Fairy Dust
I was on a movie set one time (One Hour Photo, to be specific) and there was this crew guy that was all chatty and fun and he said something that just made sense to me yesterday. I mean, it made sense at the time as well, but it suddenly crystallized into a truth that I really need to take hold of right this second and keep remembering every day if I want to meet my writing goals (and I really, really want to meet those goals).
He was talking about how before he came to Hollywood he'd just marvel at the magic of movies and how everything was always perfect and amazing and it never occurred to him to wonder how all this magic came to be. He sort of thought it was fairy dust that moved set pieces around and set up lights and tested microphones. Then he got here and started working on productions and found out that there was no magic in making movies; there was only hard work and tremendous effort and little sleep and maybe some bodily fluids (ew, I mean like blood and sweat and tears...I really should have phrased that differently). Specifically, his effort and sweat and hard hard work.
Lately I've been looking for something to help me finish, to start, to perfect my writing-some magic piece of advice, some revolutionary approach, or even the power of a concrete, already-paid-for conference deadline. I halfway think that if I just find that Secret-that magical, perfect, heretofore-unknown-but-still-real, right? Secret, then I will become what I want to be, do what I want to do, and be utterly satisfied with everything.
Um, der. I've been chasing some imaginary magic formula when the REAL trick is to just do it. I have to write it, I have to make myself do it, and that's the only magic there is.
I am the fairy dust.
He was talking about how before he came to Hollywood he'd just marvel at the magic of movies and how everything was always perfect and amazing and it never occurred to him to wonder how all this magic came to be. He sort of thought it was fairy dust that moved set pieces around and set up lights and tested microphones. Then he got here and started working on productions and found out that there was no magic in making movies; there was only hard work and tremendous effort and little sleep and maybe some bodily fluids (ew, I mean like blood and sweat and tears...I really should have phrased that differently). Specifically, his effort and sweat and hard hard work.
Lately I've been looking for something to help me finish, to start, to perfect my writing-some magic piece of advice, some revolutionary approach, or even the power of a concrete, already-paid-for conference deadline. I halfway think that if I just find that Secret-that magical, perfect, heretofore-unknown-but-still-real, right? Secret, then I will become what I want to be, do what I want to do, and be utterly satisfied with everything.
Um, der. I've been chasing some imaginary magic formula when the REAL trick is to just do it. I have to write it, I have to make myself do it, and that's the only magic there is.
I am the fairy dust.