Sometimes NO doesn’t really mean NO…it means ‘try again’ or YES.

A recent post (“Close but no Cigar”) bemoaned my 19 vote loss in the national Romance Writer of America board of directors election. Rest easy, faithful reader, because I am now on the board! A director in my region moved to another position, and the board appointed me to fill the vacancy. I am enjoying learning about my responsibilities, and look forward to the first board meeting.

An editor I know has read part or all of FOUR of my manuscripts. One might think that, since she didn’t want to buy any of them, she’d be done. But she just asked to see part of another. Yes, again I have proved close but no cigar. Is the fifth time the charm?

When I first mentioned the premise of ms #9 to my agent, she wasn’t thrilled. But she read the first 50 pages and changed her mind. Now I’m waiting to hear on final revisions…

Some might find victory all the sweeter after you’d thought you’d already lost.

The question is: what steps can I take in the future to avoid the emotional roller coaster of turning NO to YES…and go directly to YES? Or are timing and luck, not my actions, the controlling factors?

The good news: lately I’ve had a lot more incoming calls from people who want to book me. In the past week I’ve had inquiries about a quick turnaround 300 page VO job, a VO role in an animated movie and, from a producer I’ve already worked with, my turnaround time for several upcoming projects. An agent called to book me for an MOS (without sound) video project tomorrow. I’d already been booked for two days in November for corporate training.

The not so good news: The 300 page job didn’t materialize. Found out this morning that the MOS project was canceled. Because the client is doing the corporate training in another city, I’m no longer needed. Have not yet heard from the producer.

I need to start taking these potential/scheduled bookings with a grain of salt, and not believe they will happen until they actually do. But it’s hard not to have expectations when I wind up cancelling appointments so I can go to a shoot or say no to other things because I think I’m booked.

Not only can scheduling change at the drop of a hat, sometimes I need to jump through a lot of hoops. I’d auditioned for a narration job from home. Then I was asked to record two short sections for the director…but they wanted them ASAP. Next they asked me to record the entire script because the client still hasn’t decided. So I did, at an advertising agency. It was great to meet some of the people involved, and doing the recording in person was better submitting from home because I could give them the exact tone/pace/energy/emphasis they wanted. But they recorded over it by mistake, and asked me to go back that afternoon and do it again. Which I did.
Will I book this project? Stay tuned…

Got a call yesterday from one of my talent agents to go to a look see on Monday for for a print job that shoots Wednesday. The pay is good because it’s a national print ad and direct mail. All I have to do is look nice, go to a photography studio and have my picture taken any time during the six hours they’re seeing people.

Six hours of look see. If they spend 5 minutes on each, that’s 72 women. 3 minutes each ups the number to 120. The last look see I went on was around 1 minute. That could be 360 people.

Far better odds than the lottery to be sure. And the studio is only 15 minutes from my condo. I’m sure some will have to schlep in from the burbs.

What can I do to stand out in sea of middle aged brunettes (no blondes, for some reason)? Clearly hair style is important. Many times I’ve heard that clients/directors see what’s in front of them and don’t think, “We like this actress, but want to change her hair.” Do I go in with my natural curls? Try a sleek ponytail? Or invest the time to straighten my hair? In my experience, most women will probably have straight hair. So my curly hair might be different. Too different?

Then there’s wardrobe…”Nice casual.” A sweater set? A blouse? What color, to not blend in or be too bright, when I don’t know what the background will be?

You see how easy it is to overthink what amounts to less than 3 audition minutes. But the stakes are pretty high…1) a sizeable print job to add to your portfolio and bank account 2) getting booked makes you look good to the agent who sent you and could keep you on their radar so they’ll submit you for other projects. 3) you can tell other agents that you’re getting work, which might make them want to submit you.

Usually I am very disciplined about getting my work done, even with few official deadlines and no boss looking over my shoulder. But these past two weeks, I have been a dawdler.

Instead of starting a new book or writing more on any I’ve started, I’ve gone out 12 evenings in a row. I’ve put away my summer clothes. I’ve cleaned my condo. Done laundry. Talked on the phone. Zoomed around the Internet.

Last week I scheduled something every day at lunch, which broke up the day in a funny way.

What do you do to get back on track?

Maybe I just needed a break, some time to refill the well. Or maybe I just don’t feel like I’m really working unless I’m immersed in a book and turning out lots of new pages. Maybe I should acknowledge that there are different forms of work: I performed in an improv show Monday night, was an extra for almost 12 hours on Tuesday, finished a non-paying article before deadline, sent out a bunch of auditions, sent voiceover Web site updates to my designer…but I still wonder, is that enough?

Faithful readers may recall that one of my manuscripts was runner up in the national 2006 American Title II contest. Yes, it’s quite an accomplishment to have my manuscript chosen as a finalist by a publisher in the first place, and additional accomplishments to have survived several rounds of online voting. But–it placed second, nonetheless.

I seem to be collecting “close but no cigar” tales.

I ran for Region 2 Director on the national Romance Writers of America board. And lost…by .9%. That’s right. Not even 1%, .9. Or 19 votes.
In this race, as in ATII…was it my fault? Should/could I have worked harder to secure votes? Did more people mean to vote, but just not get around to it, as with political elections? Or did those 19 members vote for the winner because she is a multi-published author, while I continue to aspire?

And in the voiceover world, 1) I’m in the final 2 to narrate a DVD tour of a hospital. The director wanted me to record an additional section of the script, which I did Monday….no news. 2) Also this week was “in the lead” for a critical role in a computer game, with a voice “perfect” for the character. They also asked me to record a short second audition. But they found someone “not as good” who will do the role for free.

Sigh. It’s wonderful and encouraging that my work and I are good enough to consider so seriously. On the other hand, it’s also frustrating to come so close and not prevail. And not know what to do differently to win the next time.

I believe if you say you’re going to do something by a certain time, you should do it. Or at the very least, communicate about why you can’t meet the deadline and reschedule.

Cases in point:

1) Many man meetings (I won’t even call them ‘dates’. IMO a date is something you look forward to vs. an attempt to see if there could be something to look forward to) these days start off with only a day and vague time period. I’m a planner, and find this lack of specificity a bit frustrating.
I was supposed to meet a guy for coffee last Wednesday morning. He’d said he’d call to finalize. Never heard a word.
Am supposed to have lunch with another guy today, who also said he’d call to set a time. Will he? Less than two hours until noon…

2) I was told (in writing) that I’d hear back on something important by the beginning of last week. So, expectations raised, I waited. Monday went by. Tuesday. Wednesday…nothing. I called Thursday afternoon. And learned it would be two more weeks.
Am I getting the runaround or is this a legitimate mixup/miscommunication?
Is it that difficult to send a quick e-mail if plans, schedules or intent change?

The morals of the story:
Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Conversely, don’t expect others to actually do what they say.

Some good news: the beginning of my time travel manuscript finaled in a contest and goes to an editor or agent for final round judging…

Everyone has a different honesty meter. I’m the kind of person who’d return an extra penny a store clerk might hand me. I’m just not comfortable with any kind of dishonesty. But many people feel differently.

An example:

Had lunch with a guy I’d met at an event where the upper age limit was 48. So attendees could logically conclude everyone there was 48 or younger. The guy told me his age…not 48. Not 49. Not 50. 54! Is that fair? Is an untruth a good way to start…if he/she can lie about that, even if they fess up, what else will he/she lie about?
I know 1) dating over 40 is tricky 2) people on sites like Match list themselves at a younger age so as not to be excluded from searches…but still.

Another example: I was told something specific and exciting about an acting job that was later partially recanted and at the actual shoot didn’t appear to be true at all. Maybe the situation had changed. But, if so, no one explained what had happened. Or things could be at work behind the scenes that I’m not aware of so it could still prove to be somewhat true in the future. Or possibly it was all a well-intentioned mistake (as happened with another recent shoot). But to me, at this moment, it seems like a misrepresentation. A miscommunication at the least.

How far are you willing to go?

ASAP. How long do you think that is? Soon…how long is that? Later…does that mean the same day or later in the week?

When you’re waiting for other people to get back to you, and their response is necessary before you can take the next step, move in a different direction or make other plans, even ASAP can seem like a long time. Any of these qualifiers can vary depending on the information under consideration. ASAP, when someone is reading a 375 page novel, will be much longer than if she’d simply promised to get back with a date for lunch.

When is follow up appropriate? Is ‘no news’ really ‘good news,’ like they say?

It’s not like I’m sitting by the phone (well, except when I’m at my desk because the phone is on it), doing nothing but waiting with bated breath. But let’s say I have an audition, and know the shoot date is a week from Wednesday. I know they won’t call unless I get the part, but I never know when they WILL call if I do. So booking another commitment for that day might not be a good idea. Just in case.

What if a friend asks for several good dates for lunch, then she doesn’t choose one? If another opportunity comes up, do I schedule that, or keep those dates open? Should the answer be different if the opportunity is a paying acting job or lunch with a different friend?

Maybe instead of telling someone ASAP, soon, or later, we should consider being more specific in the first place.

Being a working actress is expensive. I need:
Current headshots.
Postcards of said headshots to send as reminders and audition follow ups.
Regular haircuts, because I have to look like my headshots.
Classes, because agents/casting directors like to see actors honing their craft. And, the classes are often good networking opportunities when the teachers are industry professionals.
Voiceover demos, a Web site and subscriptions to audition sites.
Business cards.
And now: the video slate. Most actors are supposed to be on Actors Access, an audition and casting clearinghouse. More auditions are requesting an Actor Slate, which is a one minute video showcasing your personality. I had a half hour on camera interview, where the questions ranged from ‘What’s your favorite movie and why?’ to ‘Share a favorite childhood memory.’ It went so fast, I can’t remember half of what I said…I’m waiting to receive the edited version.

In other news, some days I wonder if I exist in the real world with the general populace or only in the solitary Twilight Zone of my imagination. Case in point:
The phone doesn’t ring. Meaning no incoming auditions.
The only emails I get are from Yahoo! groups. Meaning that no one is responding to any of the auditions I submitted.

FOUR days of extra work, the most ever in a row for me. Two were for an Aquafina commercial starring Lou Piniella, a Cubs player and I think someone from the Milwaukee Brewers. I did this one for the $, not love of baseball. Spent from 7:30AM to 6:00PM at Joliet’s baseball stadium. Knew assorted fellow extras. Despite frequent application of 55 SPF, some sunburn. We were assigned various reactions to the action on the field.
The next day, we went to Wrigley Field and repeated what we did the day before… moving from section to section, even the upper deck and skyboxes. VERY hot, even with an umbrella between takes. Fortunately, only from 7:00AM-Noon.

The next two days, spent thirteen hours each waiting to be called to the set of a major motion picture. Basically got paid to talked with friends old and new, eat, check e-mail, read. However, the reason I do extra work is to see actors/directors in action. Not to sit around.

These were the 54th and 55th projects I’ve worked on. Have I had enough of being an extra? Time will tell.