Effing The Ineffable

Steven Barnes
Nov 1 · 7 min read

Two weeks ago, two things happened:

  1. We got a major win.
  2. We had an even larger failure. A movie script we’d been working on like crazy, supported by a wonderful set of allies, was submitted to a major studio at a very high level…and got slapped down. It was a large enough failure that it dwarfed the victory emotionally, and felt like a sledge hammer to the chest. All of the insecurity and pain and fear in my heart boiled up, every negative voice in my head came back to chew at me. Every demon in the darkness was alive and sharpening its teeth on my soul.

Keep the story going. Sign up for an extra free read.

You've completed your member preview for this month, but when you sign up for a free Medium account, you get one more story.
Already have an account? Sign in

Steven Barnes

Written by

Steven Barnes is a NY Times bestselling author, ecstatic husband and father, and holder of black belts in three martial arts. www.theancientchild.com

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade