crossing fingers))
A Writer's Discrepant Memoirs and Other Tales 