Author: Paula Rhodes

I’m a momma now! Two months in it still doesn’t seem real. However, I figured it was time I write the follow up to my last article on my impending motherhood to let you know if any fears were realized, revelations were had, etc. First of all, I had been quite nervous about the whole birth thing. I mean, the physics just didn’t make sense. But I’m here to let anyone else who might be nervous about it know that my birth experience was actually great! Seriously. Now, every birth is different, so I can make no guarantees as to…

Hey gang, I’m pregnant! Don’t think I didn’t laugh to myself as I typed this article after realizing that it happens to be coming after my last article entitled The Naked Code. Total coincidence, I promise, tho a hilarious one. Also, let me assure you, that even though I am a married, relatively-secure lady well into the years for which child bearing is no longer possibly construed as “scandalous,” that, a full five months into this journey (flowy shirts FTW!), I STILL bit my nails down to nubbins when I had to announce that fact to the world (via THIS…

Nudity required. Those words cause completely different responses in different people. Ok, in women, because how often are dudes really asked to drop trou and how often is there stigma attached if they do? And yes, I too might be drooling a little at the reminder of male butt shots in Outlander and such, but pull it together you have an article to read. Simple fact; ladies confront that phrase in this industry far more often and not just for critically acclaimed TV or film roles. So, do you click submit/accept the audition/take the role? That is the question. What’s…

Ahh, the showmance; a thing sometimes hoped for, often joked about, and occasionally feared. It is an undeniable phenomenon in the entertainment world. It has built studios and destroyed careers, and it is still rearing its head in productions that span the gauntlet from black box theaters to summer blockbusters often enough to keep multiple magazines in business and gossip hounds fed for generations. Here’s the thing, we actors have a bad rep as significant others, and it’s not statistically undeserved. Acting attracts a large number of broken people hoping to fill the void inside with the group love of…

This month (a rather hectic one for me involving a move into our first little house after a year-long hunt) I have noticed a plethora of little gems of knowledge coming my way through the chaos, and despite an initial selfish thought to hoard them all, I’m going to share them with you. Use them well, my pretties, and may they bring us all much success! *For the most part these do tend to pertain to Acting specifically, but some are transferable to various Arts* #1 – Send Thank You Notes. I know, it’s a pain and seems outdated, but…

“If you have ten plans, you don’t have one.” – Tim Sheridan I love that quote. Granted, it took me a good long time to accept its simple truth as far as my acting career goes. How does it translate? Well, we all want to be Cate Blanchett, Johnny Depp, Marlon Brando, Meryl Streep, Vera Farmiga etc… those who wow us with their massive range. We want to show off the many characters in our internal menagerie, but trying to sell our wide range in the beginning makes it very hard to be memorable. We give ourselves a much better…

2014 fast approaches, and regardless of where your political leanings are on the matter, that means the laws governing health insurance are about to change. If you don’t have it, you’re going to need to get it or pay the resulting fine next tax season. What does this mean for you? As a fresh-off-the-boat-graduate-turned-starving-artist (who didn’t have the option of today’s “stay on your parent’s insurance until you’re 26” law), I remember being overwhelmed to the point of tears trying to surf through the insurance market. I was nearly pressured into just getting a “normal job” by friends and family…

“Pay no attention to what the critics say… Remember, a statue has never been set up in honor of a critic!” – Jean Sibelius It’s easy to like the above quote, yet quite another challenge to take it’s advice. We, as artists, want to inspire, move, touch, and inform people. We generally want our work (and by extension us) to be liked and appreciated. I mean, we’re pouring our hearts out here! Yet, it’s inevitable, some people just aren’t going to be picking up what you’re putting down. If you’re putting your work online, you’ve undoubtably encountered the Troll. Those poor…

Every one of us dreamers unlucky enough to not be born into very wealthy families, or unwilling to be sugar babies, have at some point come face to face with the need to find a job that can cover our bills as we pursue our creative careers. Often this need is accompanied by overwhelming panic as the normal expenses are inflated by our requisite classes, promotional materials, equipment and such, and the possibility of finding a side job where we can earn enough to cover it all, yet remain super flexible to accommodate for our artistic endeavors, seems impossible. Inevitably…