We will fall. We will rise.

My writing class has introduced me to something new but exciting: play writing. I never thought it would be as enjoyable as it has been. I am able to take these ideas that sit in my brain and put them onto a stage, which seems so much more attainable (although much less profitable) than the screen. Really though, it would just be fantastic for me to see one of my productions happening in a downtown theater.

It's something that has pushed my writing. I find myself being much more contemplative about the stories I write and the reasons for writing them. What do I want to say? How do I want to say it? I am being very careful because there are specific messages I want to share and I want to share them in a unique way.

I just got back a review from an assignment in my writing class. It was a 10-page drama play. I had written it previously as a short screenplay but thought it would make an interesting stage adaptation. In transferring it over to stage, I tried to sift out some things I felt were questionable in the story and still make it clear enough to be not only readable, but entertaining. I also just found a bug bite on my right forearm, which is odd to me. I haven't had a bug bite in ages.

Anyways, I had this review, and it went much better than I had anticipated. Actually, I guess I didn't really know what to expect. I liked the story, but I wasn't sure how others would respond to it. It turned out well, and I need to make some clarifications for sure, but I really enjoy being critiqued because it makes me a better writer.

It's been the same in my film class. We are split into groups of five for our final project, which is to make a 6-8 minute film that one of us has written. My script was the one chosen out of the five, and I find it to be quite nerve-wracking. I want it to be good and I think it's complete enough. In fact, our professor has to greenlight anything before we can shoot and he greenlighted ours, so that makes me feel better. But still, there's always something sitting at the back of my throat and at the bottom of my stomach that hopes this won't be a disaster. It's tough to throw yourself out there in front of an audience, but I have found it to be like life: Falling is inevitable; Getting back up is optional. Falling is a consequence of making life an action word. Once we live, we fall. Once we fall, it's up to us. Once we hear that sharp criticism that pierces our very core, we change, we adapt, we evolve, or we die.

And I'm not ready to die.