Desperate times call for ...
Thursday, April 16, 2009 at 01:10PM I had a disturbing call this morning regarding rumors of The Aspen Times demise.
It hadn't even occurred to me that my column might be at stake, but if it is, I'm totally screwed. Thing is, I haven't figured out how to make any money at this. My career has always been really fortunate in the sense that one opportunity sort of lead to the next, but that's all but come to a grinding halt. Well, maybe it wasn't that abrupt. I think I started to lose it when I went off to Bikram Yoga Teacher training two years ago. While it brought so many other aspects of my life into balance, my career suffered. Not because of the yoga, but because I let it go for those nine weeks and was never able to get it back.
That's when the Denver Post cut my column and my editor left The New York Times and was replaced by a wonderful travel writer/reporter named Denny Lee who is simply a better writer than I am. The two stories I've written since he took over required more editing than either of us would have liked, which is always a sign that it's not working. The writer/editor relationship is an intimate one, and just like sex, if the chemistry isn't there, there's not much you can do to fix it. Denny's awesome and he always responds when I contact him, but I've also seen a lot of the ideas I pitched that got shot down show up in the paper written by someone else. It's a competitive market and maybe i just didn't make the cut. At least I have the clips I have in my portfolio, and that's worth a lot.
Where I'm stuck is not having anything on the horizon work-wise and not knowing which connection to point my boat. I have little things here and there. I'm doing some copy writing for Melange Collection, an Aspen based fair trade company that imports hand-crafted goods from all over the world. I'm also ghost writing a kid's cookbook for my friend Shael Berni from Kiddie Cookers which I'm really excited about since cooking is one of my passions and I have always dreamed of writing a children's books.
Other than that, I don't know. The evolution of new media (Facebook and Twitter) terrifies me because it compresses the written word into these tiny little boxes and gives everyone and anyone the ability to publish anything anytime. While I see the value in networking, I also think everyone is so inundated with communications all day long that the time they're willing to devote to read something or write something is limited more than ever before.
Compared to the 162 character limit of Twitter, for example, this blog is a novel by comparison. I also wonder if the voyeuristic/narcissistic nature of Facebook (look at me! let's look at pictures of him! did he take pictures of her?) has people so hooked because it taps into these primal instincts that have completely severed any intelligent discourse and turned it into this bizarre communication intercourse.... as if Aspen wasn't incestuous enough in the first place!
I was hoping I could turn this blog into something more valuable than a home for my archives and my ramblings, maybe turn it into an online source for all things Aspen. The reviews section was my biggest hope for this but NO ONE has added anything to it. I thought it would be a great way for people in Aspen to share their thoughts, feelings and opinions on businesses in this town that don't really have any accountability when it comes to being reviewed.
Most of all I just want to hear your thoughts, so bring it on! Leave a comment, send me an email, visit me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter ... I just want to be there for you!
Love,
Princessox
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Reader Comments (4)
Whathappend to the book (Snow job)? Why not teach Yoga and get that book done?
I am a good coach if you need ideas........but it all come down to figuing out what you want...and going for it......(DON'T come from so much scarcity....) You are a brilliant writer........incredible!! Put it to use.......if thats what you want.
B
So I can relate to the Aspen world I once lived in and we are both yoga teachers- me Ashtanga-and ARTISTS, right!? I'm a painter on hiatus to mommyhood- but you are writing- so keep up your projects! I'll buy your cookbook for my baby when she's bigger- go veggie, yogi!
I didn't have anything specific to say here- so this is random- but just so you know there are people out there who care:)