Small Acts

plus update #3

Mar 08, 2024

Current Project Word Count: 14,045

This week wasn’t the most productive writing week. There were some moments of procrastination and distraction. However I must remind myself that the goal is to move the ball down the field which I did.

There’s such a deep temptation to go back and start rewriting/editing. Sometimes in my writing practice I find myself getting to a sticky point and, instead of plowing forward, I turn around and putter with words already written. This isn’t a bad strategy but it is cumbersome. Not as efficient. With a PDW that’s under 1,000 words, this process is fine. I eventually make my way to the end. Albeit gracelessly.

But for this project, I don’t think I’ll be able to do that. I made an oath to myself to get through a first draft all the way to the very end without editing. There's no turning back. At least not right now. This is the path toward success but it requires the bravery to cut through the forest when all I want to do is sit down and stare at the pretty moss.

My mantra moving forward: Cut first. Moss later.

In other news, one of my dear friends booked a TV acting job after years (literal years) of hard work and auditioning. She got a day on set. She got a paycheck. Her scene, where she had actual lines, was with celebrities on a legit show on a legit network. I hope it doesn’t sound condescending but I am so so so proud of her.

When telling me about her day on set she said she felt so valued. I thought she might cry. The crew were respectful and attentive. The other actors actually talked to her. This fact shouldn’t be noteworthy but in an industry where you work with famous people, it is. At one point she started to voice a concern about her scene to the director but then stopped herself. She didn’t think it was her place since she was a day player, only had a few lines, and was “a nobody.” But the director asked her to go on. She did.

He then said something like, “Oh yeah that makes sense. Let’s fix that. Thanks for telling me.”

I could have cried right there when she told me this story. To be an actor is to be invisible most of the time. You go long periods without hearing from your reps. Their work is behind the scenes and they don’t need frequent chat. You go long periods without auditions. Then when you get auditions, you put yourself on tape in your room or a studio somewhere. You send that tape out into the ether only to never hear anything back. You go long periods without booking a job. Sometimes years.

It’s lonely.

But then sometimes you get a little nod from the universe. You get an audition. You get a callback. You get put on hold. You book the job. You get your time on set doing the thing you most crave to do with your life. You might still feel like a “nobody” though because all that lonely invisibility has seeped under your skin.

The takeaway though, one that applies to those outside the industry too, is that very little is required to make someone feel seen. To make them feel valued. All that director did was listen. That was it and suddenly my friend was bolstered, comfortable, and confident. That lonely invisibility evaporated for a brief moment.

Such a small act had such a profound impact. And it’s something that all of us hold the power to do for each another.