Making it through....

Some of you read my last blog and reached out to me. I was feeling blah and discouraged. It happens to the best of us. Every art form is subjective and sometimes that's hard for us artists to take. Whether you are a painter, a singer, an actor, or writer, you put yourself into your work. You have to or it's not truthful. You spend hours researching, watching the world around you, and inspiration is derived from your surroundings. As artists, we absorb so much of the world. We live in it and breathe it in. Then we transfer it to whatever medium we work in. For me that is acting and writing.

Art is also a business. The logical side of us gets that but the heart side is still bruised every once in a while. Being an actor can take an emotional toll. Being a writer can too. Someone is always watching and deciding whether or not you measure up. I am a confident person. I find strengths I never knew I had, but I still get mired down in the, "Why not me?" syndrome. It's human to do so. My reason for blogging about it last time is because I wanted to reach out to my fellow artists and to give my friends that don't express themselves in the way that I do a view point. I love my life and I am so blessed to pursue my passions on a daily basis. However, sometimes that pursuit can be exhausting and from time to time I get drained.

I haven't book an acting gig in a year. I have had several auditions that I would consider successful. What I mean by that is I know I put the work in. I learned my lines, I prepped my emotions and I went in with an open heart and mind for direction from casting. Just because I didn't book those roles does not mean I was not successful in my task. This is something I have to wrap my head around sometimes. The arts are very unpredictable. The time and preparation is key. I have to remember that there are a whole bunch of people like me floating around this community and this planet. Writers and actors are everywhere. With the dawn of self publishing and print on demand, I now know four authors, one of whom is very successful, the others are like me. They're getting there and making  it happen one day at a time.

So if I alarmed anyone, I didn't mean to. It felt right to get it off of my chest and to be truthful in my blog. That was just a snippet of what it's like to try and juggle your passions while working a day job ( that I love thank God! ). So my chin is up and my head is being held high.  i am on fire!

Once again:
Book me for work and buy my book :)

http://www.amazon.com/Unrequited-Val-Frazee-ebook/dp/B010GUXTGA/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1438817435&sr=1-1&keywords=val+frazee

www.valfrazee.com

I get discouraged

So my week has been a long and good week. I sold some books, I was busy at work, and I had an audition. Yet, I still feel discouraged. I am trying to market myself as author. I am trying to get my agent to pay attention to me. I am working my tail off at the salon. I am succeeding in many ways but I am also failing. I have wrestled with moments of doubt. I was encouraged when I was asked to audition for a local film maker. I had hoped to get a call back but alas the business side of film has prevented me from moving forward. it's hard to say why we don't get called back or why we don't get chosen.

I work hard but I know we are not rewarded. So I am now trying to move forward once again. When I check my email, I hope for an audition call from my agent. When I check my book sales, I am hopeful that I will sell one more. It's a tough world out there and it's saturated with actors and writers. I am so grateful that I get to try every day but there are times that I am exhausted by it. There are days when I think there must be something wrong with me. In fact there are a lot of days when I feel like something is wrong with me. Where is my IT factor? Maybe I never had it.

In the mean time, we just adopted a rescue dog named Benny. He is sweet and he is trying to figure out his life. When I see him, I know that I have to keep plugging along. Benny was abandoned and then rescued by a wonderful foster family. Then he was brought to us and now he has to feel his way around again. I suppose if he can do it I can too. Benny reminds me that I need to live in the moment.  I need to be grateful for what I have an know that life is full of turns.

I'm going to hang in there and I am going to give my book another shameless plug. By Unrequited.
I'm going to give my acting career a shameless plug as well: cast me, I am awesome.
Shameless plug for my hair career: let me cut your hair, I am awesome.

Now I will post a picture of my book cover and another head shot.
Here is a link to my webpage too:
www.valfrazee.com

And it's here...

So my book has been out a few weeks now and it has been pretty cool. However, I read somewhere that I would put a ton of work into marketing and it will seem more tedious than writing the book itself. Man they were right. I have mostly been using social media and word of mouth right now. This week my project is to talk to some indie book sellers and set up some book signings. I thought that somehow my life would change but it hasn't. It's been exciting getting the book out there and not readers' hands but I have so much more to go.

In the mean time I am hard at work on my next one and I am hoping to at least have first draft fleshed out by the fall. I am working pretty hard and I am diligent in writing almost every day. I am also reading everything that I can get my hands on as it relates to my subject matter. I feel like I'm in college working on a term paper.

But I love reading and I am learning so much from reading as much as I do. However I have so many things to work on. Next month I will work on a short film doing hair and make-up. I am also starting to dip my toes back into the education realm. I can't seem to help myself when it comes to giving myself as many tasks as I possibly can. I can't seem to relax. Now I hope to have some auditions thrown in there and a little acting work to round out my schedule. I am in class after all studying South Africa:) Working the grind stone my friends...

P.S. By my book on Amazon!!!!

AHHH! The Challenge...

My book has been out for exactly 24 days. I have received two positive reviews thus far. It's becoming quite journey, this whole author thing. I am totally on the social media route right now but I am exploring creative venues to market my work. While I'm trying to market my work, I'm also trying to finish my second project. Books don't sell themselves that's for sure. I am on it though. I have just joined the Goodreads author group. As soon as I get my email approval I will start doing giveaways. I have already done one on Facebook and as soon as my shipment comes in, I will send it off. I also have little cards on the way to give to people who ask about my book. My next plan of attack is to get the book to BookPeople and Malvern Books. From there I will start researching other indie book sellers so I can get my book in there as well. Fingers crossed.

The acting front is slow for me. I keep hoping for the next big audition that will land me the next big job. I got new headshot and I updated my demo reel. I have been updating all of my actor stuff on all those sites that they say you should be on as an actor. I have emailed my agent with my new stuff and this week I will order new head shots to carry around and a new actor postcard.  Some friends and I have begun getting a project together so we can stay busy and I have signed on as a make-up artist for another film. It's one day at a time and nothing is guaranteed. I am remaining positive my friends.

My next tackle is to find more bloggers to follow, get more to follow me. I love the blog. I feel like this is my second outlet next to my journal. I get to send the word out and hope that someone listens...

So far so good...

So my book has been published and now I am pounding the pavement to sell it. So far so good. It's not a best seller...yet. It has been a journey and now I am starting another one. This next one is very close to my heart. All of my writing is but this next novel takes on a different approach. I am trying to focus on a subject that most people don't focus on. I'm not re-inventing the wheel by any means, but I noticed that the topic I am writing about is not discussed very often. What started out as a story that I heard some time ago about a person I admire has since become a quest. Obviously I am not going to give away what I am working on but rest assured, I am on it and working every day.

In the mean time, I am really proud of Unrequited. With my crazy schedule, I never thought that I would get it finished. What's amazing is that it was very healing for me. It helped me to address issues and things I never thought I was holding on to. So by writing a work of fiction that I could relate to I was able to heal a part of my soul. That's what I love about writing. Writing can be cleansing.

On a sad note, I learned that someone very dear to me passed away several years ago. I had a teacher in junior high that lit the fire in me to write. Carole Slotemaker-Ryland was more that just a teacher. She was a mentor, a friend, and the ultimate cheerleader for all of her students. I had hoped that she would be able to read my book but after many google searches,  found out that she was gone. I cried and felt guilty for not staying in better touch with her. The last time I saw her was at my wedding. I will miss her dearly and to honor her memory and the time she invested in me, I will continue to write and publish. It was my first love before acting and hair dressing.

If you haven't purchased my novel, please do so. You can find it on Kindle and it will be available as  hard copy by next week.

It's here! It's Here!

When in the course of one's life, they finally achieve something they have been dreaming about, Their heart has been longing for the day when hence it finally arrives...

OK enough poetic junk! My book is finally published. Unrequited is here and arrived with a lot of heart and formatting issues. But, she's here.  It is a story that has a lot of meaning in my life. I have been striving to be present and be grateful of the things I have in life. I haven't been in the past and this book explores what that can do to a person and the life around them. The grass may be greener on the other side but that doesn't mean you need to go there. The story is about woman stuck in her past. Because of her unwillingness to let go and move forward, she stands to lose the life she has built.

This has been a journey over the last few years that i thought would never get done. I was either not writing enough or I was writing too much and then my schedule got crazy. Life got hectic and I had to slow that shit down.

Then came time for final edits and formatting issues. I went round and round with my computer. I went round and round with myself. I am not tech savvy in any way. The fact that I or my computer hasn't exploded is amazing. This was truly a labor of love. Right now the e-book is on Kindle. The hard copy should be soon to follow in the next couple of weeks.

 I'm not going to lie, I have googled myself and done searches on Amazon just to see if it would pop up. And of course it does. I don't think it's set in yet. I haven't had a review yet and I still haven't seen the actual book itself. It would be cool to be a best-selling author, but I am also grateful and proud that I got this done. I finished:)

So if you want to grab copy on Kindle and read to your heart's content, do it now!
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010GUXTGA

I am working on another one that I hope to have completed by the holidays. Well at the very least, I would like to have a few drafts in.

I do need to thank Margaret Schwartz. Not only was she an amazing editor, but she laid out my book cover, and she dealt with my incessant need to have help. God bless her.

Opal Galliano was the cover artist and she did a phenomenal job.

It takes a village...

Oh man has it been a while!!!!

Hello World!

It has been such a crazy time these last few months. I have been a busy bee. I will have to make list with commentary in order to get it all in one blog.

#1. My crazy business has increased. The hair gig is a lovely thing but man it has been exhausting. I inherited a few clients from some ladies that moved from salon. That added to the clientele I was already growing. I am grateful and my feet hurt. ON the plus side, we hired an assistant for the salon and she is awesome!

#2. I finally decided to leave L'ANZA Healing Haircare after five years of devotion, many plane rides, and frequently delayed flights. It was a big decision in my career but it was necessary. Sometimes you have to step back when ethics just don't line up. I still love my people and I will always send them love.

#3. I finished the book!! I should have the cover uploaded and then it will be on its way. I am so excited and I can't wait for you all to read it. I have already started on my second one. Hopefully I stay on track and I get it done.

#4. I have been auditioning and even called three times for three different roles for one tv show and still no luck It has been frustrating but I am hanging in there. I  just need to book it! The life of an actor I suppose .

#5. We moved into a new house. That has been hectic and rewarding. I love two things about moving; getting into a new place and getting rid of junk. You always get rid of crap when you move. At least I do. I'm not a huge fan of too much stuff and moving is very cleansing. We also have space and privacy. Most of you don't know that my mother lives with us and that is a novel waiting to happen.

#6. I am also planning on producing a play or a short film in the near future. I just have to see which one pans out first.

#7. My mom and my husband's mom decided that they would have heart issues at the same time. So I have been here in Austin taking care of my mom well my husband makes the long trek to Beaumont for his mother. It's what has to happen right?

Life has been one big ball of busy for me. I am checking off my list of goals this year. I would say I am half way there. There is more to do. I have plan and a destination. Let's hope I get there. That's my story and I am sticking to it. In the mean time, I will be thinking about how I can get you guys to read my book! Take care friends and I will be keeping you posted.