Hi! Welcome to the Monday morning greeting that’s going out on Monday afternoon. Blame deadlines. I have a load of non-Substack work to do this week, so things are a bit crazed at the moment.
So, here’s something I’ve noticed: lately I seem to be interviewing people who have suffered some great loss or are grappling with some kind of life-altering health challenge. I’m not sure why these pieces keep falling into my lap, but the conversations have been inspiring, so I’m grateful for them.
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Next Avenue published one of these pieces earlier this month. I interviewed Frasier star Kelsey Grammer about his younger sister Karen, who was kidnapped and murdered in 1975. He has a new book out about her called Karen: A Brother Remembers. Tomorrow I have another interview out in Next Avenue about a musician who is dealing with ALS, and last Friday I published my chat with Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen, who were partway through making a film when Erik was diagnosed with Stage 4 colorectal cancer.
Thankfully, Erik is doing really well. He shared with me over the weekend that his latest tests show that he’s cancer-free and his liver is healing nicely. Not a bad email to get, especially in this hot mess of a year.
Anyway, I’m not sure why these types of interviews keep coming my way but I’m learning a lot from them.
A few things I learned from Erik & Jessica:
Having some kind of soul-filling art project to pour your heart into can be enormously healing when dealing with a serious illness.
Calling your first draft the “bad draft” is a way to take some of the pressure off of making it great right off the bat.
Find your people. They’ll help you through the tough times.
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Speaking of people…I had a great weekend with mine. I took a Turkish Lamp-making class with a friend late last week. The lamp is…not great. But I always enjoy the act of making something—especially if it doesn’t involve having a screen in my face—even if the results are mediocre.
I also painted some pottery with my mom, went to a board game cafe with my kid, ate meals cooked up by my amazing husband, and did a lot of snuggling with the cats. All in all it was a lovely few days.
So, that’s it for now. Later this week, I’ll share my most interview with TV and film composer Alexander Parsons.
Thanks for reading! Wishing you a week full of art and creativity!
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