Today I wrote an email passing up what would have been a quasi-dream opportunity.
The problem was, while the freelance work involved would have been fun - to the point that I would have probably done it for free under different circumstances - it simply would have taken up too much of my time that is so very limited right now.
And this, I discover, is why we get "paid." Jobs are, essentially, a very simple economic model of supply and demand. I have only so many hours, so I can do only so many things. Given that I'm one of those weird people who absolutely love their job, I don't need to find career fulfillment outside of my work. I am (for now,) fulfilled with what I do and the pay that comes with it.
As such, my employer gets 110% of my work time. What I mean by this is that they get me until my work is complete, as is expected from a salaried employee, and i put in extra time to better my skills and knowledge for my fields of expertise (new media production/marketing, strategic foresight, customer relations, and online spiritual matters).
I also have some ancillary hobbies and dreams, of course. But pursuing a livable fulfillment in such hobbies is nigh impossible... not because I couldn't commit to working towards those dreams, but because I wouldn't want to sacrifice my current job supporting the church through digital media to do so. I imagine I will grow out of this job given a year or two, but I need to be - and I love being - committed to it first hand.
So, when I recently saw a freelance opportunity to possibly some digital media for a comic book publisher and an opening in my schedule, I jumped at the opportunity. But my time is limited, and the window passed as I began my final MBA course and got more digital media freelance my way that I knew would pay more than the comic book publisher... and I wasn't a proven commodity to the publisher yet, so I'd have to come in quite cheap and do a decent amount of work just to be fully considered...
So I had to email back today and decline going forward.
The toughest part of it is the concern that you've burned bridges by showing interest in an opportunity then, ultimately, having to decline it. Getting a foot in the door at any major publisher like Marvel or DC is a highly competitive market... and something that many people never get.
Sigh.
There are only so many hours in a day, Aaron. You can't meet up with every dream you come across.
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Page 1
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Journal: My name is Carlos, and I am the last living human.
Over the shoulder view from Carlos on the moon looking at a scorched, destroyed Earth.
Pages 2 & 3
Journal: I had a beautifully horrific view of the destruction. The Sun set out a solar flare that was immense, like a whip trailing across our little Universe. When the flare made contact with Earth, it was with such precision one might have thought the Sun was jealous of the moon’s eternal dance with our world. The flare cracked upon the Earth, destroying it. I saw it all happen; I watched the destruction of my homeworld happen in a flash, before humanity had a chance to say a prayer.
Page 4
Journal: Life as the final human has been surprisingly mundane. I have enough rations to last another three years, so I won’t be dying anytime soon. Unless, of course, I decide to release the oxygen tanks. I’ve thought about it.
I spent a week burying each of my companions. They didn’t last very long out here. We never got along too well anyhow. Who am I writing this for?
Page 5
Carlos sitting on a moon rock, playing tic-tac-toe against himself. In the distance we see some objects in the sky, flying towards the moon. Carlos notices them, as they get closer, and starts to run.
Page 6
Spalsh page of Carlos running, with human bodies slamming the moon all around him.
Page 7
Carlos takes cover under the his moon base/ship and the bodies start to slow down.
Carlos speaking: Bodies.
Page 8 & 9
Carlos begins to walk around the bodies, inspecting them.
Carlos: Hello? Is anyone alive?
Carlos: Mary? Dad?
Carlos: Oh please, someone be alive. Please, what’s your name? Please?
Carlos falls weeping on a charred body.
Page 10
Carlos looks up.
Carlos: Thank you, God.
We see the shadow of a person walking towards Carlos.
Calros: Please be real, please be real
We get a close up of a hand touching Carlos’s spacesuit, where his chin would be… the hand seems to be on fire.
Page 11
Splash page of the female personification of the Sun. Well… Carlos’s delusion of the personification of the sun.
Sun: Hello, Carlos. I’ve come to save you.
Carlos: Save me?
Sun: I love you, Carlos. I am the Sun, and I take what I want.
Carlos: Why me?
Page 12-13
Conversation between the Sun and Carlos
Sun: There were too many humans. I just wanted you, Carlos.
Carlos: But I’m no one special. Why am I the last to live?
Sun: You’re a survivor, Carlos. You must be special if you still live. Don’t you love me?
Carlos: Love you?
Sun: Yes, Carlos. Love me. You’re the last human to live… surely you know what love is. Surely you want to love and be loved. Isn’t that what humanity is all about?
The Sun begins to walk away.
Carlos: Please don’t let me die alone.
Sun: Come love me, Carlos.
Page 14
Carlos walks on the charred bodies, trying to follow the Sun who is walking out of the atmosphere toward the real Sun. We see a smile on Carlos’s face.
Page 15
Carlos is in his ship, strapping in. We see him at the controls, preparing for take off. The ship lifts off
Page 16
Carlos’s ship is drifting towards the sun.
From an awesome article on why comic book authors - and writers in general - need to be prideful sometimes:
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Seriously, though, if we writers didn’t have enough pride (or at least fairly confident/hopeful aspirations) that our writing was/is good enough to entertain, enlighten or inspire at least a percentage of the people who could (and hopefully will) be reading it, well, we as writers wouldn’t be putting any of our writings out there, would we? (See Emily Dickinson as a perfect – albeit exceptional – example of the latter.) In writing – just as is the case in life – you have to almost lose yourself in your pride and ego and guts and just freakin’ go for it. Period. Are you going to make mistakes? Yeah. Are you going to fail? Sometimes. Is success guaranteed? Absolutely not. Are you going to look back at the earliest stuff you’ve written/published and cringe? I certainly hope so… otherwise you’re not getting any better. So please – pretty please – with sugar on top – be cocky when you write. Be gutsy. Be brash. Be arrogant. Screw those people that will try to bring you down and chide you for your ambition… they’re probably just jealous of the fact that you’re being gung-ho enough to actually get out there and do what they cannot or will not – and that’s create.
Normal Hero Issue 1 Page 2
Originally uploaded by aaronlinne.
That's right; I've got a preview of Normal Hero issue 1, written by me with art by Bill Segroves, up on our flickr account. Check it out and let me know what you think!
Just bought this book because I'm doing a presentation for my MBA. Ah, the beauty of when education and entertainment collide.
Super-Villain Team-Up: Galactus, Ash, and Dr. Doom
Originally uploaded by aaronlinne.
Added over 100 photos to our Flickr account, including photos from the comic convention, my old cell phone, a few from Dragon*Con and bunches from the wedding. Enjoy!
Yes, even the enigmatic Warren Ellis digs on lowercase collective:
http://www.warrenellis.com/?p=1629
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sometimes, like when you send out an email to an editor at Marvel Comics who asked for you to send him pitches but you haven't heard from him in two weeks, anticipation can be somewhat stressful.
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so it's been quite a while since I've taken a lil time to blog. sue me.
I figured I'd knock out one last entry before I go to meet my impending doom at the hands of Hurrican Ivan and his cohorts of wind, water and destruction. That's right, I'm flying down to Orlando for vacation tommorrow. I fly out Monday, with the hurricane pushing me out (IVAN is currently scheduled to hit Orlando on, yes, Monday).
So why have I not written? Because Aaron's been a good little worker bee and kept very busy.
From an awesome trip in Chicago for WizardWorld Chicago '04 to FUGE's Eval Week '04 to Dragon*Con '04 and now the upcoming DisneyWorld Trip '04... it just keeps going and going.
Memoirs of WizardWorld
So WizardWorld rocked this year even better than '03. This time I was flanked in fun not only by loyal friend Bagget of France, but by the HeroClix Master himself, Dug.
During the course of the con I got to once again meet CB - the talent relations guy at Marvel Comics. I met him last year, had a minor conversation, and assume that he has no idea who I am. CB... not only does he have talent, but he can relate to us little people.
I feel pretty awkward about Chris Claremont. He's the godfather of the X-Men, bringing them back to life so many years ago and taking us on the wild ride of their journey - creating the prototype for what so many comics try so hard to do.
Then he gave us "X-Treme X-Men" with a story so confusing that I didn't even notice when I read it that one of the characters (Psylocke) was killed. That's right, I didn't even notice it. Then he gaves us the X-Treme X-Men storyline of "The Arena" in which he made two sets of characters lesbians (that's 4 lesbians in a row) when none of them had shown that tendacy ever before. So odd.
Then, he went and insulted Joss Wheedon.
Funny man that Joss. And wow, is he good at writing. And seemingly shy about it all, in a boyish way. If I was a girl (or if Claremont wrote my life)... ew. Nevermind.
Yes Joe, you've been a great EiC for Marvel (and as a stockholder, I really mean it). But no, you may not eat the microphone.
And finally, in this WizardWorld Special Pictoral, I managed to infiltrate Bagget of France's secrative international conversations with his French "Agents."
We can see here how coy he his about his masterplan.
I believe he was getting frustrated over Jack-In-the-Box's decision to take the "French" out of "French Fries."
Finally, James concedes to pain when told of the death of Rene Dupree's dog FiFi.
Rest well FiFi. Rest well.
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During the course of the con I got to once again meet CB - the talent relations guy at Marvel Comics. I met him last year, had a minor conversation, and assume that he has no idea who I am. CB... not only does he have talent, but he can relate to us little people.
I feel pretty awkward about Chris Claremont. He's the godfather of the X-Men, bringing them back to life so many years ago and taking us on the wild ride of their journey - creating the prototype for what so many comics try so hard to do.
Then he gave us "X-Treme X-Men" with a story so confusing that I didn't even notice when I read it that one of the characters (Psylocke) was killed. That's right, I didn't even notice it. Then he gaves us the X-Treme X-Men storyline of "The Arena" in which he made two sets of characters lesbians (that's 4 lesbians in a row) when none of them had shown that tendacy ever before. So odd.
Then, he went and insulted Joss Wheedon.
Funny man that Joss. And wow, is he good at writing. And seemingly shy about it all, in a boyish way. If I was a girl (or if Claremont wrote my life)... ew. Nevermind.
Yes Joe, you've been a great EiC for Marvel (and as a stockholder, I really mean it). But no, you may not eat the microphone.
And finally, in this WizardWorld Special Pictoral, I managed to infiltrate Bagget of France's secrative international conversations with his French "Agents."
We can see here how coy he his about his masterplan.
I believe he was getting frustrated over Jack-In-the-Box's decision to take the "French" out of "French Fries."
Finally, James concedes to pain when told of the death of Rene Dupree's dog FiFi.
Rest well FiFi. Rest well.Altough my fav tv show, "Angel," has been wrongly cancelled because of rising ratings (yeah, you figure that one out)...
Joss Whedon - the creator of Buffy, Angel, Firefly and Fray - has signed on to write an X-Men comic beginning in May.
If there ever was an omen to open a comic book store....
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