A Writer Writes... Again!

I haven't had much to write about since I last posted over three years now.  I only had one follower. (Thank you Laura!) It didn't seem like I was reaching as many folks as I'd hope I would when I decided to blog. Except something happened today that inspired me to want to write a post after all these years.  First I should say that in addition to turning half a century this year, I managed to write a novel.  I finished my first novel on Halloween of this year.  I got the idea to do it from reading this book called NO PLOT, NO PROBLEM by Chris Baty.  

In a nutshell, Baty goes into detail how you can make time to write a novel of 50k words in 30 days with the correct time managment.  If you're doing the math, that is roughly 1,667 words a day.  Baty is also one of the founders of National Novel Writer's Month (aka NaNoWriMo) that occurs yearly during the month of November.  I decided that I would participate this year (more on that later). 

I should say that there are some works of literature that are roughly 50k words - THE GREAT GATSBY, HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY, BRAVE NEW WORLD* - just to name a few.  Now I'm not saying I'm anywhere near to being as talented a writer as Fitzgerald, Adams or Huxley have been.  But I like to think that after reading many books (ever since I learned how to read over forty-five years ago) I did pick up a few things here and there.  Not to mention that fact that I have written a screenplay for a feature film ten years ago.  Plus you don't get to be my age and not gain some wisdom from years of life experience.  Hopefully with practice I can become a better writer eventually.

To prepare for writing a novel this month, I read tons of books on writing structure, format, style. etc.  I even went over notes from previous creative writing courses that I took when I was in college.  Then I decided to write a "practice" novel during the month of September of this year.  My goal was this: I just wanted to see if I could discipline myself enough to put in the time to actually write something and stick to it.  Baty's book is perfect for busy folks who have grueling work schedules, children to raise, full-time students, whatever: busy people.  It's crafting the proper time management that can be applied to ANY situation.  Since I'm currently not working (it gets harder to find employment after turning 50-years-old even with a new media degree in Filmmaking and Multimedia, I have found out the hard way: "Over qualified" really means "you're too old bitch!").  So I needless to say, I have some time on my hands lately. It's also quite therapeutic mentally, I find.

Anyway, writing the 50k words in 30 days was a breeze for me.  In fact I passed the 50k word count on the 25th day. Some days I was on fire writing pages and pages of text; while some days I was lucky if I could come up with two decent paragraphs.  But I persevered and kept on going until the 30 days of September was over. That being said, my 50k words didn't exactly make up a cohesive novel.  To tell the story I wanted to tell, I used the month of October to add an additional 50k words and voilà: My first novel.  Something that I can now check off of my bucket list.

So now that that was done, the hardest part is finding a publisher who would be interested in reading it, let alone decide to publish it.  You'd think that living in New York City, where  some of the biggest publishing houses on the country are located, this would be easy.  I can tell you it's not.  It's all about who you know.  And even though I did temp work in the mid '80's for Simon & Schuster, I regret now that I never bothered to cultivate any professional relationships with anyone over there.  My loss, I can assure you.  

But in the meantime, I am now working on my second novel for the NaNoWriMo contest.  Today I passed the 37,000 word count on this the 22nd say of the contest.  (It's a sequel.  I think I might try and write a trilogy like Stieg Larsson or Suzanne Collins.   I only hope that I live long enough to see them published unlike the late Larsson.)  As long as I'm writing everyday, I feel like that half of the battle is already won.  One of my favorite novels that I've read since the last time I posted here was Sara Gruen's WATER FOR ELEPHANTS.  When I found out it was one of the published novels that she wrote for the NaNoWriMo, it was incredibly inspiring to me to want to compete and write for the contest. Even if doesn't get published, at least I can say "I did it", right?  

Which brings me to why I decided to post on my blog again.  Today someone I've known for many, many years now.  Someone I that I've always consider a friend, said to me: "What's the point of writing if nobody will publish it?"  How's that for words of encouragement? With friends like that... but I digress.

I'm not going to let this person (whom shall remain nameless here) nor anyone else for that matter, stop me from creating stories and writing as much as I want until I can't do it anymore.  Even if they remain on my laptop long after I'm dead and gone, at least I know that I actually accomplished writing a novel or two or three.  In the meantime, it has also encouraged me to continue putting this blog out into the universe.  Even if I only have one follower, than at least I've reach someone out there.

So, I'm putting this out into the universe with the hope that there may be a publisher who would be interested in reading what I've written.  Feel free to forward this posting to your friends, family, colleagues, anybody, I don't care.  You never know: maybe somebody out there in the world knows somebody, who knows somebody, who knows somebody, who knows somebody...you get the picture.  If you decide that this isn't something you want to forward to anyone, that's fine too.  Instead smile at a stranger or say a kind word to somebody you pass everyday but never spoken with.  A little act of kindness may not seem like much to you, but it sure couldn't hurt anyone to put some positive energy into the universe, could it?  (This is where I would put an emoticon of a smiling face if I figure out how to do that here or if this was a video this would be the part where I would say "Thompson Out!" and drop the microphone on the floor and exit the frame stage right.)     

*According to Wikipedia, so take it with grain of salt. You know what I'm talking about here. 

I'm Back! Has it really been a year?

It's been over a year since my last posts! I've been going through a lot of life changes but I'm well now. So much has happened in a year's time. Where to begin? Okay here goes: BP Oil spill in the Gulf! Those poor animals and the people whose lives depend on the tourist! My heart is goes out to you!

True Blood-LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT! Who won American Idol this year? Who cares! Adam Lambert ROCKS that's all I know! LOST went off the air! As well as 24, The Tyra Banks Show, ER, Law & Order (the original one).

Ricky Martin came out! Good for him! But really, was that REALLY that much of a surprise? I love you RICKY! iPhone, iPad, iPod, iCARUMBA! But if Steve Jobs wants to send me a iPad I am totally okay with that! The world has gone iCRAZY! Wendy is still going strong (even though she is on hiatus until the new fall season starts! Still love you WENDY my Bewigged Goddess!

Movies: The Hurt Locker was the best movie last year that so few people saw. I did see it on DVD and I can understand the hoopla! I loved The Princess & the Frog, but found PRECIOUS very disturbing! Great performances though!

Food: Did somebody say SHAKE SHACK!? (Madison Square Park for NYers, Times Square 8th Ave @ 44th for tourist) I had my first Shake Shack burger and nearly came! It was the best burger I've had in a long time! And yes it's even better than my former favorite The Little Burger Joint (inside the Parker Meridian Hotel on 57th Street) I still love my cupcakes! Billy's (9th Ave at 21st street) (of course!).

Books: I've read many books since the last time I posted I cant think of anything that sticks out that much besides Michael E. Schiefelbein's VAMPIRE series (Vampire Vow, Vampire Thrall, Vampire Transgression, Vampire Maker). VERY SEXY!!!! Why doesn't somebody make a series about these Vamps? Oh, that's right, it's not for tweens but for adults! Believe it or not the only vampire novel I read prior to these was the Bram Stoker. Another book I recommend is Rodney Lofton's No More Tomorrows: Two Lives, Two Stories, One Love! It hit me like a ton of bricks!

I hate using the computers at the public library. Right now I'm on my laptop. Two weeks ago I was in the library on the computer and this guy next to me was surfing the web watching porn! I don't even want to know what he was doing under the jacket draped over his lap! That's not the place for that kind of nonsense! I complained to security but they said that they could do nothing about it because they can't block websites! Funny, but when I was going to school, the IT dept did just that! What has gotten into people?

Music: did I already talk about that? Loved Soldier of Love (SADE) and BlackSummer's Night (Maxwell), The Fame Monster (Lady Gaga) and The Element of Freedom (Alicia Keys)!

Nuf said!

It's A New Day!

Since I last posted here, Barack Obama has been elected as the 44th President of the United States of America! Hopefully better times will be ahead for this nation economically. I think just by the fact that he has already given 3 press conferences and has started announcing cabinet members in his administration, hopefully this is a good sign that the man means business to change the mess that 8 years of the Bush Administration has done to this country. Okay, that enough from my political soapbox.

I recently read 2 really interesting biographies. One was call "Out of Sync" by Lance Bass (yes, that LANCE BASS). I could never imagine what the world would be like to live in a fishbowl knowing your secret could come out any minute. Despite what some people think of "boy bands", I think it took a lot of courage and bravery for him to come out of the closet. Equally fascinating but by no means boring was the other book that I read "Alone In The Trenches" by Esera Tuaolo! Here is a man who is 300+ lbs, 6'3" and solid muscle and playing in the most brutally, masculine sport there is: Professional Football! His story really got to me, much like John Amaechi's "Man In The Middle" did. Esera played nose guard for several professional teams in the NFL for over 9 years and he, like Lance Bass, lived with the same secret. His story is quite a read and of course, the filmmaker in me would LOVE to make it into a feature film if it hasn't already been optioned! I think Esera's story, even more than Lance's , will make people question how they feel about us, Gay Americans!

Speaking of gay Americans I have to shout out to Miss Wanda Sykes!! I hope she has opened the door for more closeted, high-profile, people-of-color who are celebrities to take the leap and stand up and be who they truly are. I have never met Wanda, however my mother goes to church with Wanda's parents in Virginia. More Power too ya Sistah! Who knows maybe one day our paths will cross either in VA or NY. Wanda came out at a rally, like many staged across the nation recently, opposing the passing of Proposition 8 in California.

I don't want to get on another political soapbox, but I have to say something regarding Proposition 8: Why do people care whether or not same-sex couples get married or not? Seriously? Straight people have the right and often abuse the privilege that is just a basic HUMAN RIGHT OF EQUALITY! My sister recently told me that she doesn't believe in the union of same-sex couples! And should I ever tie the knot with my man (that is if I had a man), she wouldn't come to my wedding to celebrate what could be the happiest day of my life! I interpreted this as she loves me, but with conditions!. To this I can only say "F**K YOU MONICA!!!!" Someone will have to relay this message to her, because as she has never bothered to come and see me in a play in the many years I was acting, nor had the time to take 15 minutes out of her precious time to watch my documentary (however, she has all the time in the world to hang out with her motorcycle "club"), I can tell you that she will never read my blog! Her loss, ignorance is bliss!

Oh, I almost forgot. The other day I was walking from a bar with my friend Paul and we ran into Lee Tergesen and Eamonn Walker from the HBO series "OZ." They were really nice and I was really drunk. I hope I didn't make too much of a fool of myself. Anyway Look for "Kings" coming on NBC in Feb 09. They well be on it!

Well enough about me. Have a nice Turkey day!

DL, Albee, and the Knife

It's been a roller coaster this month and especially difficult when it comes to having access to the Internet.

What did I do this month:

Oh yeah, I saw "The DL Chronicles" on DVD: really good storytelling and acting and it was a lot better than any of the other shows that come on the HERE! Network. I also when to a screening of this new film called "Hamlet 2": It was HILARIOUS! It opens in August. Put it on your must see list! It was an intelligent comedy.

Read a couple of good books: Twice As Good: Condoleezza Rice and Her Path to Power by Marcus Mabry and Michael Tolliver Lives by Armistead Maupin.

At the center I shot a conversation with one of the greatest living American playwrights: Edward Albee. It was for a future segment. Also shot a conversation with author Michael Cunningham. I happen to be reading his last novel, Specimen Days (think "The Hours" except instead of Virginia Woolf it's Walt Whitman). It was an okay shoot, but I'm glad my friend Julie Ann was there to make sure that it started on time, otherwise, I'd still be there.

Oh, I'm graduating from school on May 2. Did I mention I'm graduating WITH HONORS? I'm very excited but now I just want to finish and get my BFA. Check out my Amazon wish list for gifts suggestions. BTW, got an extension on my thesis film. Talk about drama! Thank you Dean LeMelle!!!! OXOXOX

I go "under the knife" on May 5. Many of you know, but for those of you who don't know what it's all about, I will just say that I will be okay and it's a necessary surgery, but not life threatening. After which I will have time to recover because I think I may have just been fired from my gig at The Center. But I'm still trying to wrap my head around that as I sit here and type. I'm at school now writing this entry and wondering what my next move will be. Oh wait, I see my friend Michael Armstrong (he must be here to pick up his cap and gown too).

Okay, gotta run until next time.

Film School at 44

I've done it!! With hard work and determination I can honestly say that as of today, March 28, 2008 I am a COLLEGE GRADUATE. As of today I have my Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S) Degree in Digital Filmmaking and Multimedia! I am very happy and proud that I have been able to achieve this accomplishment at the tender age of 44 given all the drama that I've lived through in the past couple of years. I will get my degree in a ceremony on May 2. Even though I dropped out of my Bachelor program at Pace University over 25 years ago to pursue my calling to be a thespian on the stage, I guess there was something in me that was determine to prove that it's never too late to finish college. The next step will be to get my Bachelor and then my Master's degree. But for the time being I'm going to pursue the workforce in a freelance capacity until I decide on what school I'd like to further my education at.

I should mention that I passed my only class, Literature and Composition by the skin of my teeth. I got a A minus. I thought that I would probably get a C or a B+ because I was late handing in my term paper (a comparison of short stories that I titled "Cowboys and Indians:The Dynamics of Male Bonding in Modern Western Literature") I compared the literature of Annie Proulx's "Brokeback Mountian" with Sherman Alexie's "This is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona" from his collection of short stories The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. I say I passed by the skin of my teeth because I had so much trouble writing this paper. The first time I did it I forgot to save it on my thumb drive the day that it was due. When I went back to copy on my drive to take to from home to school, my stupid Dell laptop crashed and I lost the file entirely. So when I finally went into class on the last day ready to take what I had coming to me, my professor refused to take no for an answer and made me write "something" during the class. Well 2 hours later, I came up with almost an identical paper that I had written before (with a full bibliography included) of what I could remember. I guess in the end, when push comes to shove and my butt is on the line, I can write like it's nobody's business! In the end I got an "A" on this final paper of this chapter of my academic career.

I had a weird dream the other night where I had the opportunity to meet one of my Film idols, John Waters. It wasn't as crazy as one of his films (or mine for that matter) but it was nice. Someone had passed him a copy of my thesis film (which is still in the works once I get through with my minor medical issues) Poppin' In and one night I get this phone call from someone claiming to be John Waters. So at first I'm thinking it's a friend playing a joke on me until I ask him some questions that only he could answer (you can learn a lot from listening to the Director's commentary tracks on DVDs) and sure enough, it really was John Waters! I was flabbergasted and he invites me to lunch to discuss my short thesis film (That he thought was "a riot") and then I woke up. But it was a nice dream. I guess since I have been meeting famous directors (Mira Nair, Cynthia Wade) maybe this dream was telling me something. Hmmm....

Anyway this week at the Center we put up the March 2008 episode of "Out at the Center" and I have to say that I'm very proud of it especially since I had the opportunity to shot footage for several segments on this program. I even helped with the editing on the closing credits (a fashion show) and I hope that I've made all of my film professors at KGS (Katharine Gibbs School) proud of my film shooting and editing skills. Most importantly I hope I made my boss proud on the show. This week I also worked on filming an upcoming segment with author Michael Luongo who recently released Gay Travels in the Muslim World. I haven't had an opportunity to read the book yet, but from the discussion he gave, it fascinates me. Especially since once my brother-in-law told me that there were no gay people in Pakistan. I made sure he saw "My Beautiful Launderette" after he told me this bit of information. Okay, the guy lived in London, but he was born in Pakistan in the film. Plus it was the very first time I saw Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis and was smitten!

Anyhoo, until next time my darlings....