2017 - One Week In

It's the first full weekend of the new year.
I am at a Korean Spa, trying to get work done.
Not much changes.

Except, that I just finished my first week of work as a Co-Producer on the show I worked on last year. I'm a little tired. We pushed through a ton of story this week. The room is running well. Three of us writers are returning and we've got two new additions who have brought great energy. I'm not completely destroyed the way I was after my first week on the show last year. I binged watched the first season of Fuller House because I was that brain dead and didn't want much to challenge me. This weekend, I ran my writer's group and I've been running errands and trying to get moving on this pilot rewrite.

I've been wondering why I've been so energized this time around. Maybe it's because I know what to expect. Perhaps it's because I've got more stamina this time. Maybe it's because I'm more engaged. Last year, we knew exactly what we were writing. This time around we're figuring more of it out in the room. I think some of us were scared about not knowing exactly what we were doing for the season. As the week has gone on, I realize it has made me more invested. Last time, it felt like we were being told what to do. This time it feels like we're having to figure it out together. The group think allows us to all brainstorm together. I think I prefer that.

Having another playwright in the room helps. Having another person of color in the room helps too. And then the group who worked together last year. I guess it does feel more familiar in some ways.

This is a great start to the New Year. Last year, I was in the wake of my break up. The world seemed confusing. Then everything changed for the better. This year, I 'm starting out in a much different - and better - place. I'm a working, paid professional writer and a member of the WGA. That changes things. It makes me dream bigger. But it also makes me calmer and not freaked out about what lies ahead.

Before all of the changes last year, I had adopted a different tactic. I was going to let things happen as they needed to. I wasn't going to worry. I had resolved myself to the idea that my career might not happen the way I imagined it. And regardless, I was going to write. Even if I had to take a day job. Even if I had to teach and write plays in my spare time. I was happy doing the work I had been doing. That was enough.

And then the Universe provided with more than I thought it would. This year, I'm doing the work in front of me without much thought to anything else. Yes, I'm finishing this pilot which I know will help get me the next writing gig. I'm not without a plan all together. But I'm not placing limits on what could happen. Which means I don't have time to obsess.

My intention is to work.
My intention is growth.
My intention is to do what's in front of me.

I am grateful for my writer's room.
I am grateful to be employed.
I am grateful to be a new member of the WGA.
I am grateful for new relationships.