Today was going to be a work day, and tomorrow was going to be my day off…but Liz was home today. All day, and she will be gone tomorrow, all day…so I switched. It does give me absolutely no wiggle room, now, on my editing work to finish up the month, but hey, it is what it is. I’m trying to be easy on myself about this whole being sick thing. I wish I’d been less of a pussy and got more work done, this is true. But, it’s also true that I’ve literally been feeling like shit for almost two weeks. So, I’m kinda stuck in the middle on it, trying to lean on the not-being-too-disappointed side because that gets me nothing now. It’s happened. I don’t have a time machine (damn scientists).
What I *can* do is finish strong tomorrow. So, stating here in the almighty blog, that has the power to make things come true: tomorrow will be a solid work day. I know exactly what I need to finish, and I will finish it. Just gonna be me and the coops and my computer; being awesome and getting shit done. And napping (that’s Cooper’s contribution).
Huge news today…my mom’s surgery was approved as “medically necessary.” I doubt that you guys reading can really appreciate the magnitude of those two words. Two months ago, getting those two words put together was a genuine family crises, one that I really had no idea of how to surmount. So, big ups to my brother Scott, who’s involvement really took our appeal to the next level, and the biggest props to my mom, who decided 6 months ago that she was actually going to do something about her sleep apnea. And, she’s going through with the surgery, which will change her life for the better. So yeah…that happened today.
It was also kind of a vindication in the hard work that we put into that appeals letter. It was 30 pages long, including all the supporting documents, and the result of probably four weeks of solid work. We didn’t want to take any chances of getting denied again, but you put all that work into a vacuum, in a sense. We had no idea if it was actually going to work. We’ve never put this kind of thing together before. So, we researched, made phone calls, asked for favors…and it actually did work. And, it just makes me feel kind fortunate, actually. Not self-aggrandizing, but fortunate. That I have intelligent people in my life that are willing to help me when I ask them.
Didn’t get to sleep as much today as I’d wanted. I didn’t nap at all, in fact, but I am in bed early with a full belly and a newly stocked fridge after going grocery shopping. I took my drugs, they’re doing their work, and I really hope I wake up tomorrow feeling that “break” in the symptoms. Where they’re still there, but you can tell, immune system has reached a turning point and the bad guys will very soon all be dead. The energy returning shouldn’t be too far behind that. I can’t freaking wait for that to happen.
I read a good friend’s script today, which is always an interesting proposition. And I mean that in terms of feedback. Feedback, I’m realizing, must always be very thoughtful, because it is intended to help the other person with their work. It is not about me. It’s about them. The more I listen to other writers, the more and more I hear about “notes,” and how to take them, and it makes me realize that people really value a person who gives “good notes.”
Objectively speaking, all notes are good notes. They’ll never fail to improve your script. There’s not a single human on the planet, however, that is a purely objective creature. I fucking hate notes. My knee jerk reaction any time someone brings up something about what I’m creating that’s not working is to think that they’re totally wrong and that I’m right. And, from what I’m gathering, I’m not the only person out there who feels that way. So…it’s my job as a writer to get over it, open my ears to actually take in what isn’t working, and then figure out how to fix it.
As someone offering a note, what I’ve learned so far is that there are things I can do to lessen that inevitable knee-jerk reaction in the writer who’s work I’m commenting on. Primarily, it seems to be to NOT OFFER SOLUTIONS (unless asked). It’s my friend’s world, his script; my ideas, unsolicited, are not helpful. He or she doesn’t think like me. I feel like the companion piece to that edict, would be to also make articulating what I didn’t find was working, or interesting, etc. as SPECIFIC as I can possibly make it. Notes that are too general aren’t helpful. A comment on what specifically didn’t work for me, and why, IS helpful.
I don’t claim to know that above is factually ironclad. I’m not (yet) a professional at this who’s able to live this process day in and day out. But, those are my thoughts on what I’ve observed so far. I’d love to hear some of my other writer friends out there weigh in on their relationship with notes.
I don’t think I will ever like them. Honestly. If you’re telling me you don’t like something that I’ve written, in my mind I’m shouting “nuh-uh!” like a child…but…I do know WHY I must take notes. And I will. I hope I do, already. Because it’s absolutely NECESSARY to creating something truly great. So, in that regard, I hope that everyone I ask for notes will lay it out for me as honestly as possible. And I will do the same in return. That’s the only way to both get to the other end of the spectrum…which is to know without a doubt that when someone says something is great, that they really mean it 😉
No idea what tonight’s photo has to do with anything, but apparently it’s a lounge in berlin that I want to go to.
