Embracing New Genres in 2024, Part Two: Movies

I certainly watched more movies than read books in 2024, to the point where my local AMC Theatres had become my second home and I forged a first name basis friendship with the woman behind the snack counter. Hi, Cathy! 😃 (Her name being Cathy is even more significant once you keep reading. lol)

Reflections about...Pretty Woman at State Theatre New Jersey on Sunday, October 8, 2023 at 6:30 PM, Getting Inspired to Achieve My Dreams, and Meeting a Couple of Kitties! 😉

Why not celebrate one month before my birthday with some musical theater?

Anyone Can Write...Right?

Okay. Today I'm going to address some social media drama that you may or may not have heard about.

Going Forward - Happy 10 Year Anniversary to "Taking it One Stef at a Time!"

Today is a big day in this blog's history. Today marks this blog's 10 Year Anniversary. :)

Writing Plays!

Lately I haven't been blogging (although I am working on some drafts) because I have been focusing on another type of writing. Yes, my freelance writing of course, but also tapping into my creativity...playwriting!

I've been playwriting for most of my life, but this is the first time I really felt so connected to one of my plays and feel like it can go somewhere. I think this might be the one. :D

This month, the night before the 2018 Tony Awards actually, I finished the complete first draft of a play I have been working on! It felt like such an accomplishment for me because I have been brainstorming this story since about 2012, so this has been almost a decade long project. In fact, it is going on that.

Finishing this draft made me more confident to finally improve it for a submission and even write sequels to it, which I have already started. But I need to calm down because I still need to perfect the original, which is proving to be a little difficult for me, but it is coming along.

I love how excited I feel about this play. I don't know how often I talk about this on here, but I'm often in search for something to excite me, something to look forward to working on everyday. This is proving true for my play(s). I've also deactivated my social media in order to not get distracted. This is so beneficial for both my writing and well being. Removing myself from social media helps bring myself up. (My frustrations with social media is another blog post in itself.)

I am so consumed by my plays and developing these characters that they are feeling more and more like real people. Everywhere I go I think, "Hmm. What would my characters do in this situation?"

The piece is loosely somewhat autobiographical, with the main character serving as my alter ego. I feel like the concept is very relevant to today, especially for millennials like myself, and it's also an ensemble piece, something I have always wanted to write! So I have a great feeling about this, especially because the one act I wrote not too long ago isn't really much of a success due to its nature (but there's probably a home for that too!). But I think that this new story is much better.

I am so proud of it that I'm afraid to let more people see it, although I am feeling confident enough that it might be worthy of someone else's read. Right now the only people who have read my work are some of my fellow writer lady friends. I could think something is brilliant but someone else might think it's stupid. I know my plays are going to have their critics (In fact, I welcome them.), but I'm also not prepared to share this with the masses just yet because I fear that all of my work on this will be in vain. But I do want to do something with it. I even have some people in mind for the roles!

I just love the fact that I am being so non-stop productive with my creative writing right now. Sometimes I hit hiatuses that last for too long because I either have no ideas or the ideas I have are hitting roadblocks. That's what happened with this story multiple times, hence why it has taken me a few years.  I didn't know what to do with them next, and so therefore I don't want to lose my adrenaline again now that I am facing some struggles with it again. 

'Tis the life of a writer, I guess. :)

-Stef :) 

P.S. I really like how short and sweet and to the point this blog post is. Hopefully I'll be able to deliver more like these too. I want to bring some changes to Taking it One Stef at a Time, much in part inspired by my dad's blogs (Click the link and then hover over the "BLOGS" tab). :)

I'm Still Here!!!

Hey friends! You might be wondering where my blog posts have been. Well, as I have said in this blog post, once I get busy professionally, I can't really focus as much on this blog. However, that being said, this blog is still a priority that I keep thinking about. I have blog posts to finish and share (especially this year's Women's History Month project, which is almost finished but yet behind...I'm working on it!) plus other things I want to accomplish, so I just wanted to let you know that I'm still here! :) April has been a pretty busy month for me, for I recently started a new freelancing position that has been keeping me hard at work, so I am extremely grateful for that. It's just a matter of me managing my time better and using my free time to work on this blog.

So, there you have it! :)

-Stef :)

PROCEED WITH CAUTION! Should You Be Reading This???

A few years ago my friend Janis and I were volunteering at our alma mater's Lacordaire Academy Annual Book Sale. During some of our down time, we sat on the gym stage together and reminisced about our high school years there.

"What is one word you would use to describe me?" I asked her.

After some thought, she responded, "Cautious. You think about things in-depth before you do them."

Thereafter this turned into a conversation about how I can get out of this and has actually stayed with me ever since, making me question how much of life I am actually living.

Lately I've been encouraging myself to do more things, especially with my writing. Although, I still am a little cautious with that as well.

The truth is, I agreed with her answer whole-heartedly and wasn't offended by it. I actually like the fact that I am cautious. It makes me consider every logical path before making a decision and jumping into things.

However, this cautiousness of mine could also be more of a curse than a blessing. Cautiousness allows over-thinking and procrastination to dominate.

A part of the reason why I question my writing profession is that I never feel like my work is at its complete best and good enough in my eyes or ready for the cruel outside world. Think about it this way. Sometimes sharing my written work and putting it in someone else's hands is metaphorically equivalent to me walking outside in the nude and giving people permission to judge and touch my exposed body.

Yeah. It's THAT intimidating. And I'm not the only writer who suffers from this.

Usually when I finally submit the piece and then others see it, everything turns out fine. I never really had an issue with my articles and usually my subjects are happy with them, so I don't know where this fear is coming from.

However, this article in particular is different. The following is a recount of me deliberating with myself concerning said article and then making peace with my decision.

How Mighty Quinn's BBQ Saved My Life - A Year End Story

Do you remember this ambiguous rant from July?:

July 11, 2015

On Thursday morning I made a mistake and was really distraught about it because there are times when I reach a breaking point and this was one of them. Loudly crying in the car and not wanting to go home yet, I didn't know where else to turn so I drove to the one place I thought I could turn - the local Catholic Church. I parked in the parking lot and wept for awhile. I then decided to go to the Rectory because I felt like I really needed to talk to someone. Amidst sobs, I rushed over and rang the doorbell. A woman answered on the intercom and I asked if a priest was in. She asked if I had an appointment, and I said no, unfortunately I don't. She told me to hold on. She then opened the door a few seconds later to my red, tear-stained face and told me that the priest would be with me in a few minutes. She led me into his office and I sat on the couch. She then gave me a box of tissues and offered me a cup of water. A few minutes later the priest walked in, greeted me in a friendly manner, shut the door, sat at his desk, and asked me to proceed. Through tears I then ranted to him about my frustrations of what has been bothering me and he listened attentively. He waited until I looked up at him and paused. He then responded to my situation and gave his opinion, along with his Godly wisdom and advice. God was certainly working through him. This went on for about an hour and I gradually calmed down, although I still didn't feel 100% better about my situation. I thanked him and we parted ways, a smile on my face. I also thanked the woman for her kindness earlier. I then went to pray in the church for a bit. Ideas came to me as I sat there and I decided to be very productive for the rest of the day in regards to what was upsetting me. I was in a better, not greatest, but better mood after talking to the priest and then talking to Jesus.

I decided to share that story because I am so tired of hearing so much negativity about Christians and Catholics. Priests aren't perfect, but they often tend to help me, so good stories about them and the laypeople of the Christian community like this one should be shared more often.

Well, this is actually a prequel to an even bigger story that has taken place ever since.

Stef Sears Professional Blog!

Hey all!

Just for your information, I have a blog on my website where you can check out the latest stuff I am doing with my writing and other aspects of my professional life. I started using it July 2014, but I've been using it more lately now, considering that more things are going on. :)

I'll still be writing here as well, of course, but whereas "Taking it One 'Stef' at a Time" (TIOSAAT) is a more analytical, recreational, and in-depth blog, that blog is used to document the steps I am making to further my career. The pieces also aren't as long and I am trying to keep it that way.

I've been very busy with new writing and part-time jobs and writing a bit more on there. If it has seemed like TIOSAAT hasn't been as active, this is partially why.

Check it out! :)

Let Me Tell You About THE TIME I MET TEDDY COFFEY! :D

IT HAPPENED, PEOPLE! IT HAPPENED! THIS EVENT ACTUALLY TOOK PLACE!!! :D

I can't believe that this actually finally happened!! :D

Okay so if you follow me on Twitter, you would know that I am a huge fan of the dancer Teddy Coffey. If not, you can kindly read this fun piece. :) 

Teddy and "So You Think You Can Dance" Season 10 alum Nico Greetham, along with other swell dancers, were in a dance performance this past weekend at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater called "Pearl The Show", which celebrates the life of prize-winning writer Pearl S. Buck and how she is a connection between East and West cultures, China and America specifically. It tells her story in correlation to the Chinese poem ”Spring, River, Flower, Moon, Night”.

In an effort to support my favorite dancer while he was back on this east coast and because it is about a female writer, I decided to attend opening night on Thursday, August 27. My parents came along with me, as well as my Aunt Maria "Ea", whom we brought to celebrate her birthday. My aunt actually told me that this was the best birthday of her life. Beforehand we had dinner at P.J. Clarke's, which treated us very well. I recommend the Pickled Cabbage Burger. ;)

I correspond with Teddy and his family every so often so I told them that I was going to be there. His family was attending the same show that I was, so we hoped to meet each other, which we did! I saw his father Bob first and then scanned the rest of his group and recognized the other members, which included Teddy's mom Pam and of course his Aunt Cindy. I was like, "It's them!" so I ran over to them and tapped Bob's shoulder. They recognized me right away and embraced me with thrill and open arms and introduced me to Teddy's Uncle Greg and grandparents. We took some pictures, talked a bit, and resolved to meet up again after the show to hopefully see Teddy.

The Many July Rants of Stef Sears

This month on Facebook I posted quite a few well thought out lengthy posts that I believe are worth sharing with the masses. So here there are all together.

On Appreciation for America:

July 4, 2015

It makes me so angry when U.S. CITIZENS complain about America and burn the American Flag. You never really hear about any other country burning their flags, being offended by them, or being asked to take them down! Even if this does also occur in other countries, it's ridiculous.

Sure, we have our own problems here (Who doesn't?). Sure, we are not perfect (Who is?). Sure, we may not have the most positive history (Who does?). AND, because we ARE Americans, we DO have the freedom to express negative opinions. I'm not saying that we shouldn't utter any disapproval ever.

BUT, there is a REASON why SO MANY PEOPLE want to live and immigrate HERE. THEY know what America is all about. THEY know what opportunities America has to offer. If America is really as bad as these criticizers say, there wouldn't be so many people wanting to obtain U.S. citizenship AND there wouldn't be other countries often needing assistance from the U.S.

To me, the people who complain are just so accustomed to their American privileges that they don't even appreciate or even notice them. Practically everything is available to us and we need to remember how good we have it here.

I, for one, am grateful for the United States of America and for the men and women who have fought and continue to fight for and protect our freedom. I love this country and am glad that it exists. I am proud to be an American. America, as well as the veterans, deserve more respect, ESPECIALLY on days like today!

Happy Birthday, America!

On Catholicism, Christianity, and Priests:

July 11, 2015

On Thursday morning I made a mistake and was really distraught about it because there are times when I reach a breaking point and this was one of them. Loudly crying in the car and not wanting to go home yet, I didn't know where else to turn so I drove to the one place I thought I could turn - the local Catholic Church. I parked in the parking lot and wept for awhile. I then decided to go to the Rectory because I felt like I really needed to talk to someone. Amidst sobs, I rushed over and rang the doorbell. A woman answered on the intercom and I asked if a priest was in. She asked if I had an appointment, and I said no, unfortunately I don't. She told me to hold on. She then opened the door a few seconds later to my red, tear-stained face and told me that the priest would be with me in a few minutes. She led me into his office and I sat on the couch. She then gave me a box of tissues and offered me a cup of water. A few minutes later the priest walked in, greeted me in a friendly manner, shut the door, sat at his desk, and asked me to proceed. Through tears I then ranted to him about my frustrations of what has been bothering me and he listened attentively. He waited until I looked up at him and paused. He then responded to my situation and gave his opinion, along with his Godly wisdom and advice. God was certainly working through him. This went on for about an hour and I gradually calmed down, although I still didn't feel 100% better about my situation. I thanked him and we parted ways, a smile on my face. I also thanked the woman for her kindness earlier. I then went to pray in the church for a bit. Ideas came to me as I sat there and I decided to be very productive for the rest of the day in regards to what was upsetting me. I was in a better, not greatest, but better mood after talking to the priest and then talking to Jesus.

I decided to share that story because I am so tired of hearing so much negativity about Christians and Catholics. Priests aren't perfect, but they often tend to help me, so good stories about them and the laypeople of the Christian community like this one should be shared more often.

So, do you have any stories about when a priest or a layperson Christian helped you?

On Writers and Artists Getting Paid for Their Work:

July 17, 2015

I got angry at something I just read so I decided to write this:

Can you imagine going to a restaurant and not paying but say instead that you'll refer the place to someone else? Of course not.

But this is the reality most writers and other artists face everyday. EXPOSURE does not equal GETTING PAID FOR YOUR WORK. Writers and other artists are qualified professionals in their fields just like anyone else and deserve to be treated as such.

Writers and other artists, don't settle for less than what you deserve!! Settling is what keeps this unfair cycle going. There might be times when you may want to do work for free, but the only time it is truly acceptable is if it's for YOUR OWN ENJOYMENT. Employees put time in and then get paid for the hours they work, correct? Well, so should writers and other artists for theirs!
____

I should write a book. :P

June Successes!

Looking back on it, June was a pretty busy, successful month for me. I love that! :D

So, here's what I've been up to.

Recently I made the career decision to just stick to my writing and if I found any other job opportunity, I would look into it. The idea was to not stress myself out anymore looking for jobs in other areas but rather go with my gut for what I truly love and studied in school, which is writing and journalism. I am learning to be more aggressive and hands on when I see career opportunities and search for them. I've been happier keeping busy in this way trying to stay focused.

All month I've been mulling over in my mind what should be my June blog post. I didn't write one of my blog essays (although I am brainstoming them still), so I will take this chance to talk to you about "Stef's VIEWS, reVIEWS, and interVIEWS", my professional blog that I created and published at the beginning of this month.

Like "Taking it One 'Stef' at a Time", "Stef's VIEWS" is run entirely by me. The only difference is that unlike "Taking", I intend to run "Stef's VIEWS" as a business, an additional market for my writing. The idea is to interview people and cover events to feature on my site for monetary compensation. I'm not sure how well this is going to work, but I'm willing to try it. So if you're an artist, writer, performer, etc., or have a local event and you would like me to write your story, please reach out to me! I would love to write about you! :D Let's see how this goes!

I actually already published an article on there. Here is my interview with "So You Think You Can Dance" Season 11 competitor Serge Onik.

I've come to realize that a handful of the dancers from Season 11, particularly Carly Blaney, Teddy Coffey, Emily James, and now Serge Onik, have helped me professionally in their own ways so I am so eternally grateful to them for that!

This month I actually interviewed a TV and film actor for another magazine. That was a great interview and I'm excited for the story to come out. :D Also, just yesterday I was hired as a freelancer by yet another magazine company and I am wrapping up a book project with another client!

Another reason for my newfound happiness is following the "Dancing with the Stars" Live Tour, especially their opening show in Atlantic City and their two-night show a few days later at the Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown, New Jersey, one of my favorite NJ theaters. :) I was VERY excited those two days! I was actually somewhat hoping to interview Alan Bersten and maybe some of the other tour dancers for "Stef's VIEWS" while they were here because I have been wanting to interview Alan for awhile now, but that didn't come to pass.

I keep hearing from EVERYWHERE that I should write down my goals, which is supposed to make my goals clearer and me more focused to accomplish said clearer goals. I have done this, to an extent, but this is something I am yet to do more intensely, which is odd considering I am a writer and like making lists. I have been planning some other future endeavors as well, such as with my vlogging and maybe even my creative writing, so stay tuned!

I'm also getting into volunteering lately. On June 7 I volunteered for Brides Against Breast Cancer in Weehawkin, New Jersey. My vlog for that is coming soon, so look out for it! :) I've kept it under wraps because I was working on other things, but it was one of my June projects!

I'd say that things aren't at their very best for me yet, but they're looking up. Here's to more productivity!

Also, Happy Fourth of July/Independence Day, everyone! :D 🇺🇸

#ThingsWritersGetExcitedAbout

This is a hashtag I use on Twitter sometimes. I use it to describe situations that only writers and readers would fully appreciate. Something happened today that is too much to fit into a tweet and worth more than a Facebook post, so I decided to dedicate a blog post to it.

Earlier today I went to Sprague Library on Montclair State University's campus with my father. This is something we do every so often. There is a small section on the first floor called "Pop Picks", which consists of recommended modern fiction and non-fiction and is pretty much one of the only sections in this library with this genre, so I go there to browse.

The last time I went to Sprague, I returned this book called The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks, which is from this section. I didn't finish it, but according to the library's policy, you can't renew a book unless you are a student, so I had to return it and wait until next time.

I was concerned about this though. The last time I returned a book, The Obituary Writer by Ann Hood, I never saw it in the "Pop Picks" section since. That one I at least finished and adored, so I was concerned that I would never see Sparks's book again on the shelf.

So today I went over to the "Pop Picks" section again to look for The Wedding. At first I had no luck. Let me explain how this section is set up. I left my camera at home so bear with me. I would've taken pictures of this with it. The top three shelves have the books displayed with their frontal book covers facing out whereas the bottom two shelves has books stacked together side by side with only their spines visible, which is what you would usually see at most libraries and bookstores.

I studied this section more because this is where I found the book last time. I was feeling discouraged because I kept seeing the same books I always see there and not my books. Then I looked up and on the second or third shelf, right in front of me with its cover facing out, was The Obituary Writer! I gasped I was so shocked and excited! I wasn't sure if I would ever see it again! After feeling thrilled about this, I resumed my search for The Wedding, because finding the other book gave me hope. Wouldn't you know that three books to the left of The Obituary Writer was The Wedding??? Usually the same books are displayed like this on the top two shelves but now my two books were! They were both right next to each other on the same shelf looking out! Now they are not lost from me! I thought this was a very cool coincidence. So then I took out the book and plan on reading this rest of it. :)

I also took out a book about Aphra Behn, the first female writer to get paid for her work. She paved the way for me and many others. I'm thinking about writing a blog post about her for my "Real Influential Women Role Models (Real and Fictitious)" series for Women's History Month.

Conducting Interviews, New Paper Cup Reviews Episode, Meeting the Kratt Brothers, and Living Life!

Hello, everyone. I've been brainstorming and writing other blog posts for here, as well as wanting to update my blog on my website, but right now I have been concentrating on interviewing and writing articles for a Bergen County magazine among other business prospects. I'm trying to keep busy and professional.

Meanwhile I'll give you a small update of what the first month of 2015 had in store for me (before I got sick and snow started happening for the second half).

The first Sunday of January the Paper Cup Review Crew was at it again when we saw "Into the Woods"! This was our longest episode yet and I finally uploaded it this week. Check it out:

I'm actually looking for audience feedback suggestions for our fifth milestone episode, so let me know if there is anything that you'd like to see us discuss!

I'm perhaps looking to make these more consistent and shorter.

The following Sunday, I MET THE KRATT BROTHERS FROM PBS KIDS!!!! I had originally saw the ad for their "Wild Kratts Live!" show at the Count Basie Theatre when I was there for the SYTYCD Season 11 Live Tour back in November. I had been wanting to see it, but wasn't sure if I'd be able to. It turns out that they were also performing at the Mayo Performing Arts Center (MPAC), which is closer to my home, the following day. So January 11 showed up and even the day of we weren't sure if we were going to go, but ended up getting a steal on tickets, so we actually went! We had fantastic seats just for the three of us (my mom, my aunt, and myself) all the way in the back on the center aisle. We didn't get Meet and Greet tickets, for those were already sold out, so I wasn't sure if I would meet the brothers, but we ended up meeting them outside. Martin was in a hurry to catch a plane and Chris came out later after he left and we chatted for a bit about "Zoboomafoo" and such. They both took the time to take a picture with me, which I extremely appreciate.

It means so much to me that I was actually able to see them in person. I got so excited to see them come out onstage. We were the only group there without children with us. I was literally the oldest "kid" there and the show clearly was geared towards the children, but I didn't care. I still had the best time. I have been watching their TV shows since I was a child and everything I know about animals is pretty much attributed to them. They are great with kids! I was so thrilled and getting teary-eyed because this was so much attached to my childhood. :)

Great News, SYTYCD Fans!!! :D

I HAD to blog about this one!

You probably know by now, if you are a SYTYCD fan already, that it was revealed on Monday night, November 17, that FOX RENEWED "SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE" FOR SEASON 12!!!!!!

AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!

What's so great about this is that we were all so concerned about it throughout Season 11 and FOX actually heard our pleas and took them into consideration (as well as some other business financial agreements I'm sure). We banded together and got this amazing result! Once again, thank you so much to everyone for making this possible!

I also love that my writing, my thing, my Open Letter to FOX, probably contributed to this as well.

I was actually at a diner having dinner with my family when I first found out. (I know. SO Jersey, right??) We were sitting in a booth and there was a TV in front of us and News 12 New Jersey was on. My dad cried, "Stef!" and pointed at the screen. I looked up. There on the bottom it said "FOX Renews 'So You Think You Can Dance' for Season 12." I immediately couldn't continue eating I was so happy and excited, although I had to see it show up again to make sure I read it correctly. I even got teary-eyed, feeling relief. I couldn't wait to get home and celebrate with fellow fans. I also really love that News 12 New Jersey considered this important enough to put on their news feed.

For my initial social media reaction as well as many others, check us out on Twitter. It's a love fest of rejoicing and thrill. Truly beautiful. Here are the dancers from Season 11 on tour celebrating the news. I hate to think about what Twitter would look like if they had cancelled it.

“SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE is a rare jewel," says Simon Andreae, the Executive Vice President of FOX. I love that the show is acknowledged in such a way and that the art of dance is important to the company.

However, there IS a catch. For some. Season 12 will be having a whole new format. Instead of the dance genre competitors being random, they will be split into two teams: Team Stage (contemporary, ballet, jazz, tap, etc.) and Team Street (hip hop, animation, breaking, etc.)

This new format has been getting mixed reviews so far. People are already complaining about it, saying that they shouldn't put the two styles against each other and that the original format was better and this is an unnecessary change.

However, I think it's awesome! First of all, it appears that the show was hanging by a thread so we should be grateful that it is even returning. Second, we still are going to have a Top 20, with perhaps more variety, though I'm not entirely sure how they are going to pair them off or if they are. And third, it's a different concept to look forward to. I think we should give it a chance to see how it goes before we totally trash it. If it doesn't work, then they should decide whether or not they need to shelve it and think of something else to try.

This isn't the first time the show has had an odd format. Season 7 was weird because that one didn't have a Top 20 with contestant partnerships because it was the first season to introduce the All-Stars concept. People disliked that at first too but after awhile seemed to have warmed up to it, happy to see their favorite dancers return to the SYTYCD stage. This season went down in history as one of my favorite seasons because of ROBERT ROLDAN.

As time went on, the combination between the Top 20 pairings and the Top 10 eventually dancing with the All-Stars seemed to go over well, so perhaps this new concept mixed with some of the old will do the trick. I don't picture it being overly different as some seem to be taking it.

All in all, it is SO wonderful that "So You Think You Can Dance" is still around to enjoy and I look forward to Season 12! We did it!! :D

You know, the cancellation of "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" and the renewal of "So You Think You Can Dance" has REALLY helped renew my faith in humanity. Seriously.

Relive some of the show's best routines here.

Great News to Share!!!

I got published in Baristanet!!! And what is it? A review of a Montclair State University Department of Theatre and Dance production!!!!

This is what I've been wanting all summer! I've wanted a job that would let me write about MSU's shows professionally since before I even graduated because I was leaving The Montclarion, and after searching for so long I finally found one! This is my very first post graduation theater review.

Thank you so much to the editor, Liz George, for giving me this awesome opportunity!

Okay. Let me calm down a little bit.

The play is A Streetcar Named Desire, which I expressed in a previous post that I was interested in seeing, and I did.

Here is my review. Enjoy. :D