Welcome 2024!
Let's try this again...
As you may have noticed, I struggle with consistency when it comes to social spaces. It’s something I don’t wanted to admit to myself, especially when it seems so many other people manage to be online without any issues. Not only without issues, but they thrive online! And, horror of horrors, have a plan they stick to! Could never be me.
I’ve always been a happy hermit who would hole away in my home, writing as the dishes pile up, hiding away from the outside world as I type from morning until night. Since I started my freelance career during the pandemic, my normal has lived only in the critical. It’s difficult to realign myself, to find a new normal. Especially since my new normal also exists half the time in a completely different country.
So, welcome to 2024, the year of figure ourselves out. What does that mean for the newsletter? It means things will be a little more casual. I’m going to be a little more honest. And as for the premium content? We’re going to still do that as well, but I think it will be more of a break down of what I’m looking at, reading, or writing. I hope you stick around.
And now, back to our regularly scheduled program.
WELCOME TO THE LABYRINTH: WELCOME 2024!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Available Now!
Announcements!
State of the Industry
What I’ve Been Working On
Premium Preview
Rejection Report
The Hobby Report
AVAILABLE NOW!
Gosh, a load of things happened in the last few months.
Justice League x RWBY Part 1 and Part 2 are out! I am so so proud of this series. I had a blast writing it, truly one of the easiest experiences of my life, the girls came to life all on their own and I will always love writing the Justice League.
You can buy the collected edition of Tim Drake: Robin Vol 1, containing issues 1-6! It features Riley Rossmo’s fantastic art, I am sad the series didn’t continue, but we’ve still got one more edition coming out April 16th.
I had a new story come out with DC Comics, in TITANS BEASTWORLD TOUR: ATLANTIS, in connection to the Teen Titans: Beast World Tour event! I got to play with Jackson and Mera, which is maybe the closest I will every get to Mira Jade, my absolute favorite character in licensed fiction. Mera is a close second.
I finally made my triumphant entry into the Marvel universe in the exercise game Marvel Move: Captain America’s Turkey Trot! Featuring friends like Briggon Snow and Felix Trench (who has a great substack on Acting), I wrote a running game in which you help Captain America during a Thanksgiving Parade in New York City! I’m delighted to finally play in the Marvel universe, and to have written a character my dad actually reads is a plus!
COMING SOON!
Coming soon, also in April, I have a story in DC’s Spring BreakOUT anthology! When discussing the story with my editor Andrew Marino, we were thinking of different ideas for the theme of spring, and, coming from Florida aka Spring Break capital of the world, obviously I had to send World’s Finest Teen Titans to Cocoa Beach for spring break! Finally getting to write Dick Grayson means the Robins I’ve written for 4/5!
✅ Dick Grayson - Spring BreakOUT 2024
☑️ Jason Todd - ???
✅ Tim Drake - see above lol
✅ Stephanie Brown - Tim Drake’s Pride issue
✅ Damien Wayne - the DC Superhero Girls episode Kid Napped
Just gotta write Jason Todd now. I almost wrote Jason Todd back in the Future State days instead of Tim Drake, but that’s a story for a different time.
As I mentioned above, Tim Drake: Robin Vol 2 comes out on April 16th! Featuring issue 7, which I think is one of the most fun things I’ve written, given Bernard a bit of personal backstory and seeing things from this precious Himbo’s point of view.
And that’s all I can talk about at the moment, though I will hint at what else I’ve been working on down below.
STATE OF THE INDUSTRY
Woof. Possibly part of the reason I haven’t gotten back onto the substack is because things are ROUGH out there, no matter what part of the entertainment industry you’re in.
TV - I’ve seen a few headlines saying something to the effect of “The Industry is being punished for the strikes” which… isn’t true, but certainly feels true. Something like 20% of jobs have been lost, layoffs don’t stop, and agencies like A3 are going under. The truth is, the issue isn’t the writers strikes. The issue is that venture capital has weaseled its way into the entertainment industry, making bets without recognizing the most important rule of the industry: the industry is personal. Since the creation of the industry, it has always been about “who you know”, and while that certainly is an unfortunate gatekeeping method that we are actively working against, venture capital takes gatekeeping to a whole new level. Venture Capital is like Mr. Potter in It’s a Wonderful Life, sweeping in and offering to “rescue” the whole town, which means owning the whole town. And, while this is not all inclusive, most of the men who come in with their venture capital money don’t value the humanity that makes movies or TV. They don’t recognize that you can’t make bets with people’s lives. They don’t understand the crushing agony of giving your life to a project that gets written off for tax purposes. And to anyone who says, “That’s business” — why? It shouldn’t be. Money should never be more important than people.
Comics - Oh boy. Tom Brevoort talked about this on his (very good) substack this week. Everyone has said it’s “the end of comics” for the last forty years. Things are certainly “dire” in that something needs to change, but that doesn’t mean the end is nigh. It means those of us in the industry need to make changes, we need to be daring, we need to make things that are different and new.
Animation - The layoffs are hitting animation harder than anywhere else, I think. I’ve had a number of meetings the past six weeks and every single person has said, “Well, we are waiting to see. Check back in March.” I will say, I’m starting to see more people looking for adult animation. That seems to be where the money is. Not surprising, though I have a concern with this - it means we are valuing adults over the middle and teen grades. The reason this is concerning is because TV is also skating over these ages. I believe it’s the same reason you don’t see many laws focused on teens, or why school shootings don’t change laws — it’s about teens. Teens can’t vote. They can’t vote with their voice or their money. So, they get ignored or forgotten, unless those of us make an effort for them. I understand that people have to go where the money is, especially in this time. But, something I feel very strongly about, is that you cannot make decisions with a starvation mentality. Even if you are starving, and so many of us are. So many of us are scared and have no idea what’s next. But I will not make decisions with a starvation mentality. That is the death of art. That is the death of progress.
Podcasts - Look. Podcasts haven’t hit like they should. Not yet, at least. Especially not audio fiction podcasts. What needs to happen is the Serial for audio fiction. And we are close, I can feel it. But budgets are getting cut left and right. All my podcasts, even the nonfiction ones, are pleading for money or support.
So, it’s a scary time. If you’re trying to get into the industry, I don’t blame you for being terrified. If you’re new to the industry, I don’t blame you for being terrified. But hang on. We will get through this, together. Look for friends. Look for those that are also in the trenches. We can’t survive on our own, we need each other to hang onto, to remind us that we are doing this for a reason, a purpose. This isn’t the first time things have been dark, and it won’t be the last. The trick has always been survive together.
You cannot make decisions with a starvation mentality.
WHAT I’VE BEEN WORKING ON
I feel like the past three months have been focused on pitches, pitches, pitches. I spent the end of December and beginning of January reaching out to folks in my network with purchasing power and asking, “What are you looking for?” Then, sent them some loglines and waited to see if anything sparked for them. What has been helpful is a google spreadsheet I made of my various different ideas and loglines.
The above is an example of a pitch I’ve been working on/sent out. It’s for a comic series I’ve already written the first issue for, and had it drawn by the amazing Yasmin Flores Montanez. But I can acknowledge where else the idea can live, and if I’m talking to someone in animation or TV, I can send them this logline to see if it’s something they’re interested in.
So I’ve been working on a number of original pitches, including a TV pitch for an original idea that I just pitched to a production company. No idea if they’ll choose to move forward with it, but pitching an original idea at all is exciting, so I’m taking the win.
I’ve also got a creator owned comic in the works! The contract is still getting signed, so I can’t talk too much about it, but this is something I’ve been working towards since the run on Tim Drake, and I cannot wait for it to see the world.
I’m also working on two really exciting podcasts that I can’t talk about yet! They’re so incredibly different from each other, which I love. I find that I am the happiest when I get to work on two juxtaposing projects, because they both sharpen me in different ways and continue to make me a better writer.
Finally, I’m working on two original samples - one for feature and one for TV. The feature is interesting, it feels a bit like It’s a Wonderful Life meets The Hangover, and I’m hoping to actually make it as a vehicle for some actor friends of mine. And then, the TV sample is… well… it’s my first comedy sample. Famously, I’m not a comedy person. I love making people cry. But my ideas are almost always funny. This is sometimes good for drama, because you need to have that break in the tension. But often I get asked questions about tone that don’t live up to what people expect. So, we’re trying something new. Which is why…
PREMIUM PREVIEW
The premium preview this month will be a deep dive into the SEARCH PARTY pilot! I have had not one, but two projects compared to Search Party, so it’s finally time to give this a watch, a read, and a study. I’ve already read the pilot, which has revealed some surprises, but I need to watch the pilot again, since it’s been quite a while.
I will say, the main takeaway from reading the pilot is that it isn’t necessarily laugh out loud funny. At least, I didn’t think so. It doesn’t have any jokes, it’s actually pretty stark. Also, it’s set in New York, which is a massive change from what I remember of the Los Angeles based pilot. So, look out for that later this month.
REJECTION REPORT
I’ve started a new “fun” project this year, where I give myself $1 for every reject. My aim is to have $100 by the end of the year, which means I have to get rejected 100 times. This also means I have to put myself up to be rejected even more times! So far, this is where my rejection list sits, and how much is in the Rejection Pot.
The Superhero Project - This is something I applied to back in December? I totally forgot about it.
Star Sisters - This is a pitch I send to different animation companies because I believe in it with my whole heart. But it got a pass from someone, which made sense as they’re going in a more adult animation direction and this is not that.
Project Kiwi - This was something I was sort of “auditioning” for with my writing work. It was a cool project, I’m sad I won’t be working on it, but it was fun.
Sunshine Motel - Devastated this didn’t get picked up, but I think I can find another good home for it somewhere.
The Old Jail - Less of a surprise this didn’t get picked up, but I’m excited for the time to actually refine this, because it feels a bit hurried.
Rejection Pot: $5
95 more rejections to go!
THE HOBBY REPORT
This is going to change slightly, as I found a hobby in 2023! I started crocheting in August, and I honestly haven’t stopped since. I made gifts for my entire family, and now I’m working on sweaters! So, the Hobby Report will now change to The Experience Report, where I talk about different experiences I attempt. I realized recently that Mindful Exploration is very important to me. So, as I focus on navigating and noticing experiences, I will be chronicling them here. And I hope to hear your experiences, as well!
That’s all for this month. I hope you’re well, and that you’re taking care of yourself. I’ll see premium members in a few days.
Until next time,
Meghan Fitzmartin