What I’m Reading: What Makes Sammy Run? by Budd Schulberg

I’m enjoying this book. I rarely read a work of fiction these days, but this book has quickly become one of my favorites. The story follows the ever-ambitious writer Sammy Glick, squirming, betraying, and weaseling his way up the ranks of Hollywood. The central question of the book “What Makes Sammy Run?” is asked by our narrator, Al Manheim, as he follows Sammy along his journey, studying his egotism from the perspective of a slightly jealous, slightly curious, and slightly obsessed “best friend.” The commentary on the relationship between hollow pursuits and the ever-hungry machine of commercial entertainment has struck home in multiple ways for me. I will be thinking about this book for a long, long time.

What I’m Reminding Myself: It’s Rarely Important

If there is one thing, artists need reminders of its that it (whatever the current issue is) is seldom as important as we think it is. That’s not to discourage the work or the value of the art. I want to be very clear about that. But sometimes we artists get a little too caught up in our world. It’s not life or death. Sometimes it may feel like that, but that doesn’t mean it is. In reality, it only takes a toll on our stress levels and anxieties. One of the best things we can do for ourselves is to step back and try and see the situation for what it is. Not only can this help us find a solution, but it can also give us the perspective we need to put some distance between us and the martyrdom that lurks in every artistic endeavor.

A Quote I’m Thinking About: “There’s no glory in being a rich, 50 year old boy; the same child at the end of the journey as the beginning, only with a fatter wallet.” – Ryan Holiday