Stumbles, Movements and sharing the Solar System

In which there are career orbital dynamics beyond our control, yet we still float

Lately I’ve been thinking about how many no’s there are in a creative life. About how hard it is to keep things moving forward when things fumble. About how so much is out of our control. That we make plans to try to keep career momentum going and then something happens, and you are stuck trying to find a clever way forward despite a comet smashing into you.

Like so many of us in creative fields, it’s our presence and being seen to be doing things that is considered valuable. “What are you working on now?” “What’s coming out next?” “What are you doing?” And so when through no fault of your own, you can’t answer that question in the moment, one’s faith and confidence begins to waver a little. That’s where I am now.

I had a book cancelled recently because of corporate restructuring so I find myself at zero again and casting about for the next big thing I will work on. It was a licensed thing based on a TV show I like a lot. I was really excited to contribute to this world in a tiny way. I was glad that I had the first part of my year sorted out, so I didn’t have to worry about how I was going to pay rent or bills or pay for food and now that security is gone. But more than that, I was thrilled to have a project to work on that I could point to and say, “Hey, just you wait, this is going to come out.”

Bummer. But we have to swing with it. So I decided to shrug it off and do something small to keep me going. I remembered that making little things can feel really big. Being busy can lead to big ideas. So one of my New Year’s Resolutions this year was to write a short story a month (OK, realistically I know it will probably be one every two months, but you get the drift. Trying to do a thing) and submit it to literary magazines. Just a way of moving things forward when things seem to be sliding back. Something that I could do for myself. Something achievable. Something that would make feel like I was still having things that could be seen out there somewhere. Something to keep the ball in the air and keep my writing muscles warm. But then suddenly, last week, because of AI submissions, a bunch of places started shutting down unsolicited submissions because they are getting overwhelmed with hundreds more submissions than usual that are AI generated. Foiled again.

When these obstacles come up, it’s OK to look at that mountain that seems to have just chucked you off it, and take a day or two to have a little weep. Then, I say, give that mountain the finger, put your hand on your hips and look up at which path back up you can take now. It might not be the same one you just tried. So find a new one. Dust yourself off and get back to it. I had a chance to talk a little bit about this in the NO interview with Chris Daley over at her great newsletter Submission Sunday, which gives some options of places to submit your writing to. You should sign up for it.

But what it really comes down to is that in the slow times as well as the full on full speed times, it is always a good time to think about the things that are happening - big or small and the things that one can have control over. Action.

Here’s one of my actions. I’m about to travel again.

I’ll be at Emerald City Comic Con as a special guest this coming weekend in Seattle. I’m tabling in Artist Alley at Table O-01. I’ll have books for sale. I’ll have sharpies to sign things with. I’m looking forward to hanging out with fellow creators and meeting fans. If you are there, please come and say hello. I’m excited to go to ECCC as I was supposed to be a special guest in March of 2020 and well, as we all know, that didn’t work out. That year, 2020 was supposed to be my big convention year. I had two original books that had just come out GIRL ON FILM and THE PLAIN JANES plus I was finishing up a run on BATGIRL. Now, three years later, I have a new graphic novel SHIFTING EARTH and fittingly it is about seeds. As an artist we carry seeds with us as we are always planting possibilities. Some will bear fruit. We cultivate patience while in action. Seeds that we scatter bearing little shoots of art out of the ground.

These times when things are slow though, is also a good time to nourish ourselves with the things that inspire us. That is part of being an artist as well, filling up the creative well with all the good things that spark our imagination and give us joy. Joy is the way forward.

As many of you know, outer space gives me great joy. In January there was a performance of me and Rose Hall’s new opera aria “Touching the Sun” that premiered in Philadelphia at ENA Ensemble. It was inspired by the NASA’s Parker Solar Probe. We commissioned Pia Guerra to do a triptych of the probe which is currently orbiting our sun. Just gorgeous work all around. I have this dream that I will write an opera or micro-opera about all of the exploratory spacecrafts. That is a seed I’m planting. Or a wish that I am throwing to the stars.

My love of all things space and NASA did lead me to throw my hat into the ring and apply to become an official NASA Solar System Ambassador this past fall. What is a Solar System Ambassador? It is a citizen volunteer position with NASA of space enthusiasts who are official representatives and who organize community events to teach and spread the word about the exploration of our solar system. The program is run through JPL and guess what, I was accepted! I’ve already been sharing my enthusiasm for space over the years, things like sharing my solar observers to view eclipses, teaching the kids at the school I volunteer with about our planetary neighbors, and judging essay contests for NASA like the one where school kids proposed a name for the Perseverance Rover. Now I will get to organize a few more things in this more official capacity. I already have a girl scout troop lined up where I will help them with their space badge! I’m hoping to do some school and library events. If you are in the local Los Angeles Area, you can contact me to cook up a community event or to come talk to your school, library or group about space stuff, if you are not in Los Angeles, then you can find a Solar System Ambassador in your neck of the woods to come talk space exploration with you. I am really excited, and it feels like a very natural thing to bring my enthusiasm for space to the larger community. There’s even an official space ambassador patch. Swoon.

Here's your first hot space tip.  Look up in the sky at the moon where there is a nice show going on by Jupiter and Venus. It’ll be cool on March 1^st when they’ll be at their closest. I caught a nice pic of it the other night as they started to reach towards each other.

Sharing the love for things is always so nice. So let me share what I’m crushing on right now:

READING:  The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford  I read it when I was twenty but can’t remember it and it’s been sitting on my shelf as something I loved and wanted to keep since then. So I figured it was time for a reread. It’s very British! And very swishy! Very fun.

VIEWING: I went and saw this great exhibit at LACMA about art and computer generated art and AI called Coded. Well worth a visit especially with all of these new art and AI conversations we are having.

WATCHING: I mean, like everyone I know, I’m watching THE LAST OF US, but I can only take it in little sips. I’m only just finished Episode 3, which if you’ve watched it, you know is an emotional stunner. But for me, it was actually Episode 2 that undid me. That’s because I started playing the video game during week two of lockdown and that episode just time traveled me back to those dark days.

LISTENING: I recently went to the Numero Twenty festival and saw a bunch of great bands including one of my most favorite bands from the mid 90s REX play again. Numero just re-released their stellar and beautiful album “C” on vinyl. Talk about time traveling. That music brought me back to when I was a different me.

It’s amazing how art can do that. Bring you right back to a moment. That’s why it’s so vital. That’s why no matter how many no’s I get, I will always say yes to making art.

Sending you love. Hope you are making it through.

Cecil