Your soul needs to be fed.  For some people, they know what they love and they are doing it.  For others, the search is ongoing – a struggle which oftentimes is defined by fear.   The first thing you have to ask yourself is what is it you love?  Start there.

I’ve know for some time that I should be a writer.   But this has not been an easy journey.   When you answer that question of what you truly love, the answer might scare you because then you must act.  You must put your words into action.

I’ve said this before in a previous blog – I failed grade 3 because of English and Math.   Writing was a huge challenge for me back in elementary school.  My spelling and grammar were atrocious (and I still struggle with both).  But something happened to me when I repeated grade 3.  I suddenly became more determined to conquer my limitations.  I remember my first taste of writing came during recess breaks when I repeated grade 3.  It all started then, when I began writing short stories.  This then expanded to skits in my local church and at the same time, my brothers and I made super 8 silent films (yeah, there was a time you had to buy film and a camera and editing equipment to make your own films).  We did that.  We wrote, directed, starred and edited about 3o short films.  My love of cinema and screenwriting began at that time.

When I entered high school, I knew I loved to act, so I started writing plays throughout the summer months and mounted them at my high school the following year.  During high school, I expanded my love of screenwriting and continue to create short films with my brothers and sister.

In university, I began to understand the craft of screenwriting even more while I continued to stage two plays a year.   Once I graduated from university and up until this day, I just kept writing…and getting rejected….lots and lots and lots of rejection.   And I should have been rejected.  I wasn’t very good.  Writing never came natural to me.  It’s only been in the last few years that I’ve honed my craft and started to get the hang of this writing thing.  When you love something, it takes practice, lots of practice and a tremendous amount of patience.

Anything you love takes work.  But it’s the kind of work that is satisfying and ultimately feeds your soul.   My mother had 5 children in her life.  She loved being a mother.  She loved kids.  That was her passion.  She lived and breathed it 24 hours a day.  Were we always the best kids?  Absolutely not (trust me).  We tested her patience constantly, but she had no regrets.  Being a mother fed her soul.

On that note, my latest offering is a new play to be staged at the Toronto Fringe Festival this July called OverTime.  More details on this production to come.  My producer has just finalized a director and we are in the midst of casting.  And of course…rewriting.  Yes, there is more work to be done.  It’s not always fun, but I’m looking forward to the journey.