The Wife of the Screenwriter Speaks

They say you should never blog in anger.

So, this week I am passing the reins to my wife Maria, who volunteered to share the experience from her perspective:

MARIA: I was making our grocery list, and as always asked Mario what he felt like eating this coming week. His response: (CENSORED-mm)

You can only imagine the week he’s had.

I think of Mario’s writing career as wallpaper, always in the background but inconsequential. I should clarify: it’s not that I don’t believe in my husband or his talents. I’m sure one day he’ll make it, and in the meantime, I’ll do anything in my power to make the road easier. However, for me, it’s all fairy dust and unicorns until the checks clear.

Still, I have to deal with every bump in the road, listen patiently and nod in acknowledgment.

This week’s drama circles around Mario’s representation. These somehow intangible characters have become antagonists on Mario’s journey.

The story began when Mario and his writing partner Marcelo accepted a writing assignment in Argentina. It’s their first writing assignment and first paycheck. CHA-CHING! Of course, it won’t be much, but I married an artist after all. And if this thing’s a success, who knows?

Mario’s agent and manager were not as philosophical about it. They feel cheated and lied to. They said the payment was a joke, that they had reduced their quote (which quote, I ask?).

A conference call followed: lots of misunderstandings, lots of arguments, lots of hurt egos, not a resolution in sight.

Mario told me the story in thirty-second-intervals while he answered phone calls at work and called Marcelo for updates on the fallout.

Tonight when he comes home, Mario will tell me everything again. What he felt with every word and every silence. His blood pressure will rise; he’ll turn red, then he’ll make a sudden move, pull something, and after a rub down and a light dinner, he’ll sit on the living room floor and curse under his breath while he plays his new video game.

In the meantime, I still have to figure out my grocery list.