A Girl Named Eve

As a playwright, I'm sometimes asked to read for characters during my play-writing classes or writing groups, and even at auditions to read with actors. It's fun and I've always been fascinated with how a seasoned actor can bring words to life even when they haven't memorized the lines and are still reading from a script. They somehow kept pace with the script while the other actor was reading and their faces weren't buried in the script. So, I wanted to learn the techniques actors use for doing a successful cold read. I did a little searching and found a useful YouTube video by thehellerapproach on cold reading . For those of you not familiar with acting, a cold read is an impromptu reading of part of a script. You are asked to read something and you are only given a few minutes. A cold reading is not when you are given the script the night before the audition since a dedicated actor would have studied and memorized the script by then. Sometimes in auditions,...

I had the opportunity to attend a small business expo recently. As I walked around the booths, I couldn't help to feel that some of the hopeful businesses were modeled after old paradigms that just aren't true anymore. The internet, social media, environmental issues, documentaries, and a push towards minimalism have helped pave the way for more conscious living. What I saw were entrepreneurs clinging to old business and products ideas. Multi-Level Marketing Companies Multi-level marketing companies   sell anything from makeup, essential oils, to kitchen wares. I can't remember the last time I went to one of those hosting parties, but if I did it was probably close to 20 years ago. I come across these vendors at farmers markets. If there is still a venue for them, that would be it.  The money maker though was in getting other people to sign up as sales reps  (another aging paradigm) to produce greater earnings. Why go through all the trouble to be ...

I was surprised to find that my latest travel book find,  T he Lost Girls: Three Friends. Four Continents. One Unconventional Detour Around the World by Jennifer Baggett, Holly C. Corbett, and Amanda Pressner,  was a withdrawn book from the Rockford Public Library. This was a huge mistake on the part of the librarian/staff who had obviously not read the book. It's over 538 pages, almost two inches thick, intimidating considering we live in the age of social media distraction. I had recently bought five other travel books and kept this one at the bottom of the pile for its sheer size. I figured that if I could get through a book this thick I can get through anything, maybe even get around to reading the Bible one day. Little did I know, I inadvertently saved the best for last. The Lost Girls is about three late 20 something New Yorkers who set off on an adventure to travel the world together for one year. From page one I was hooked. I was grateful the book start...