FBI: INTERNATIONAL - Not so easy

Tonight is the night, season two of @fbicbs international premieres tonight. Annnnddd I guess I can say it now, officially… I’m staffed on it as Story Editor. As some of my close family and friends know, I was out of work since October 2021. And now, I’m finally staffed on a TV show. My new gig started June 6, 2022. What did I do throughout those months?

Write.

Pitch.

Move back home with my parents, and get a little depressed.

I want to be transparent with you because you never really get to hear this part about writers, directors, creatives… Because no one wants to tell you about the sad, depressing in between times. Moving back in with my parents became apparent at the beginning of 2022. At the time, I was searching for script coordinator and writers’ assistant positions again. Yes, that happened. No one explained to me, the over 100 executives, Showrunners I met with, I was supposed to keep in touch with them. That’s how people continue to get jobs and be remembered when someone needs a writer and/or director.

By the end and beginning of March and April 2022 I was pitching my original TV show idea, and also an OWA (Open Writing Assignment) for a tv series and a feature. Putting my heart, soul, and sweat into those pitches I came out with a producer interested in my original idea, and the OWA’s, the execs went ghost. It was a mix of feeling crushed and happy all at once. Still, something was missing. A paycheck.

End of February I started on the second season of a streaming series. A script Coordinator position. The job was hell! Missing paychecks, harassed, not paid properly. By the end of March, they let me go for asking for the overtime they owed me. The show almost broke me if it wasn’t for my friends.

April was really hard on me because my birthday was a month away and I barely had any money for myself, my birthday, my parents and my pride. I was turning 37 and came off a hit show that later I would find out was canceled. I was broke(n). How could I press on? To make matters worse, my last unemployment check came the week before my birthday. No more money from the state.

The good thing I did when I moved back home, was start Bible Study. An executive I met the year before reached out to me. We were friendly after our first meeting. Both of us attended the same high school, grew up in Oakland; we had a lot in common. Long story short, through Bible study I found my faith again and my purpose for writing again. It led to me reevaluating my career, love life and finances. So before my birthday I made some hard decisions, including getting a new agent. Within a few days, I got a staffing gig on a show I thought I’d never get an interview for:

FBI: INTERNATIONAL.

I binged the first season in three days. The staff meeting: I was a NERVOUS WRECK. The meeting was maybe 20 min or more, I can’t remember because of how much sweat was pouring out of my underarms lol. But seriously, I sweat when I’m nervous it’s ridiculous. I’m thinking about pulling a Kardashian and getting my sweat ducks cut. Meeting was Friday and Tuesday: I GOT THE JOB!! YAY. But before the job started, my previous agent got me one last gig on a comedy scripted podcast with 3 amazing comedy writers. LOVE LOVE THEM!!! Blessed to say I was able to work with some great people. Then I got the other news:

We are not remote, we work IN PERSON!!! I had to move back but I had a submitter in my room until July. Shit.

The person who was subletting my room, of course, wouldn’t move out before June 6th. Called a few friends, they all said NO or only for a few days. Really? Then I thought about one friend…she had a house but an hour away from the new job. But I desperately needed a place AND someone comfortable with me invading their space. She immediately said yes. At that moment, I think I dropped down to my knees. THANK YOU GOD.

By my first day, I was ready, but not that ready. Two days in the room and we already broke the first half of the season. What in the hell? Welcome to network TV baby. It took me until week before Fourth of July to break my board. A month for my outline and another month for my script. My first episode script was a lot for me, I was learning on an accelerated rate most writers only get a week or less to absorb. Then a week before I flew out for my episode:

I got COVID for the first time.

Crushed doesn’t even scratch the surface of how I felt. So I missed the first 5 days of shooting but went to all the prep meetings virtually. Looked over the delays. Cried a little at what the director was able to achieve without me being there. Then I tested negative on the 10th day, flew out the next day to Budapest, Hungary.

Flying business class is boss moves for real. I loved every second. Being on set was a crash course of accepting that I no longer was an assistant, I was the writer. I was in charge. Main word, “I.” It went so fast my 7 days in the city. Lack of sleep, and catching up on the time difference…but I did it.

Above I have prints outs with revisions, edits, red marks and more of what it took to get 207 finished. My first episode that I produced. But I couldn’t have a big party for my episode premiering on TV. It would screen the week of Thanksgiving. Thus my audience would be my parents. Here is video of them, raw, real and sincerely…the commentary was authentic if you’re asking:

My first. But not my last episode. The ongoing quote throughout every commercial break from my parents: “You really wrote that?!” Yes, parents, I did. 🤦🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️. Watch the video here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/ClT6AlOp5Lg/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

On the plane and masked. No one’s giving me COVID, a cold, nothing!