In the interest of getting back into the blogging-groove, here I am again with a few short thoughts. I'm waiting on calls for a piece I'm doing on banking technology, and in between, I'm trying to get my mojo back on a novel I started with a great deal of excitement a few weeks ago. That pesky life thing (see previous post) intervened, and I'd put it away for paying work.

As I've sat here comtemplating it, I've been thinking about a movie I watched recently, HOLLYWOODLAND, with Ben Affleck and Adrian Brody. The gist of the movie is that George Reeves, who played Superman on the wildly popular TV series in the 1950s, dies, and while his death is ruled a suicide, there is speculation that he was killed by the movie producer husband of the woman he was involved with for many years.


(HOLLYWOODLAND)

In the movie, George Reeves is bemoaning his fate to his agent—the fact that while he had dreams of being a serious actor (even starring in the wildly successful GONE WITH THE WIND as one of the Tarleton twins, as well as other movies)—he's now stuck in this cheesy TV role and will forever be typecast as the man of steel, hero to kids everywhere.


(George Reeves as Clark Kent and Superman)

George's agent, while sympathetic, tells him:

 "An actor can't always act. Sometimes you have to WORK."

I immediately wrote that down because it is so true for so many of us writers, too. 

Writers can't always write. Sometimes—most times—we have to work!

Granted, I'd love to have the luxury of spending all of my time perfecting my not-so-perfect novels, but I don't have that luxury. But I am a danged fine freelancer, and I remind myself on days like today that I ought to enjoy that fact—the fact that my work is seen every month by 50,000 people.

I feel fortunate that the bulk of my work IS writing, although I do a lot of other things, too, to make a buck. Because, as we all know, writing isn't the fast track to the big money.

Recently, on a list I'm own, a new writer was fretting over her manuscript and wanting to give up because she didn't feel she could change it—or wanted to change it—to meet editors' needs. There was lots of helpful discussion, to which I contributed (helpfully, I'm hoping, as we've all been there, done that), but the upshot of it all for me was this, as I posted on the list:

"Bottom line, and for those folks on this list who have known me a long time, this is boring old news, but here it is again: The children's writing business is NOT for the faint of heart or those without the intestinal fortitude to stay the course, persevere and try and try and . . . try and try and try and TRY yet again and again and again, ad nauseum! Giving up means that you'll DEFINITELY never get the story or stories published anywhere. I'm so thankful for all the writer-friends who told me, "Don't give up." And I'm still not giving up."

I remind myself of that ALL the time! 

On that note, I want to thank lkmadiganfor interviewing me (she asked some fun questions!). I so appreciate her kind words about my novel, The Legend of Zoey. Thanks, Lisa! Friends like you are what keep us all going! And I'm so fortunate to have wonderful, supportive writer friends—you KNOW who you are!

Okay, phone is ringing! Back to WORK!
XO Candie