May Days

I don't know how I'm going to get all of the work done I need to get done. I'm leaving for Vegas on Monday for my writer's retreat. But I really need to get started on stuff tomorrow. Ideally, I'd get the play started before I leave. Or I would get the pilot rewrite started. Or both. I guess I should really just start taking notes - which I started today. Kind of.

I have the house to myself, so I should be able to get some stuff done. I'm trying to work in coffee shops or at the library tomorrow. It would make me very happy to get all the work I need to get started done this weekend. I realize I need to take it a bit easy because I've been working for two and a half weeks in the writer's room. I basically went from finishing my first episode to pitching and outlining my second episode to getting ready to write that episode. I should be ready to start writing that second episode while I"m gone. But I'm probably going to wait and start it at the end of the week, after I've come back. I need to come back from Vegas with a full play script and a full pilot script. I know that sounds crazy, but that's why I'm getting out of dodge.

I'm not leaving for fun or to drink or to get laid - although some or all of that might happen. I'm going to get shit done. I'll probably head out mid morning on Monday so I can get to Vegas around 1 or 2, try to check in early, and then get to working. I'll work all day Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. I'll head out after check out on Friday and then get back to town Friday afternoon. I have to walk that tightrope of not putting too much pressure on myself and hunkering down to get the shit done. It's Vegas, so there will be stuff available to me to do, but it won't be so fun to go outside that I'll feel like I need to be on vacation. Yes, there will the pool and the spa. And there will be plenty for me to do if I just want to grab my lap top at three in the morning and go write. I like that it's a 24 hour town. I'm going to be on call for four days getting my stuff done. I'm glad I'm not leaving until Monday. It needs to feel like Vegas during the week instead of getting the tail end of the weekend. I have to get my stuff done. I need to have my own routine and I need to not have to cook for myself. This is a purely writerly week of getting work done.

I remember when I did this back in May of 2014. I took off to Monterey for the week. It was amazing because I got to stay at Molly's place and I had the run of the joint to get shit done. It really was pretty fantastic for me. And I got the stuff done that I needed to get done. I came back and by the 18th of that month I had a new pilot and a new play done. Come to think of it, I was working on the same play I'm working on this time. Isn't that hilarious? I didn't even realize that until now. This play is getting a lot of personal retreat time love. That's good because it deserves that.

I went running every day. I'm bringing my Cize workout with me so I can do my dance routine every morning. I'm going to try and eat healthy when I'm gone. But I'm going to have a daily routine of sitting down and working from 9 AM until about 5 PM. And whatever else I can get done outside of that will be great. But if I need to take breaks, I'll take breaks.

I'll come back and have a Mother's Day weekend, then I'll have to hunker back down and start on my episode,which will probably be due at the end of that week. I'll turn in the draft to my peeps so they can start on casting and all of that jazz. I'll probably have to reach out to folks soon. I should probably have the casting process start this week so that can be happening as I'm writing. Maybe I should have the first few scenes done before I leave. Yikes! I've got more work than I thought.

We're rehearsing the week of May 16th - with a read through of the script probably on the 16th. Then we're going to stage the play that entire week. Oy! That's pretty nuts. If we can get casting rolling and get the script written this week, then I'll feel like we will be okay. I don't really have a lot of time to work on this and I'm scared that it won't turn out the way I want it to. But that's why we're doing this, right?

I am grateful to have one creative process after another to challenge me.
I am grateful for collaborators.
I am grateful that I get to revisit this play.