Long Overdue Newsletter: February 2020
- Chris OBrien
- Feb 6, 2020
- 4 min read
Quote of the month:
"I would rather go 0-for-30 from the floor than 0-for-9. An 0-for-9 means you beat yourself, you psyched yourself out of the game. The only reason is because you've just now lost confidence in yourself."
-Kobe Bryant
A big theme for us this month was putting your work out there. Even when it's new and scary. All the edits, missteps, crossing things out, it's better to experience those things and grow than avoiding it altogether.
For anyone who has read our previous newsletters, hey, welcome back! To everyone else, thanks for dropping in. Let's take a look back at January and see what's ahead for this month.
Our First-Ever Rough Drafts Event
The concept: Bring in a rough draft or even just a rough idea for a story. Share with a group of writers all while enjoying wine. Thank you to Melissa, owner of Bottles Up! in Lakeview East for being a great host!
It was awesome to hear the wide variety of stories in the works. Our guests had:
A sci-fi novel
Running list of Onion style satire articles
A book of short stories being revitalized from 5+ years ago
New concept for a book of short stories
New screenplay
Dusting off a TV show idea from eight years ago
We're excited to see where these stories go and can't wait to host more Rough Draft events throughout the year!
New Year's Revolution
One of our Co-Founders, Chris O'Brien, had the privilege of performing in a Writing 6 show at Second City.
Congratulations to all of the writers: Noah Collins, Ana Ortiz-Monastero Draa, David Kaiser, Jonathan Ottenfeld, Sarah Powers, Lauren T. Silverman, Kim Turner, and Drew Van Wyk.
And to the fellow actors and actresses: Megan Clarke, Marino Korellis, Melissa Lapray, Harper Leander, and Laz Patillo.
And our awesome Director: Bina Martin.
Here's a look back from the very first practices in November to the final of four performances in January.
A Few Thoughts on Kobe Bryant
It was hard to write about the tragic helicopter accident that took the lives of Kobe and Gianna Bryant, John, Keri, and Alyssa Altobelli, Christina Mauser, Ara Zobayan, and Sarah and Payton Chester. After a couple of weeks, I put together this post on ChicagoNow.
One thing I've been thinking about a lot is how, in the case of Kobe Bryant, we have all of these videos of him as a player, we have interviews, the Oscar-winning film he made, books he wrote, different people sharing memories about him. We have a pretty deep look into who he was, or at least material on what he thought about, what he cared about.
Granted, none of these things erase the tragedy of his death but it has been a source of inspiration for Long Overdue as we continue our efforts to help all people create in-depth family libraries.
Our lives are more than "Born this date, died this date" + some photos. We believe meaningful stories from the person or about the person will last forever and keep us closer to the ones we love.
New Books in Progress
Excited to add two books-in-progress to the "Seeking Publisher" section on Long Overdue Books. The idea here: Let authors share their work as they go, building an audience, as they pursue publishers, agents, or the self-publishing/hybrid publishing route.
Here's a look at two new titles. You can read chapters of Maelstrom and Cayman Went over on Long Overdue Books.
About the author: Laura E. Vasilion worked as a freelance writer for thirty years. Her credits include The Chicago Tribune newspaper and magazine, Baltimore Sun, Reader’s Digest, Entrepreneur, and The Des Moines Register, among others. Currently, she is focusing on fiction, essay, and blog writing. Samples of her work and award-winning blog, Talking to the World, can be found at lauravasilion.com.
About the Authors: As described by Victoria, "We’re tandem writing romantic fiction. Not like the Mills & Boon model of romantic fiction, but the kind filled with feisty heroines who find themselves entangled in international intrigue. We have a series started with titles reflecting the locale de mysterie (sworn to secrecy ;) )
Victoria also contributed an exciting project that we'll be highlighting in next month's newsletter. Hint: It's book writing meets Chicago improv.
Upcoming Event for Writers
On March 4th, we'll be hosting an event at Third Space in Lakeview East. The focus for this meetup is about how to turn a series of blogs, existing chapters, or verbal stories into a full book. You can register for the free event here.
Thank you to Nick Ost over at Third Space for pulling this together!
10 Blog Post Ideas
If each newsletter starts with a quote, we're thinking our new tradition for the ending is to send you off with either blog post ideas or book/movie/show ideas. Consider this our antidote to fight off writer's block.
Here are 10 blog topics/headlines for one of those days when you're feeling stuck. If you choose to write one, we'd be happy to feature it on Long Overdue Stories or link to your personal blog. Or hey, you can keep it totally private. All that matters is you keep writing!
Ice breakers: The most stressful way to start a meeting?
Active stretching makes a comeback
If you were a doctor, what movies would you prescribe your patients?
The trick to thriving at work is being over or under-rated
Advice: Give a list of chores but have one that's entirely optional
Why do we bully the bully?
It's time to retire the dab, the mic drop, and the flossing dance move
Married Couples: It's alright to spend Mother's Day apart
Giving your 2 years notice
High Schoolers: Go out and fail your next exam, just to see what it feels like
Where to follow us on social media
Our next newsletter I'm targetting a release of either Tuewday, March 10th or Thursday, March 12th. We'd love to hear from you in between. Feel free to email us at library@longoverduestories.com
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