Your Dream is Your Dream

And not anyone else's

I was going to write about St. Barts but I decided to write about something else. Something that’s always bugged me since I moved to Los Angeles more than twenty years ago.

In LA, everyone assumes that when you say you’re a writer that you write for film/television. It is very much a one-industry town in this way. In that friends who grew up here all have parents who were in the industry and have connections / anecdotes about Hollywood. One friend’s mom was a big publicist and he was THISCLOSE to securing the role of Elliot in ET, another friend’s grandfather was a movie star from the 1930s. Meanwhile the people who DO live here now either work in Hollywood or used to work in Hollywood. A friend is married to one of the most handsome movie stars alive (who is SO nice to boot and a thrill to see at every track meet), another one is exes with a recent Oscar winner, another IS one of the most iconic TV stars of our generation etc. etc.

It’s amazing how good-looking the kids at our school are, until you realize that SO MANY OF THEM have actor/actress parents—even if they were just guest stars or starred in a commercial or were never famous per se. It’s a good-looking town.

So when I moved here, I had to tell people I was an “author” instead of a “writer” so that they would understand that I wrote books not screenplays. Then my book became movies and TV shows and I also ended up writing some TV movies.

Whenever I would have any Hollywood news on my projects, people would FAWN over me. I remember one writer friend in particular was just SO EXCITED for me and told me that this was it—I was on my way—I was going to make my dreams come true!

I kind of looked at them amused. But, I said, I’m already living my dream.

I dreamed of writing books. I write books. Dream fulfilled.

But for a while, I worried—did I not have the right dream? Was I dreaming TOO SMALL? Did I actually WANT to write for the screen? Was I stupid not to want to work directly for Hollywood?

Then I realized—that friend who was salivating over my TV show—that’s their dream. But it isn’t mine. Mostly I like being able to give notes, be part of the meetings, and have a voice. And I love being invited to premieres and going to parties and I like the wash of admiration from having billboards on Sunset Boulevard and being able to say I have a show on TV.

But the dream, my dream has always been the same.

I dreamed to one day write books. I write books. Dream fulfilled.

Don’t let people stomp on or belittle your dreams, your dream is your dream and not anyone else’s.

XOXO
Mel