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Category: Work-Life Balance

Script page hanging from washing line
Feb142019

Laundry Writing

Script page hanging from washing lineI not talking about dirty laundry… okay, I kinda am.

Think you don’t have time to write? Well, if you can fit laundry into your schedule, then you have at least some time!

Scenario 1: The Laundromat.
Heave your loads to the laundromat. Dump the dirty garments into a row of machines and get them started. Now pull out your journal and pen (or open up your computer) and off you go! Write away the waiting time until it’s time for the transfer to dryers. That’s a good 30 minutes of timed writing! Use it as a warm up if you must and plan what to do when your laundry is in the dryers – because the drying cycle is longer; you’ll have at least an hour of focussed writing time. Cool, eh?

Okay, then there is…

Scenario 2: Laundry at Home.
Even better. You don’t have rows of machines to do all your laundry at the same time. Load #1 into the washer gets you 30 minutes of timed writing… the “Laundry Writing Warm-up.” The bell on the washer tells you it’s time for the transfer to dryer. Load #2 into the washer at the same time. Now you’ve got a good hour of focussed writing time. The washer’s bell is a mere warning sound; it’s the dryer’s alert that tells you it’s time for the transfer/re-load break. To delay folding until the end of your writing session, lay out the clothes loosely on the bed to minimize wrinkling… the deal is to get back to your writing as quickly as possible. Use the laundry to schedule writing sessions.

So there you go! I’ve just gifted you some time for writing that screenplay or novel, short story or poem that you’re itching to write. Celebrate the time you have – the time you can carve out your busy life – and use it well.

Cheers & happy laundry-writing to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deborah (Deb) Patz is the author of Write! Shoot! Edit! for teens and Film Production Management 101 for the industry – both books are published worldwide by MWP. She’s also part of the editorial board for Prism International. She’s kinda looking forward to piles of dirty laundry now… how odd is that?!

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
July 2019 – UFVA Conference, Minneapolis, MN

WHERE TO FIND DEB’S BOOKS?
Paperback or eBook: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Chapters/Indigo, Waterstones, direct from the publisher and from plenty of other great bookstores worldwide.

Jan232019

Deb’s 31-Day Pasta for Filmies (The Only Pasta Recipe You’ll Ever Need)

A recipe from a non-cook, am I serious? Yes, I am. I love to bake, but cook? Not so much. Still, we do need to feed ourselves… especially when working on production and there’s no time to be creative or experimental in the kitchen.

I do know good cooks, though. I even married a fabulous one (lucky me)! One of my friends cooks like a painter, crafting food – primarily visually and sans recipe – in the pot, building from base to highlights. Another friend cooks like an opera, orchestrating numerous exotically complex dishes that all make it to the bedecked dining table for the grand finale. Again, no recipe. My hubby cooks like a cross between Scientist and Treasure Hunter, finding food gems (in cupboard or fridge that looks empty to me) and fusing them together with daring sense of experimentation and innate sense of what flavours and textures can truly compliment each other.

Then there’s me. I follow the recipe.

Well, until…

A friend taught me a pasta recipe that is so adaptable, that I’ve made 31 different versions of it. As an experiment one year, I made the “same” pasta every night for the entire month of January – each one being different every night. Here ‘tis for you to try out your own variations:

Deb’s 31-Days of Pasta
(a.k.a. “The Only Pasta Recipe You’ll Ever Need”)

1. WARM THE OIL IN THE SKILLET
You can use Olive Oil, or experiment with Other Oils. Use a large skillet (a lot will be going into it… and it looks cool to use too).

2. SEASON THE POT
Can add crushed or sliced Garlic, and/or Green Onion.

3. ADD MEAT (optional)
I typically don’t use meat and instead add protein instead (at step 5). If you choose to use Meat (Chicken, Ground Beef, etc.) then you have to brown it in the skillet first.

4. ADD VEGETABLE(S)
Cook the harder vegetables first so they soften. There are plenty of vegetable choices to go with; some or all of: Carrots, Celery, Sundried Tomatoes*, Sweet Peppers (green, yellow, orange, and/or red), Zucchini, Mushrooms, Peas, Mini Tomatoes.
*For sundried tomatoes, I pre-cook them in the other pasta pot water before I cook the pasta so the tomatoes are soft enough for the skillet combo, and the flavour infuses into the pasta too.

5. ADD PROTEIN (optional)
Again a lot of choices here: Fish (like canned Tuna or Salmon), Nuts (like Almonds, Pine Nuts, etc.) and/or Chickpeas. I’ve never tried Beans, but you could… there’s a whole variety of beans to experiment with. You could also go entirely vegetarian and skip the protein step, too.

5. ADD SPICES
Off to the spice rack and sprinkle in a mix-n-match of spices like Basil, Rosemary, Thyme, Pepper, Cilantro, Dill, Parsley, Oregano, Tarragon, etc. or use a spice blend like Italian Seasoning or Herbs de Provence.
Turn the heat down to simmer and cover the skillet; it’s time to…

6. COOK PASTA (in another pot)
Oh, the varieties of just pasta out there! Choose some or even a combo of: Penne, Fusilli (spirals), Farfalle (bow ties), Rigatoni, Shells, Spaghetti, Linguine, Macaroni, Ruote (honeycombs) – or even Orzo or Risotto – and cook according to the instructions on the pasta package.

7. COMBINE PASTA AND “SKILLET COMBO”
Drain the pasta and add to the skillet, mixing it with the meat/veg/protein.

8. ADD FINAL FLAVOUR (optional)
If you have fish in the skillet combo, squeeze the juice of a Lemon or a Lime into the creation. Another final flavour you could use is Parmesan (aka “Shaker”) Cheese sprinkled on top.

…and you’re ready to serve! Enjoy.

So, what do you think? Do I cook like… an organized person (who thinks in layers)? Or a baker (who loves to put all the parts into one container)?

At any rate, over to you now. Ready to experiment with a month of pasta variations? Write down the combos that you love the best, and if you find one you didn’t like – no biggie – there’s always tomorrow to try again! You can even start with February; you’ll only need 28. 🙂

Cheers & happy cooking variations to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deborah (Deb) Patz is the author of Write! Shoot! Edit! for teens and Film Production Management 101 for the industry – both books are published worldwide by MWP. She’s also part of the editorial board for Prism International. She’s cooked variations of this recipe a couple of times this month.

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
Feb. 9/19 – Author Participant with Biz Books at Digital Media Youth Expo, North Vancouver BC
March 2019 – Emerald City Comic Con, Seattle WA
July 2019 – UFVA Conference, Minneapolis, MN

WHERE TO FIND DEB’S BOOKS?
Paperback or eBook: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Chapters/Indigo, Waterstones, direct from the publisher and from plenty of other great bookstores worldwide.

Jan102019

Inspiration at the Movies: Legally Blonde (Endorphins)

“Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t.”
– Elle Woods (Legally Blonde, 2001)

With a quote like that, Elle kinda makes you want to exercise, no?

After the excess of the holiday season, I bet a lot of us are thinking about exercise this month. I sure am, but in the dark of the winter, it’s hard to feel inspired to exercise – anything from energetic work-out, fitness class or even a simple walk around the neighbourhood. When I get that way, Elle’s quote comes to my mind to get me started. And you know? She’s right. By the end of my choice of exercise, I do feel good – about it and about myself.

Now I just have to get my husband to come out and join me. 🙂

Cheers & happy endorphins to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deborah (Deb) Patz is the author of Write! Shoot! Edit! for teens and Film Production Management 101 for the industry – both books are published worldwide by MWP. She’s also part of the editorial board for Prism International. She doesn’t understand how her dog can be so energetic AFTER a long walk.

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
Feb. 9/19 – Author Participant with Biz Books at Digital Media Youth Expo, North Vancouver BC
March 2019 – Emerald City Comic Con, Seattle WA
July 2019 – UFVA Conference, Minneapolis, MN

WHERE TO FIND DEB’S BOOKS?
Paperback or eBook: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Chapters/Indigo, Waterstones, direct from the publisher and from plenty of other great bookstores worldwide.

Aug132017

The Hollywood / Doowylloh Sign

Since I was a teen, I dreamed of walking behind the Hollywood sign. I wanted to see Hollywood with the word spelled backwards in front of me.

My first trip to LA (when I was a teen), I saw the sign from Mulholland Drive, which as you may know, is on the hill next to – but not really near – the sign. Still, there was the word, spelled out on the terrain – shining, white letters. What did they see every day while us millions look up at them, dreaming our fantasy of a life in the movies?

Many years later, I found the right set of hills and managed a hike toward it, but at the posted warning “no trespassing beyond this point” I turned back.

By now I’d be working in the movies for a considerable time. With permission I’d wandered the backlot of Universal “off tram,” attended a party in a Hollywood mansion, and had many other movie-life memories, but not of the view behind the Hollywood sign. I tried a hike from Griffith Observatory, but without a good map and enough water, it was another attempt aborted.

This summer it happened.

Map in hand, sufficient water, hat and supplies, solid footwear and family to support me, we did the hike – crazy that we are – at the heat of the day. The air was thick with heat, the sun burned down on us, unforgiving. The odd lattice-like shadows and a few cool zephyrs provided enough relief to keep us going. Well, that and my dream.

The dirt path led to a paved road that winds up, around and right behind the Hollywood sign. Sure, there’s a chain-link fence between you and the sign, but that’s no barrier for the eyes. A rocky outlook perches above the path and fence so you can have an unobstructed view. Up there is the best thing of all: a B&B… a b-ench and a b-reeze.

So here’s what the Hollywood sign sees of us every day:

I’m at a loss to describe the feeling, but will try. In that moment, I was a teenager again standing on that other hill gazing over here at the sign (and me), dreaming of the future. At the same time I was here, so many years later with established career in film and my family beside me – an incredible family I never imagined in that teenage dream.

I didn’t sit on the letters themselves (as I did in my dream), but I also didn’t need to. From up here, it looked like it would be ridiculously uncomfortable anyway. I know that now… because I’ve been there.

Funny thing about dreams: they often come in a slightly different form than when you first imagine them. You have to be flexible enough to accept them as they are and to celebrate them as they come true. You also can’t stop living life to try to achieve them – they happen along the way.

So, I’ve now made another life dream of mine come true! Here’s to making more dreams, and then making them come true… all life long!

Cheers to you and your dreams,
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deb Patz is the author of “Write! Shoot! Edit! A Complete Guide to Filmmaking for Teens” (new in 2017) and “Film Poduction Management 101” both published by MWP Books. She does not recommend hiking hills and mountains at the heat of a summer day… unless you’re truly prepared for the weather.

DEB’S LATEST NEWS:
Her new book, “Write! Shoot! Edit!” was reviewed in:
(1) the Vancouver Sun and other papers across Canada, including the Montreal Gazette,  The Province, the Ottawa Citizen, the Saskatoon Star Phoenix, the Windsor Star, Canada.com, and News Locker;
(2) SF Crowsnest (in the UK);
(3) the Midwest Book Review Library August 2017 Watch list (on the Theatre/Cinema/TV Shelf)

Jan12017

New Year, New Book, More FILM & INK Blog

Fresh green stalk

Breaks through the snowy crust

To kiss the sun

snwymss

Welcome to the new year!

Now, last year I wanted to blog more, to connect more, to do more. Well I certainly accomplished a lot: I wrote a couple of books (one set for publication in 2017), worked full time, took courses for my Masters of Creative Writing, and a bunch of etcetera.

What I didn’t do so well last year on was work-life balance.

I, therefore, start this year with some self-forgiveness. I do plan to blog more and connect more, but I also don’t expect myself to be super-human either. If I miss a planned post here and there, that will be okay. Know that I’m still here, but am probably wickedly busy.

The plan so far: for my FILM & INK blog, I’ll be writing for and about the FILM (and TV) industry, as well as posts about writing (the INK)… and FILM still stands for:

F-un

I-nspiration

L-ife

M-anagement
(of a production or your career)

 

So, here’s looking forward to the new year, more blogging fun and to my new book “Write! Shoot! Edit!” (a book for teens to make their first scripted movies).

All the best for the new year to you!
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deborah Patz is author of “Film Production Management 101” and the upcoming “Write! Shoot! Edit!”

Aug82016

Where Do You Write?

Back from the UFVA Conference, it’s time for me to get back to writing! But rather than talk about my works-in-progress today (there are two of them), let me ask you:

Where do you write?

When I was single, writing was hard to schedule around life, but I had a dedicated desk at home for the job… then I had a family and wow! it’s HARD to schedule writing around life!! Consequently, I find I’m not writing in one designated place anymore. I’ve written on desk, table and lap – wherever and whenever I can, including:

  • At coffee shops (of course… hasn’t every writer?)
  • On the train (thank you, thank you for those excellent tables and plug-ins on the train!)
  • Backstage at the theatre (waiting for dance class to finish)
  • On a boat (fine, until the seas get lumpy)
  • On a plane and in a hotel room (more, classic out-of-the-house locations)
  • On the patio (trying to enjoy the good weather, but it’s too bright for the screen)
  • And, at home (the family made me a “Busy Writing” sign, thank you very much!)

bzywriWhat about you? A designated spot, or wherever you can?

Cheers & productive writing to you,
Deb