Post Labor Day Revival

Posted on September 12, 2011

Labor Day, the last of the summer holidays has come and gone and I ask myself; can I afford to relax today if I haven’t really labored all summer?

I set out with a goal this year and that was to finish 3 projects per quarter spread out between my writing, my home and my personal growth.  Yes, there were triumphs!  And there were setbacks, major setbacks.

My personal goals were triumphant!  My relationships nurtured and thriving, my home, quasi-organized; if you don’t open closets or drawers, and my writing…major setbacks.

I started out this year so well, one screenplay completed by the end of the first quarter and another one outlined and started.  I was on a roll.  Then the summer hit, barbecue’s, weddings, relatives visiting, clients in crises, next thing I knew I was two quarters behind on my writing goals.  With the exception of this blog and a few strongly worded letters to manufacturers for their faulty products, I can count on both hands the number of times I’ve sat down to finish my book.

Yes, life happens and the next thing you know, the year is more than halfway over.  But letting excuses like these drag me away from my passion is “Resistance” getting the better of me and laughing in my face.   I will not allow it!

As I move forward, I am strangely energized.  I don’t know if it’s all the fall show teasers or the inspiration of my client’s successes but with just a bit over a quarter left in the year, I feel the urge to power through and finish strong, for me and only me. 

Since Labor Day I’ve written well over 60 pages; thirty minutes here and there between clients, writing into the wee hours of the night, or starting before the sun has even come up.  I am jazzed and inspired by the end of the spring/summer antics that paralyzed me for 4 months.  I’m alive and writing!

I feel rested, refreshed and revitalized after the long Labor Day weekend and ready to tackle the last three projects of the year; reach out to a friend I haven’t spoken to in a long time, complete one written project, and organize my closets…for real this time.

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Patience is a…

Posted on September 1, 2011

 “The Keys to patience are acceptance and faith.  Accept things as they are, and look realistically at the world around you.  Have faith in yourself and in the direction you have chosen.”  ~ Ralph Marston.

I like this quote mostly because “All good things come to he who waits” annoys me.  He who waits how long?!  From this you can tell that patience is not my forte. 

A major part of the entertainment business is hurry up and wait.  Submit your script, wait for someone to option it; Script’s been optioned, wait for someone to actually film it; Script’s being produced, waiting for someone to edit out all your gems :) .

Acceptance is the first key.  All that is within your control is all should focus on, to send out the best script you can write at that moment in your life.  Once you send it off, it is out of your control, so accept.  It’s like sending out messages in a bottle, you can send out as many as you want, but there is no telling how and if they will come back to you.  So why worry about that part which you can’t control, move on to the next, and send that one out, then move on to the next and so on.  Keep writing, keep moving on.

Faith is the next key and, oh, boy does it waiver for me from time to time.  As a creative artist it is tough to know whether you are on the right path.  But I say if what you create is something you enjoy, and you can’t imagine doing anything else…then have faith, it will bear fruit.  Now, it may not be the fruit you were expecting at that time.  If you were looking for oranges (a motion picture theatrical release) and you get apples (publisher wanting you to turn the script into a novel), they’re both fruit, maybe not the outcome you wanted or expected, but success nonetheless. 

As writers I would say the success is in the writing.  If you write to create and write as much as you can create, you will be most successful.  If you are a results oriented person, and a lot of us are, then perhaps refocusing the immediate goal to something within your control to attain would be best.  It’s a start, and a means to a great end.

If you have faith in the direction you’ve chosen, after getting a few apples, grapes and miscellaneous figs, you will eventually get all the juicy oranges you can eat.  So keep the faith!

This week, practice patience!

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In a Land Far, Far Away

Posted on August 25, 2011

What would you create if you freed your mind of limitation? If you could hush the little voice on your shoulder, what road would you take?

The stories you set out to tell go as far as your imagination can take you. If you let your imagination soar there is no telling what greatness you can create. A lot of times we are stopped by a little voice in our heads that says “How ridiculous”, or “that’s stupid”. But some of the best stories are told in defiance of the nay saying voice.

What one man likes, another may hate, what one studio passes on can go forth to take the box office by storm. That’s been proven time and again.

Say “Yes” from the very start and see what pours out of you.

Why put limitations on your dreams, your passions, or your creativity? There will be those who will close doors, turn you down, say “No”. They will weigh in on the believability of the premise, the realism of the characters, the strength of the concept. But this I know is true, if you write, act, play music without limitation or censorship, the results will be pure gold.

“To Those who can dream, there is no such place as far away”.

When I was first learning to dance, rather late in life, people said I would never go the distance because I waited to long to start. Within two years of taking two classes a day everyday and learning everything there was to learn about dance and performing, I found myself competing with dancers who had been training since the age of five. Why did I have such success? Because I never thought I couldn’t.

A famous actress was asked what she would do if the “acting thing” didn’t work out, her reply…”I never thought it wouldn’t”

Walt Disney was fired by an editor for “lack of imagination and good ideas”,
Bill Gates’ first business venture Traf-O-Data was a failure,
Oprah Winfrey, before she was Oprah Winfrey, was fired from being a television reporter because she was “unfit for TV”.

Opposition is all around us, so why oppose ourselves.

Creativity is limitless. Let your imagination take your passions to a land far, far away. I can’t wait to see what great things will manifest.

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Season of Yes

Posted on August 17, 2011

We are about to embark on what I like to call “The Season of Yes!”

As summer draws to an end, preparation for the next season has begun. Kids go back to school, people scramble to use the last of the vacation days and of importance to me, the anticipation of the Fall TV Show line-up.

I miss the changing of the leaves that comes with the Fall on the East Coast, but I have truly grown to love the Indian summer in So Cal. It brings forth a new burst of inspiration; though the weather hasn’t changed, the air around me just feels different. It’s like hope for the creative buds, my last chance to get a project completed or something started before the end of the year.

Each Fall I hope and pray the studios give rise to a great crop of amazing TV shows and that reality shows will die a horrible death…okay not horrible, I do love Master Chef and Project Runway. I yearn for good old fashion (or new ingenious) storytelling and I also look forward to the new seasons of my old favorites.

30Rock, Big Bang Theory, Raising Hope and Modern Family are all returning, yippee! Two and A Half Men has killed off the “Winning” Charlie Sheen so it will be interesting to see, at least, the first episode of this next season.   And a lot of the new show teasers look FANTASTIC!!! “Are You There Vodka? It’s Me Chelsea”…I mean hilariously fantastic!

I am pumped into a creative windfall, hardly able to contain myself and most definitely in an inspirational mood.

So I guess the Fall is my time of year, a chance to make good on my New Year’s resolutions and inspire you to take one more stab at accomplishing a task, a goal, or a dream. Take this step with me people.

Say Yes!!!

Let’s leap into Fall!

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Moure La Resistance

Posted on August 9, 2011

I would like to veer off course a bit today to say I am suffering from severe “resistance”.  There are roadblocks everywhere today, cold shower, bad hair day, great traffic – woohoo, but no parking – boo.

I can’t seem to accomplish anything, including writing this week’s blog.  Usually I have three or four topics I’ve drafted to choose from,  then I decide the morning of post which one I am vibing most for that particular week.  But today…resistance!

Stephen Pressfield talks a lot about resistance in his book The War of Art.  If you haven’t read this book, I suggest you do so, right away if you are stuck too! It is a great read (and a quick one) on the psychology behind “writers block”, the enemy Resistance and how to conquer it.  Once you’ve gone through that pick up Do The Work which will help you through your obstacles.

Every little thing distracts me today; a voice from outside, the neighbor singing in the shower, a hangnail.  You know it’s bad when you would rather clean the bathroom than sit down to create. I have to dig deep into my bag of tricks if I’m gonna knock out 10 pages today.

So, here I am…mostly forcing myself to sit here, staring at the blank e-notebook, counting the cursor blinks, waiting for inspiration to knock down the wall of resistance.  Even the Inspirer needs inspiration sometimes.  Roll play..umm, no.  Word Play!  I write down a word, then write down everything that comes to mind when I think of that word, then I use the Look Up feature to come up with a synonym and then write down everything that seeps into my mind for that word.  And away, we, go…

I actually relish these moments because I know that whatever comes out of what I’ve written today, is a victory for creativity.  The evil that is procrastination must leave, and will leave, it can’t live where it is not fed.

“Procrastination is suicide on the installment plan”, I like this quote!  It propels me to action immediately upon reading it.  Clickity-clack, clickity-clack.

And since three pages is better than no pages, I shall stop there and make a sandwich.

Wright on ye courageous artists!  Procrastination shall hinder no longer.  Tonight, we write!

Moure La Resistance!

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Steal My Idea, Please!

Posted on August 2, 2011

Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. It’s a saying of which the origins are unknown, often changed and vastly re-quoted. I have had many discussions with writer friends about sharing their works and find most people to be deathly afraid of doing so almost to the point of reclusively reworking their piece over and over ad nauseam…alone. I know this may strike up a bit of controversy and hope at the very least some deep conversation but I’ve come to believe it to be very flattering when someone steals my ideas. That’s how I know I’m on the right track.

A few years back I was in the throws of career crisis. I had grown complacent and was looking for a new passion, new inspiration. So I took up painting. I had just purchased my first home and had no money for artwork so I decided to create my own. I started out freehand at first and after destroying canvas after costly canvas turned to the Internet for inspiration.

I came across “the Caged Bird” by John Byram Shaw and it evoked such emotion. I was not alone, even the title has spawned multiple songs, poems and in addition many drawings and paintings. Now, I’m not even sure if Mr. Shaw was the originator of the imagery or if he himself had imitated another artist, but I was inspired to create. Once finished I proudly hung my imitation on the wall and invited my friends to marvel at my creation, albeit extremely impressionistic. When I heard a woman exclaim my great idea and that she would do the very same the next day, I was so angry.

“How dare she steal my idea!” which I admit was ridiculous cause I had stolen the idea from countless other bare walled and poverty stricken home dwellers.

Months later when at a gathering at her house I had the opportunity to view the painting…

”It’s nothing like mine”, I sighed.

Well of course it wasn’t, it was her interpretation, her creation. We were two different people, with two different experiences and when faced with the same idea came up with two different paintings (and she was a far better painter than I).

The same is true with writing. Ideas are not copyrightable, we all know that, and still we grip our stories to death in fear of their being stolen. What you are selling, what is being paid for, is your interpretation; how you tell the story. So I decided to embark on an experiment. In working with two separate clients I gave them an exercise – I wrote down a concept, title and protagonist archetype on a piece of paper and put it in a bowl and asked them both to pick from the bowl (unbeknownst to them both the bowl was full of papers with the same concept, title and protagonist written on them; devious, I know). Two weeks later in reading their pages, my suspicious were confirmed. Both stories based on the same “idea” were completely different, both great stories.

It’s been a long time since I’ve worried about people stealing my ideas. I am flattered and stand confident in knowing that my storytelling is uniquely mine and others may or may not be better but we can both be sold.

1. Deep Impact vs. Armageddon – 1998
2. The Illusionist vs. The Prestige – 2006
3. Antz vs. A Bugs Life – 1998
4. Truman Show vs. Ed TV – 1998/1999
5. Supernany vs. Nanny 911 – TV and unscripted but hey, it works.

And yes I “imitated” these from someone elses list.

“When a thing has been said and said well, have no scruple. Take it and copy it” ~ Anatole France

What say you?!

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What Time is it? Summertime! Time for Inspiration

Posted on July 25, 2011

The good ole’ summertime boasts a ton of inspiration with it’s summer blockbusters, summer vacation, summer fairs, art walks and a slew of barbeques, picnics and festivals. I love summer!

Of course, living in Southern California with it’s year round sunshine doesn’t make the summer any more special than the rest of they year, but it’s still my favorite. Even the 9-to-5′s seem more relaxed in the summer months.

I come from a long line of revelers so family cookouts and picnics are always in abundance; Memorial Day, 4th of July, multiple birthdays, right on through to Labor Day. It’s a time to catch up on the family comings and goings, births, weddings…divorces; life. It’s the perfect time for people watching! Some of the most memorable characters and story ideas come from family moments – “Terms of Endearment”, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”, “Dan in Real life”, “Spanglish” – let’s face it, our families are hilarious, or tragic; either way, great story generators.

At my last family barbeque I eavesdropped on my 95-year-old uncle desperately trying to understand a 9-year-old cousin’s fascination with PSP2 over playing outdoor sports. One afternoon generated 27 post-its of story ideas.

And as I sat there observing and scribing, my aunt who is 62 years young, recently forced into retirement and bored out of her mind explained to me how desperately she wanted to find something meaningful to do with her days. It wasn’t about needing the money, it was about being needed. And as we sat brainstorming opportunities it hit me; she had always been the caretaker, at home, at her office, never missed a birthday and always had a card to give for any occasion. I suggested she apply for a re-education grant and go back to school to which he replied, “Child please, I’m too old for that!”. But as I explained the “Yes, and” philosophy and discussed nursing certification programs that would train her to work part-time as a caregiver in nursing homes and hospitals I could see a bright flicker in her eyes and my first client session was born. Not to mention I got a great story idea out of the exchange.

So I recommend you get out, spend time with the Fam now while there’s still a little summer left. You’ll be surprised at what will peak your creativity. And if you don’t like your family all the more funny, or tragic but still a great story.

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Kids say the “Inspiring-ist” Things

Posted on July 19, 2011

Out of the mouths of babes come the most inspirational gems. I recently find myself in the presence of many little personalities as more and more of my friends have taken to procreating.

Children are inspirational wonders and, I find, masters of the Yes and philosophy. To watch them create is truly a learning experience. They say yes to everything, their world is limitless!

Yes, ladybugs CAN talk and embark on adventures with their Butterfly and Earthworm friends and have tea at noon.

I was once teaching a dance class to 3 through 5 year olds and upon explaining how tired I was after a morning of chores, one of my students exclaimed, “Ms. Coco, You should get a husband, then he’ll do all the work for you”.
Duly noted. “I’ll look into that”, I retorted.
“Well you better hurry up or all the good ones will be taken”, she added as she chassed across the room.

Yes, kids say the darnedest, Inpiring-ist things. And out of that exchange came a short story called Honey Dew about a confirmed bachelorette who builds a company of husbands for hire, kind of a twist on the Stepford Wives. (This one I’m sure can be salvaged for a screenplay or movie of the week or blog fodder.)

This past weekend I found an inspirational goldmine. I met a friend-in-law’s 9 year old, one of the smartest and quirkiest kids I’ve met in a long time (I’ll call him Jordan). Watching him was like watching greatness in the making; you could see the wheels of his mind churning behind his eyes.

I sat and watched him develop a storyline between his little sister’s Barbie doll and a broken green army action figure (like the one’s from Toy Story) defending the universe from alien wasps nesting under the porch. As one or two other children joined in to conquer the wasp infestation I was certain they would prevail and rid the porch of the annoying little pests or we’d all be stung to within an inch of our lives.

I watched them build a vehicle out of paper plates, Styrofoam cups and saran wrap to transport the dolls to safety while the little green army men along with flying matchbox cars and a Spidey Build-a-bear protected them with tiny drink umbrellas. Yes and was alive and at work in my friends backyard. Where else could a 1 inch green plastic figure with bound feet fight as fiercely as a 15-inch plush toy?

If you want to experience Yes and in it’s purest form, watch children at play. If you don’t have kids of your own, borrow some from friends or neighbors. Just don’t hang out at playgrounds watching them, cause that’s creepy. Or a different kind of story depending on what you’re writing.

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Open up your creative flow by saying “Yes…and”

Posted on July 11, 2011

Inspiration is everywhere. I certainly didn’t intend to start out my first post for L’Inspiration Station with such a cliché. Cliché or not, I find that the most mundane part of the day can go on to inspire an entire book or screenplay or color scheme for my new bedroom. So in the spirit of inspiration being everywhere, I set out this morning to open myself up to whatever the day would bring by saying “Yes, and…”

“Yes, and”, to the feel of the satin pillowcase against my cheek; “yes, and”, to the aroma of the scented candle I lit before I went to bed the night before; “yes, and”, to the garbage truck that woke me at 6am.   And as the truck moved onto the next building, still close enough to disturb my re-slumber, “YES, AND” — that I actually said out loud, to which my boyfriend asked “Yes and what?”

After a brief (or actually not so brief) pause for “yes and what” (ahem), I sprung out of bed and got my day started. “Yes, and”, to a super hot shower and to the low battery in my motorized toothbrush.

Then it hit me, slowly and surely my mind wandered from the leisurely brushing and mass of toothpaste foam in my mouth to remembering to pluck my eyebrows to an article about people who suffer from Dermatillomania (compulsive skin picking) — to the kind of person who picks said skin — to a seemingly normal character in a dysfunctional family who is secretly a Dermatillomaniac, picking their skin raw…whew!

Ah ha, I have a character I can build on. I rush to the notebook, can’t find a pen, pick up my phone to record this stream of creativity. After 15 minutes of rambling on about my character and his/her family traits and relationships, I now have a partial outline for a drama or comedy or dramedy with a flawed central character.

And that’s how this day started!

I have had the unique opportunity to pursue my passions and make a very good living for the last 15 years all because I began my journey with Yes and. My greatest hope is that I inspire you to create works of art, fulfill your wildest dreams or make your passion your livelihood (or your livelihood your passion).

Let’s face it, as creative artist we probably hear no more times in a day than a toddler learning to walk.  Everywhere we go, no, no, no…

Here at L’Inspiration Station there is only “Yes, and…”.  And what else you may ask? Well, that’s what I’m most looking forward to! Your “Yes, and” moments.

So while I am now twenty minutes late, I say “Yes, and”, to the rest of the day leaving myself open to each inspirational moment. And as I simmer in the kindness of inspiration, a flash! Not an idea, a red light camera. Buggers, I just got a ticket…YES, AND…?

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