Christy Murphy's Otter Blog

My Story Salon in Progress ...

I've been reading my essays and stories Wednesday nights at the Story Salon's in Studio City. I was lucky enough to get my own salon last Friday night. They call the shows Story Salon's in Progress, and I sang some songs and told stories about my family.

I got the greatest review of a show of my life written by Richard MacPherson. You can check it out here: http://shermanoaks.patch.com/blog_posts/story-salon-the-long-play.

Highlights: "... a lovely unassuming yet quirky stage presence."

"... starting off with a very funny original song called "A Six Pack for Santa".

"... their beautiful smiles stole our hearts."

It was video recorded. I may post some highlights soon. I'll be revising my salon in progress into a one-person show and take it on the road. Many of the essays will be available in my upcoming book of essays that is slated to come out at Christmas!

 

NanoWrimo: (Inter)National Write a Novel in a Month

It's November, which means it's time for NanoWrimo: the international write a novel in a month challenge. I am a winner for 2008 and am going for it again this year. My goal is to write a first draft of a romantic comedy novel by the end of November. I will post excerpts and make it available for sale (after it's edited and revised) on my new site: Read-My-Stories-Online.com .

I went to my first "Write In" here in the Valley last night. We all started writing at the stroke of midnight. I'm now only about 500 words in, but am very excited. The question is: Will I finish? As you can see from this not-regularly-updated blog where I failed to finish the Music Industry group challenge, my confidence that I will finish this draft in a month may very well be misplaced. Add to it, I've just joined Deadline Junkies (a fab screenwriting group), and am in the midst of a second act of my screenplay with a reading scheduled early Dec, and my classes at the UCB Theater starting one week from today, and there are a lot of things to do. Will I succeed? Time will tell, but I am going to state right here that I will! Now, how foolish will I look if I don't!

Are you going to do it with me? Feel free to join us all on a month of "literary abandon." The water's fine.

If a person tweets in the dark, does a one-handed tree clapping make no sound when it falls on her?

I've signed up for Twitter, and I have no idea what I'm doing or why, but that is one of the best reasons and ways to do anything in my opinion. (The other "best" reason and way would be to do something for a specific reason and to know exactly how. However, it is kind of boring).

I find it very entertaining that no one at all is following me, and yet I tweet away. However, in everyone in the world's defense, I signed up in the dead of night after a major holiday while I was alone in my apartment. I am of the firm belief this is how all great things begin. Great things begin alone, in the dead of night, when no one is looking, and you (or in this case me) do something.

Yes, there are things people do alone, when no one is looking, in the dead of night, that may not fall into the "great" category, but hopefully this is not that kind of thing.

Happy Birthday Day to Me!

It's official, I'm 37 years old and Comedy 90210, our Beverly Hills Comedy Show, is a hit! My co-producer Stamie Karakasidis and I had an awesome time. We both had great sets with tons of funny guests including Comedy Central comedians Maria Bamford, Chip Pope and Brett Gilbert and other really funny comics such as the King of TV Paul Goebel, Dave Mishevitz, Larry Vasseos, Vance Sanders, Robert Yasumuro, April Robertson. I hope I'm not leaving anyone out. My sister Edie brought the world's most delicious cake. It rocked!

And the SCOOMIE Goes to

Every year, shortly after the Oscars, the Los Angeles Stand Up Comedy Community gathers together to put on an award show to honor and poke fun of itself. The jokes are pitched on the inside. Comics don formal wear, and we hand out awards fashioned from foam and coffee cups (representing the many coffee houses we all perform in out here).

We call the awards the SCOOMIE awards, which stands for Southern California Organization Of Open MIc Entertainers. (Yeah, the I is kind of awkward.)

Comedy Webisodes Co-Starring Brett Gilbert Coming Soon

My friend, and fellow comedian, Brett Gilbert are co-starring and creating a web-com called Sherman Royale. I have permission to post the comedy webisodes on this blog. We play ourselves. I am so excited about it. Brett is also a very talented director and founder of Trained Killers Comedy, which produces a lot of short films and live comedy shows. I'm very excited. I've been a part of the team and used as a writer, but now I'll get a co-creator credit and get to co-star.