Am I a Fraud?

There's this Syndrome. The "I'm a fraud!!!! Syndrome." Have you heard of it? Have you succumb to it?  I have.

A couple of years ago I started to write this book. An ebook. I thought it would be a good idea the put together a handbook of sorts for actors who want to get comfortable on set.  My boyfriend, Ben, a working Gaffer/Electrician at the time, sat down with me and mapped out a typical day on set, terminology, issues of etiquette, anything an actor might encounter on a typical shoot day. The idea was to compile all this information into an ebook and self-publish it. Sounds easy enough, right?

Here are all the reasons why it has taken me 3 years to officially announce the project:

1. I'm an actor, not a writer.
2. I don't have enough credits.
3. I'm no expert.
4. What if something I wrote is wrong?
5. What if I get sued for infringement?
6. I don't want to take financial advantage of actors.
7. I'm embarrassed.
8. I'm waiting for permission AND validation.
9. Some of the links I incorporated might be obsolete.
10. I'm a fraud.

Sound familiar? Most of these issues are, excuse my french, BULLSHIT. A couple are valid. So what? What's the hold up?

Something in my stomach wasn't sitting right about asking actors for $$$ for my book. Why? I wrote the damn thing. I spent a LONG time compiling it. I spent my own money hiring a Task Rabbit to edit it. I do deserve to be compensated for my work. Here's the deal, though. There are SOOOO MANY ways actors, myself included, are taken advantage of financially. It's endless. And I didn't/don't feel comfortable contributing to the madness.  What's the solution, then? What I arrived at was the following:

1. Sell the book.
2. Donate a part of my proceeds to a worthy cause....one that gives back to the acting community, perhaps?  THE ACTOR'S FUND

This makes me feel good. I can offer something valuable and helpful to my community of actors. I can empower my colleagues through the book to be their best selves. I can earn some income, but not feel bad or selfish about it. I can give back to my community with some of my earnings. I can be a good example for my fellow actors.  

WIN.

So. Without further ado, I announce:

THE WORKING ACTOR'S FILM SET HANDBOOK

Enjoy. Learn something. Send me feedback. Correct me. I dare you.