Giving sneaky thank yous
Oh, hi friends!
I recently received two unexpected thank you notes in the mail.
They were so nice!
And it made me realize how good it feels to be thanked—or do the thanking.
One of my friends used to text right after our catch-up dinners, a little “thanks for making the time and it was so good to see you.” They always amazed me.
Because while we hop, skip, and wiggle from one thing to the next, a little appreciative note can extend whatever good feelings you have in the moment into maybe just a few moments more.
So, anyway, what I’m trying to say is…thank you.
“The biggest special effect that you can have in the theater is to engage an audience’s mind.”
I love this as the goal when writing or making anything. Ask yourself: Will you engage someone's mind?
This quote is from this profile of theater director Joe Mantello (Wicked, The Boys in the Band, and one of my favorite plays of the season, Three Tall Women). He’s also described as an “actor whisperer” who takes each performer aside to give specific, intimate, and discreet notes. Yesss.
I’m very future-focused. (Really? You don’t say?) But am trying to harness “vorfreude” to actually enjoy the anticipation of what’s to come. Wrote about it over here!
Also wrote about how to deal when you just don’t feel like enough.
Can’t wait to dig in to this new Amazon series of longform stories about love from amazing writers like Wednesday Martin and W. Kamau Bell.
Wanna get hitched? Go inside Brooklyn’s wedding venue hotspot.
The new album by Shawn Mendes really speaks to me.
Oooh. Dr. Seuss used the strategy of constraints to create Green Eggs and Ham!
I’m also editing a bit for Medium and was glad to work with the writer on this intriguing piece: Drake, Kanye, and the Fine Art Market
Maker vs. Manager: How Your Schedule Can Make or Break You
This has long been an issue for me. Now I try to have full writing/work days at home (the “maker” schedule), and squish all in-person meetings on Fridays (the “manager” schedule). (h/t Maria Kuznetsov, whose fun newsletter FinkedIn Dispatch has great reads on tech, design, and much more)
How to write subject lines people want to read.
And how to not eat everything in the fridge when you work from home.
And how to choose what kind of skincare products you put on your face.
A whole bunch of grants and fellowships for filmmakers, VR content creators, and writers (h/t Mattie Johnson)
And I saw two very good plays this week: Lauren Yee’s “The Great Leap” at Atlantic Theater Company and Stephen Adly Guirgis’ “Our Lady of 121st Street” at Signature Theatre. Nothing better!
Finally, are you in New York? Want to start a side hustle? Don’t know where to start? My friend Ami Watkin is running a workshop through her new biz Integrated Hustle on how to earn money doing what you love. Thursday, June 7 in Carroll Gardens! Sign-up here!
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Thanks, as always, for reading.
Love, Kara