Weeks 12 and 13: Review/Preview
Reflecting on progress for the week of March 22 through April 4 , and previewing goals and tasks for the upcoming week.
Photo by Rowan Freeman on Unsplash
I think the best habit a person can do with their life is just to let things play out as they may. Speaking from personal experience, I get angry, depressed, frustrated when I can’t change my circumstances by mentally willing situations and relationships into existence.
And make no mistake, I’ve tried my hardest to will something into existence these last two weeks. But, sometimes you just gotta let life do what it does and enjoy the ride.
New Beginnings
I’m seemingly always amazed by the irony of life. For the last few months my wife and I were setting ourselves up for a move to Phoenix, AZ. Los Angeles has just gotten incredibly expensive and my wife’s job was becoming more challenging and toxic as the days went by. In January I told her to quit.
My job is steady but the pay just isn’t enough to raise a family, unless I want my family to be stuck in apartments for the rest of our lives. Plus, once I return to work after Covid, I still have to battle a 90 minute one-way commute. I don’t know exactly how much of my life I’ve spent sitting in LA traffic, but I can tell you it’s a lot.
Skipping all the details, about a week before we were schedule to pack up our shit in POD and move to the desert, my wife and I got new jobs - she in a school district where my kids attend, and me with a school 30 minutes from my house and for much more money.
Needless to say, we’re staying in LA!
But, even though we’re staying, it’s as if we’re experiencing new beginnings - like if we did move to Phoenix. New jobs, post Covid, and a financial future that seems to be at least appropriate for raising a family in Los Angeles.
Yes, I still consider myself a screenwriter and novelist, and I’m incredibly passionate about the projects I’m working on, but to have the peace of mind knowing that you’re financial future is at least on the upswing - for now - is a massive load off your shoulders.
I know society kinda romanticizes it, but it’s really not cool or even okay to be a starving artist - especially if you have a family to support. You don’t have to put your life or the lives of your family members on the line for artistic expression. Be smart, yes. Make creating art a priority in your life, absolutely.
It’s a new beginning for my wife and I (and our kids), and it’s also a new beginning for my writing.
I can’t wait to see what happens next.
A Change in Format
My big freakin’ goal I had for this blog this year was that I’d publish a new blog post everyday that updates my journey from aspiring to paid screenwriter and everything I’m learning about myself, the craft, and the business along the way.
And I really tried my best, but…
There’s no way I can take precious time away from my family and my screenwriting to post on this blog. It sucks. I hate to admit that my original vision will not be fulfilled (for now, at least), but it’s the right thing to do. Who wants to read someone gloat about not being able to publish a blog post a day? Stupid.
But that’s not to say this blog is going away. No, no, no, no, no, no. This blog, however, stupid and inane it is, is the engine of this website and super helpful for me and my writing process/journey. In fact, I think I’m going to try something a bit different - posting twice a week.
First post of the week: Sunday Review/Preview of the previous week’s work and learnings and previewing my work for the week.
Second post of the week: Wednesday Mid-Week Check-in will just be that: a mid-week reflection to see how well on-track I’m towards meeting my weekly goals as well as recording any reflections and new learnings so far from the week.
Successes for the Last Few Weeks
Did a TON of work on a show bible for my new pilot, including writing out my inspiration for the show (see above), character descriptions, a bit of backstory, and hammering out act-by-act loglines/descriptions.
Finished a few more sections in my ISA craft course, which focused on designing sequences. Again, really new to me as I was used to focusing on hitting specific beats. Really enjoying using this resources to help bolster and define my own writing process.
Behind the scenes of this website I’m building a new homepage, which will briefly describe why I created this website and the four main sections that visitors can peruse: Frank’s Blog (which you’re already familiar with), Frank’s Short Fiction and Essays, Frank’s Screenplays (copy of original ideas and links to spec of existing shows I’ve written), and Frank’s Workshop (a collection of articles and such that chronicle all the things I’m reading, writing, and learning along my journey to becoming a paid screenwriter. This week I focused on describing each page and what readers will expect. The entire project is coming nicely.
Met with my writer’s group and accountability group these past weeks. So nice to continually be interacting with people who are in the business and trying to break in.
Misses
I can’t really think of any misses for this week. I will admit that I need to read more scripts and finish a few of the books I’ve started but life gets in the way. Oh well.
Goals/Tasks for the Week
I think I’m in week 4 of my craft course. Would like to get through at least half of it. A lot of great material, and it’s important for me to go slow so I can soak in as much as I can.
Finish up webpage descriptions for Frank’s Workshop.
Right now I’m focusing on character specific objectives for my pilot. If I can have my act-by-act loglines set up for my A, B, and C stories, I’ll be super happy.
