So. I figured this one was important enough to dust off the old blog.
I don't have tons to say here, except that I am in favor of the new guidelines.
This article (I hope) explains why.
Happy Thanksgiving!
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Tuesday, November 24, 2009
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Wednesday, September 23, 2009
I'm B-a-a-a-c-k!
Not sure for how long. Not sure if anyone ever even checks my blog anymore since it's been so long since I've posted. But the blog has been calling to me.
As usual, I have lots going on and lots I'd like to write about. I'll start with here...
God of Carnage & the Writers' Forum
So. I saw "God of Carnage" last night. It was good. It was fun. It was a little "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf"-ish. But was it Best Play material? Well, I guess since there are about 3 straight plays on Broadway a year, the competition is not too tough, but, um, no.
It was flawed. Seriously, seriously flawed.
But here's where the Writers' Forum comes in. For almost 2 years, I've been a member of the Source Writers' Forum, a fantastic group of fantastic writers. Each week, someone brings in a play they've written or are writing and the group provides feedback. The feedback is consistently respectful, honest and insightful--quite a neat trick. I've learned alot. Some of what I learned is what enabled me to see the flaws in "God of Carnage" so clearly.
But.
"God of Carnage" is playing on Broadway. And winning Tonys.
So.
I guess what I'm learning (over and over again, but we'll get to that in another post) is that it's better to get your stuff out there than it is to get it perfect. Because it'll never be perfect.
The perfectionist in me does not like this. But I'm working on it.
As usual, I have lots going on and lots I'd like to write about. I'll start with here...
God of Carnage & the Writers' Forum
So. I saw "God of Carnage" last night. It was good. It was fun. It was a little "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf"-ish. But was it Best Play material? Well, I guess since there are about 3 straight plays on Broadway a year, the competition is not too tough, but, um, no.
It was flawed. Seriously, seriously flawed.
But here's where the Writers' Forum comes in. For almost 2 years, I've been a member of the Source Writers' Forum, a fantastic group of fantastic writers. Each week, someone brings in a play they've written or are writing and the group provides feedback. The feedback is consistently respectful, honest and insightful--quite a neat trick. I've learned alot. Some of what I learned is what enabled me to see the flaws in "God of Carnage" so clearly.
But.
"God of Carnage" is playing on Broadway. And winning Tonys.
So.
I guess what I'm learning (over and over again, but we'll get to that in another post) is that it's better to get your stuff out there than it is to get it perfect. Because it'll never be perfect.
The perfectionist in me does not like this. But I'm working on it.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Is YOUR Genius at Work?
I am constantly worried about not living up to my potential and so am constantly searching for ways to figure out, ahem, what my potential actually IS.
While I still don't know, one of the things that has helped me become a lot more comfortable with the journey was this book:
Dick Richards' premise is that everyone has a unique "genius" to give to the world. So unique, in fact, that you have to figure it out and name it yourself. And this book provides a number of exercises and tips on how to do that.
There are several things that I loved about this book.
First of all, who doesn't want to have a unique genius? That just sounds cool.
Secondly, unlike some other personality/aptitude tests I've read about/taken, the goal here is not to say, for example, "ok, my genius is caring for others, so I should be a nurse." The goal here is figure out how to put whatever your genius is at work in whatever you do--professionally and privately.
Richards has done a lot of coaching and the book includes lots of case studies, so there were a couple of folks who did end up changing jobs once they figured out what they're genius was, since it was patently incompatible with their current job or employer. But for alot of people, it was more a matter of helping them understand why they liked particular parts of their jobs more than others and how to maximize those.
I haven't entirely settled on what my genius is yet, but it's something like "Solving Puzzles." And, what I love about this, is that it's helped me understand myself better.
For example, a couple of years back, I really got into knitting. I learned how to do it and then spent the next several months knitting:
- a series of scarves--each using a different pattern and yarn,
- a stuffed lamb for my cousin's new baby,
- some baby booties & hats,
- a bunch of christmas ornaments, and
- a fingerless glove.
In the course of all this, I stocked up on yarn and needles and various knitting books. And then I lost interest. Where, previously, I might have beat myself up about that and put it down to lack of commitment or discipline or whatever, once I read Richards' book, I understood it. For me, the fun part about knitting was LEARNING HOW--solving the puzzle of it. Once I learned how, the actual KNITTING part was way less interesting. And even the end product wasn't that interesting to me. (In fact, with the exception of the fingerless glove, I didn't even keep any of the things I knitted. I gave them all away.) This really crystalized for me with the gloves--knitting the first glove was FUN, but the prospect of knitting the second? Deadly boring.
Since then, I've noticed this tendency in myself in quite a lot of areas.* And it IS fun to try to figure out how to feed this need/potential.
*It's also why I am loving Blake Snyder's Save the Cat, which I am currently reading. He turns the whole process of writing a screenplay into one giant puzzle.
While I still don't know, one of the things that has helped me become a lot more comfortable with the journey was this book:
Dick Richards' premise is that everyone has a unique "genius" to give to the world. So unique, in fact, that you have to figure it out and name it yourself. And this book provides a number of exercises and tips on how to do that.
There are several things that I loved about this book.
First of all, who doesn't want to have a unique genius? That just sounds cool.
Secondly, unlike some other personality/aptitude tests I've read about/taken, the goal here is not to say, for example, "ok, my genius is caring for others, so I should be a nurse." The goal here is figure out how to put whatever your genius is at work in whatever you do--professionally and privately.
Richards has done a lot of coaching and the book includes lots of case studies, so there were a couple of folks who did end up changing jobs once they figured out what they're genius was, since it was patently incompatible with their current job or employer. But for alot of people, it was more a matter of helping them understand why they liked particular parts of their jobs more than others and how to maximize those.
I haven't entirely settled on what my genius is yet, but it's something like "Solving Puzzles." And, what I love about this, is that it's helped me understand myself better.
For example, a couple of years back, I really got into knitting. I learned how to do it and then spent the next several months knitting:
- a series of scarves--each using a different pattern and yarn,
- a stuffed lamb for my cousin's new baby,
- some baby booties & hats,
- a bunch of christmas ornaments, and
- a fingerless glove.
In the course of all this, I stocked up on yarn and needles and various knitting books. And then I lost interest. Where, previously, I might have beat myself up about that and put it down to lack of commitment or discipline or whatever, once I read Richards' book, I understood it. For me, the fun part about knitting was LEARNING HOW--solving the puzzle of it. Once I learned how, the actual KNITTING part was way less interesting. And even the end product wasn't that interesting to me. (In fact, with the exception of the fingerless glove, I didn't even keep any of the things I knitted. I gave them all away.) This really crystalized for me with the gloves--knitting the first glove was FUN, but the prospect of knitting the second? Deadly boring.
Since then, I've noticed this tendency in myself in quite a lot of areas.* And it IS fun to try to figure out how to feed this need/potential.
*It's also why I am loving Blake Snyder's Save the Cat, which I am currently reading. He turns the whole process of writing a screenplay into one giant puzzle.
Friday, May 8, 2009
I Have to Take a Moment...
I know I haven't been posting for awhile. LIFE has swept in and stolen all my time, for which I'm thankful.
But it's been hanging heavy on my heart that I haven't taken a moment here to express my sorrow at the passing of Jen Hoffman, aka "ShawnieMac," one of my YSC friends.
You may recognize the name. I mentioned her here last year, when she was declared NED (No Evidence of Disease). Tragically, NED was not a lengthy visitor.
Jen and I had emailed each other a few times and followed each other's blogs. I didn't know her well, but knew her enough to know she was a truly amazing person. But don't take it from me. See for yourself:
But it's been hanging heavy on my heart that I haven't taken a moment here to express my sorrow at the passing of Jen Hoffman, aka "ShawnieMac," one of my YSC friends.
You may recognize the name. I mentioned her here last year, when she was declared NED (No Evidence of Disease). Tragically, NED was not a lengthy visitor.
Jen and I had emailed each other a few times and followed each other's blogs. I didn't know her well, but knew her enough to know she was a truly amazing person. But don't take it from me. See for yourself:
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
The Nature of Genius
Ok, so I haven't been blogging lately. What can I say? I suck.
But Elizabeth Gilbert doesn't:
But Elizabeth Gilbert doesn't:
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
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