I’ve made it to year three in my journey with Stage 32, and it just keeps getting better! Looking back on the past creative year has been an incredible source of encouragement. It’s allowed me to celebrate the victories and quickly let go of the goals whose timing hasn’t arrived yet—but that I know are on their way. If you’re looking to give yourself a boost, I highly recommend taking a moment to review your creative year and jot down a quick bullet list of wins and milestones.

Not Without Trials

It was a fruitful year, but by no means an easy one. I share this early on because with any season of trials, I’ve learned it’s important to end on a high note—and this journey reminded me of that.

In November, my mother took a bad fall, and due to her dementia, she had to be placed in a care home. Leaving her there was one of the most gut-wrenching moments of my life. The comfort came in knowing she was surrounded by a staff who genuinely cared for her and treated her with love and dignity.

Then, in February, my daughter’s first dog passed away. She was a beautiful, spunky Yorkie mix that made it to the ripe young age of seventeen. She had been with us through so many chapters of our lives that saying goodbye to her was tough. After I wrote this post, we lost our 2nd and last dog to the same kidney failure that took the first.

In June, my mother, who raised three kids on her own, passed away. She had been unconscious for a few days, but when my daughter and I arrived, she was fully awake and herself...for one day. It was a beautiful, “chapter-closing” day. She expressed that she had always been saddened by our hardships, but I reassured her that although we had seasons of relying on food pantries or no Christmas presents, it was OK because we knew beyond any doubt that she loved us. We had to tell her how wonderful a mother and grandmother she had been. Her last words to me were, “I love you, son.”

But even through the losses and challenges, I knew her creative heart would live on through me. My father was a creative as well, and I wanted to continue to honor them through the creative gifts they both passed down. The trials, at times, may seem like they won’t end, but they do. Hope always rises to take its place.

The Strategy: Building a Portfolio

At the end of last year, I made a promise to myself—to focus completely on building a portfolio of recommended scripts. I decided to set contests aside for a while and pour all my energy into growth. For the next six months, my mission was simple: write, get coverage, learn, revise, and repeat. Every time a script came back, I studied the notes, made the adjustments, and sent it right back out.

Slowly but surely, the results started to show. One by one, each script rose from “pass” to “recommend.” The first to make that leap was Homeless. I used a service that didn’t offer a “writer: recommend” option—it was more affordable, and what mattered most to me was the story itself. I’d already earned a “writer: recommend” through Stage 32, but this time, my goal was bigger than recognition—it was about mastery.

That season of focus taught me that persistence pays off. Growth doesn’t happen overnight—it happens one rewrite, one note, one breakthrough at a time.

The Double-Recommend

It was then that I set a new goal—to earn a “double-recommend” for at least one of my scripts. I turned to a Stage 32 executive coverage service that offered this for both writer and script. The first round came back with a “double-consider,” and I was stoked. The executive’s notes were incredibly detailed and insightful, and they helped me see the script in a whole new light. I took her feedback, refined the draft, and sent it back in. The next round came back with a “double-recommend.”

I’ve sent my work through quite a few coverage services on Stage 32. And I can honestly say, I’ve yet to receive a single coverage from Stage 32 that didn’t make my script stronger. Every note, every insight has helped me grow as a storyteller. We pour so much of ourselves into these pages, but one of the greatest lessons I’ve learned is to step back, trust the feedback, and believe that the reader is on our side—helping us tell the best version of our story. I always say that it’s best to hold our story with an “open hand” and make it the best it can be before others join us in our journey to birth it in its final movie form. And when they do come alongside us, it’s also best to let them soar with creativity and make the story even better than we thought it could ever be.

Trying the Contest Circuit

After receiving the first “recommend” for “Homeless” I started the contest circuit. This piece garnered several placements including Quarterfinalist at HollyShorts, Winner at Milan Indie Film Festival, Finalist at Calgary Indie Film Festival and many others. And before Coverfly closed, it had made the #1 spot for fantasy shorts.

Stage 32 Certification

The learning never stops! In my ongoing effort to grow and understand every side of the industry, I began taking Stage 32 certification classes in producing. My goal is to eventually earn a Master Certification in Line Producing—but I knew that reaching it would take patience and persistence. So, I started small, mapped out a schedule of classes, and committed to learning step by step.

So far, I’ve taken “Fundamentals of Budget Creation” which teaches how to create a budget, read a budget and work with a budget throughout the production process. Cash flows schedules can be made from said budget. The course covers how a feature film budget is made, script breakdown, software used, sunken costs and how to create the budget for line items such as vehicles, crew, animals, stunts and FX and more. “Production Scheduling” covers creating a pre-production calendar and how the elements of production affect production itself. It also covers working with the team (director, DP and AD) and different department meetings. I’m pacing myself and taking it one course at a time. Next is “Crew Agreements” and “Call Sheets” which I’m really looking forward to.

The Writer’s Room

The benefits of the Writer’s Room can’t be overstated. When I first joined, it was because I’d been encouraged to participate in the Nashville Film Festival Pitch Competition. To prepare, I spent two straight days watching “Pitch Tank” replays—one after another—taking detailed notes and building my own pitch template from what I learned.

Having never pitched anything before, I was both nervous and excited. But the preparation paid off—I made it to the semifinals! Later, I received feedback from the contest manager, who told me my pitch was wonderful. The only reason I didn’t advance to the finals was because of the projected production cost for the film I pitched.

Today is a New Day...for you.

Sharing these victories isn’t meant to boast. They are shared alongside the trials in the hope that you know that there are other creatives out there who understand the obstacles we all have to overcome.

There are not just external battles we fight but internal ones as well.

When we decided to move our family across the country, it was with the intention of not only leaving toxic relationships that drained our hope, but to also shed the mindsets and fears that we had inherited. Generational thought patterns of self-pity and abandonment are now considered enemies of the soul. We didn’t want that touching our daughter. We wanted to start over.

What we refuse to heal from, we take into our creative relationships.

So, let’s search our hearts and see if there’s any fear, anger, jealousy, hurt, or even a way of doing things that needs to be released—and let it go. The world and the industry are changing too quickly for us to cling to what holds us back. Let’s surrender it.

Yes, there are times to heal, but our circumstances should not dictate whether we create. Those gifts are irrevocable - they’re woven into our DNA.

We can feel inspired to create when there’s both chaos and joy surrounding us. We can still feel inspired to create when someone tells us, “no”. We can still feel inspired to create when we have an audience of one. If you stay faithful in the small things, you will be faithful in the great ones.

I want every day to be a new one...for all of us. I hope that every single day that you wake up is a new day for you - full of hope, truth, love and joy. Those are the things that will never leave us if we welcome them in. Let those displace the fears.

Now go...create. Unafraid.

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