Story Blaster #2

Hey guys! Almost forgot about this weeks story blaster image. I’m still getting use to this whole concept, but I just want to thank you all who participated last week! Great stuff and very different imaginations. I loved reading them all! There were actually quite a few stories turned in and I feel bad just posting one or two instead of all of them, so I think I’ll leave out the posting for now and try to figure out a way if possible for people to view all the stories submitted, but we’ll see.

Anyway, without further to do, here’s this weeks Story Blaster image made by yours truly:

What is this ship? who’s in it? Where is it going? What does the symbol on it possibly stand for? Tell us what you think in your story.

Rules are the same:

• Story must be 1-2 pages and no more.
• Story must be about the visual given for the creative activity.
• Story must be original creation and not a story line from anything else.
• Must be turned in by the Friday of this week.

Go and have fun everyone!

Story Blasters!

Hey guys! Long time no blog. Been awhile, but I think I might have a new set up to blog about and have everyone join in! As you know, I love the power of ones imagination and all that it beholds. It’s good to give it exercise and stretch those creative muscles to unleash some good story telling for all to see! So here’s what I shall do. Every week, I will upload a sketch or finished piece (could be a character, symbol, scene, item, place, etc.) as a visual for you to write your own little story for. You will have until the Friday of that week to submit it to me (You can submit through here possibly, or just submit to samvf90@gmail.com) or share through your own social media preference and just tag me in it. Here are the guidelines:

• Story must be 1-2 pages and no more.
• Story must be about the visual given for the creative activity.
• Story must be original creation and not a story line from anything else.
• Must be turned in by the Friday of that week.

I plan on sharing everyone’s story’s on here and if our participants grow, it might become something where I share the best three, but I won’t get ahead myself. For now submit and I’ll post. But I hope you all have fun with it and it gives you a good exercise to get your imagination pumping! So here we go!

I’m going to start us simple and give you this piece I made:

What is this symbol? Is it on a flag? Maybe it’s a tattoo on one’s arm? What does it stand for and from where could it come from? Is it peaceful or does it stand for danger? I guess you better tell us about it in your story. Ready, set, GO!!!

Do it already!

Hey ya’ll! So it’s been a while, hasn’t it? I know. Been a crazy time what with all the crying and staring into the lonesome void of my inner longings… I also need to get a schedule going for this blog. See, i’m learning, but also having fun. But learning how to manage a blog isn’t what this specific blog is about. No siree! This blog is about committing and pushing yourself forward whether you’re ready or not. So grab your bags, bend forward and get ready to feel that hard boot swiftly kick against your posterior, ejecting you out of the safe nest of procrastination and certainty.

Look out below!

Yep, time to spread your wings and fly! For years now I’ve always wanted to make a comic and for years I always told myself I wasn’t ready. I’d look at other peoples artwork that I followed on Instagram or Deviantart and think, “They’re amazing! I’m nowhere near being as good as them. I’m hopeless! I’m no artist! I might as well end it all now! GOOD BYE CRUEL WORLD!!!”. Okay, maybe not exactly like that, but from time to time I know us artists can look at others work and think ourselves inferior. It might be because we may not color like an other can or we can’t create beautiful scenic back grounds like some. And this isn’t just for drawing and what not, this goes for writers, actors, dancers, etc.

I would torture myself over other artists techniques and not be secure enough in mine to the point that I just wouldn’t draw at all, preventing me from practicing and becoming a better artist. So I finally buckled down last week with old sketches and plots I have had stored on my shelf , about a comic strip idea called “Fairy Funny Tales”. This cartoon is led by an elf, a pixie, a bridge troll, a homeless king, and a cursed victim named “Chicken-Head Fred”. I started thumb-nailing and then sketching out the templates and inking down the final drafts. And let me tell you, I loved every second of it. And did I know what I was doing?.. NOPE!

Well La-Tee-Dah! You drew something, Picasso!

I’m just saying, I didn’t second guess myself, I didn’t create excuses, and most importantly I didn’t sit down at my desk thinking, “This has to be perfect.”. I think that right there is kind of the secret to success. I can’t tell you how many times i’ll get ready to draw with an image in my head and think about how perfect it has to be. Which then throws off your confidence and mojo. The slightest mistake will have you flipping over your desk and sobbing over your dog who has no idea what’s happening and thinks she is in trouble for something she did.

Point is, stop procrastinating, stop saying you’ll get to it when you’ve gotten better and you’re ready. You’re never going to be ready, so suck it up and do it already! That’s what I did and I’ve learned so much in one week than I have in 5 years, which is kind of sad. So don’t be an old excuse thrower like me, get out and start on your creative project! Chances are, you’re going to be pleasantly surprised with the process and even the mistakes. But look forward to them, cause that’s another step closer to being a professional at your best.

Don’t Stop Believing – Part 2

Faith, trust, and lots and lots of coffee.

So in Part 1, I left some tips with you guys last time and shared with you what’s been going on in my life now. I’m a graduate, I got a job, saving up (if my loans would let me), and I’m creating goals for my self. And honestly, I thinks that’s the most important thing you can do when you’re very creative. If I didn’t, I’d go crazy (well, crazier). And once again, if things aren’t going as fast as you’d like them to, don’t be down on yourself about it or freak out. You’re talking to the expert on that; freaking out that is. You could ask some of my friends, because for a while I was going nuts that I wasn’t doing anything. It ate me up inside and left me feeling worthless. A little over the tops perhaps? Well here’s why…

Another tidbit about me for all you folks is that I’m not a patient person, whatsoever. I hate waiting with a passion! I can’t even wait for my food to heat up in the microwave sometimes. I pray about it a lot because of course God knows this about me and sometimes I think with the sense of humor our Lord can have, He likes to make me wait on certain paths in my life on purpose. Not because He’s vindictive or cruel, but because He knows I need patience in order to grow. A certain favorite professor of mine also helped me realize that as well and quite recently. It’s the same thing every time, whether when I was still in school or after graduation when visiting the theatre department, I’d walk into his office while going on and on about the things I wanted to do in life. Not happy and telling him how worried I was that none of them were happening. And as the fool I can be, I’d wait there hoping in the back of my mind that he’d have some hidden secret for me to instantly accomplish my dreams. But what he had, had been what I needed and that was advice. And like always, I took that wise advice from that wise professor and went out and applied it to my life (as best as I could).

Tell us the advice, heathen!!!

The advice was basically be patient, work hard, and don’t doubt yourself, which is another huge issue I deal with. I’ll create an idea in my head and I’ll start working on it, but then as I’m working on it, little doubt-mites come crawling out of the crevices of my mind and begin to tell me things such as:

• “It isn’t a good idea!”
• “It’s not as good as another idea!”
• “No ones going to like it!”
• “You’re not good enough for this idea!”
• “You’d be a success right now if you were good!”
• “Ben Affleck won’t be a good Batman and DC will fail!”
• “Hillary 2016!”

And that would throw me off so much so that I’d scrap the idea and create this never-ending cycle of not accomplishing anything. It can be very disconcerting, but don’t let it be! Get out that doubt-mite repellent and nuke the little suckers. Take a chance, go out on a limb! I think when you have an imagination and you see a different world than everyone else, you have to take risks just to show everyone what you’re seeing. And if that idea fails then throw out another and then another and another until one sticks! Ultimately take this away from my blog today: “You are your own worst enemy.”. Do you know how true that quote can be? I have been my own worst enemy most of my life. All of the doubt, the procrastination, being stubborn; that has hindered me so many times and I thank God that I am old enough to acknowledge it and strive to correct it as I battle for the things I want in life. And I encourage you to do the same! 

Right now I’ve got “Project Breadcrumb” (read about it in the projects menu) that I’m working on with close friends and that’s been an ongoing thing. This August it will have been a year since we began that project and though it’s ate me up inside to wait that long to finish it and hopefully start it, it’s been such an encouraging and impacting travel and I look forward to discuss more about it. Also, I want to start a short series of comic strips called “Fairy Funny Tales” that I hope to be sharing with you soon. And I’m currently working on a web series called “Box Boy” that we’re in the midst of production with. I have all of these things going on while working a full-time job and saving up for bigger and better things.

you braggin’ or something?

No, I’m not! I’m just saying if I can do it, you can do it! Take risks, make plans, work hard, create a strategy, execute it and don’t stop until something you created sticks or until you have the dream you want. I don’t have that yet, but I’m not waiting around hoping it will fall in my lap. It’ll be hard and disconcerting at times, but keep on pushing for it. And remember, you might be pushing for one thing, but will actually achieve something else and you might be even happier with it. A step is a step, don’t be happy about it. The future is an endless abyss of possibilities, but you won’t see through it just sitting around. Go for it!

*Audience Applauds*

Don’t Stop Believing – Part 1

When I graduated from college, I realized very very VERY quickly that I was not going to land my dream career as soon as I had anticipated. It felt as if college had greeted me through its front entrance, crammed my head with knowledge and fun memories, then scooted me out its back door and was like, “Okay, bye now! You’re on your own!”. So I moved back home to Columbus OH and sat in self-pity for quite a while. I kept thinking about how I had been at a university for three years that gave me roles and projects I could immerse myself in and feel the joys of imagination, making me long for the day I would graduate and live this as my life. So needless to say I had a big case of the “sads” when I moved back  home and that wasn’t happening…

*Audience sign flashes* “Awwwww, poor Sam.”

Let me tell you about Columbus OH. It’s not as much as a “cow town” as the rest of the country may think. In fact I do enjoy that I can be in a bustling city at one moment and then get away to a peaceful, serene forest all within 30 minutes. Yet, Columbus (and most of Ohio) is not a theatre town. It’s not a film town and just doesn’t really have any support for major acting in general. It does however have a strong poetry society, but that doesn’t help me at all. Columbus (Ohio as a whole) actually has a huge business movement though. Our state is actually very financially secure due to our business’s and economic growth and for that our population is somewhat more stable from the nasty tragedies of our country’s financial depression, so I’m thankful for that!

Who cares about “Cow-town” Columbus?

Here’s where I’m going with this blog. I know I’m not the only art/theatre/english/etc. major who graduates from a college where they had years of dreams and fun and suddenly realizes, “Oh… I have to work for this.”. It can be quite depressing and put you in a bad funk. I did the same thing unfortunately. I thought my life was over and that I wasn’t going to amount to anything. Of course who do you blame for your misfortunes and self loathing? You blame God, which is exactly what I did. Did it help? Not at all! How did God respond? He got me a job with a start-up company working in its call center. I kept telling myself, “I won’t be here long. Just long enough to save up and head to Chicago to start my dreams!”. Yahhhh, No.

Saving up money can be super hard when Sally Mae gets word you graduated and busts down your front door, baseball bat in hand; saying, “Where’s my money, sucka!?”. I ‘ve been with the company for almost nine months and let me tell you, it has taught me so much. I had never worked in a call center before and was quite nervous to start. So please don’t think I’m bragging when I say, I was (and still am) pretty good at it. I’m a talker of course, but this isn’t your average call center. We try to step out of the norm of being transactional and be more engaging with our customers which I really like. I had heard many horror stories about call centers before, but I was blown away when I was first hired to see that we were not at all like your average call center (I also have several hilarious customer encounters through the phone that I store away for a future idea). The people I work with are so encouraging to me. So many coworkers, supervisors, managers all support me and my dreams. They encourage me to go out and better myself and to live my dreams and ambitions. They let me set out time to go to auditions out of state so I can try to land gigs. It’s all very uplifting and I’m blessed to have that to keep me going. I have moved up three positions since hired and I have learned so much about business and customer service that I know it will aid me in the future (Plus do you know how much of customer service is acting?). These are things I needed to learn from my work and that I’m still learning now.

So you gave up, huh?

Nope! Not at all. Here’s my lessons that I’m trying to pass on through this crudely written blog.

1. Don’t get in a funk when you graduate. It’s smart to regroup, save up, get ahead and then go for your dreams. Have a strategy laid out. It took me forever to learn that.

2. Don’t be a prude and act like you’re all that. Truth is you’re not. Suck it up, get a job and learn a new trade and some tricks. Whether you want to be an actor, writer, singer, artist, etc. It will help you! Customer service wasn’t new to me, but the business of a call center was. I have learned and enhanced many talents and ideas through this growing experience.

3. Just because you’re working and saving up right now, doesn’t mean you have to stop doing stuff on the side. For me, I can’t function unless I’m working on a project. So I write and draw up stories and scripts to possibly film or act out with friends. Keeps me happy and can possibly lead to something greater.

I have plans to go out and audition and to try to catch up on my dreams. Just because I’m not doing that as much right now, doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen. I tell myself that everyday and it encourages me (supportive friends who encourage helps a lot as well). Also, I put faith in God (you know, the omniscient one who I blamed before?) to lead me in the direction I need to go. I’m not saying God’s going to give me what I want. I don’t want to work in a call center, But he’s going to give me what I need. Because he’s a Father and I’m just a spoiled man-child who has to grow and learn to trust in Him. But I also need to trust in myself. And that’s something I’ll write about next time.

Next time on BigSammyV: “Self Believing”

Look, Ma, I can draw!

Hey guys, I’ll admit, this bog is going to take some rabbit trails in and out of what I’m trying to talk about, but hopefully you can bare with me and hear me out on some stuff. Okay? you ready? SWEET! Here we go then!

So, I was cleaning out my closet over the weekend where I found a couple of old sketchbooks I had drawn in from middle school to high school. I looked through them and was refreshed with so many old ideas I had growing up. Even as old as these were though, they weren’t my first sketchbooks. I had started drawing as far back as kindergarten. I remember back then, I had been very much into Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. I watched it religiously and knew the entire layout and timeline of the series. Though I was not a fan for them being young, hip, heroic figures that all the other kids loved them for being. I actually watched for the villains and their nefarious plans of destroying Zordon, his rangers and taking over Angel Grove City and then the world! Mwahahahaha!!.. ahem..

Also around that time growing up, my Dad was always watching WWII movies and documentaries, so I also learned a lot about that (thanks to the war films of John Wayne). Well, during my kindergarten days, I had gotten in trouble for a picture I drew at school. My Dad took me home, and asked to see the picture my teacher told him about. I was confused as to why I had been in trouble, but I took it out of my backpack and handed it over to him. He stared at it for a moment, and I could see him try to hide a smile from me with the picture up to his face. He then told me that I shouldn’t draw stuff like that at school anymore or share it, because people wouldn’t understand. See, what I had drawn was a picture of the Power Rangers greatest nemesis, Lord Zedd beating up one of history’s greatest villains… Adolf Hitler. It was a picture of Hitler on the ground, beaten and bruised, and Lord Zedd was standing over him, victorious as he burned down the Nazi flag (Keep in mind I didn’t like Hitler! I knew he was a bad man! I just wanted to see another villain defeat him which my Dad understood.).

Yes, I know, I was a weird kid. And I only got in trouble because I had drawn the swastika on the burning Nazi flag and on the patch of Hitlers beaten and torn jacket. But as a kid (and even now as a grown man) I was a villain lover. It was the bad guys (or girls) that I adored: Lord Zedd, Rita, Ivan Ooze, Cobra Commander, Joker, Penguin, Two-Face, Shredder, Krang, Mojo-jojo, Darth Vader, Ursula, Hook, Jafar, Etc. The villains had the coolest looks, weapons, henchman, plots, back stories, secret locations and other evil’ry. If you ask my parents, they’d tell you about all the Christmas’s and Birthday’s sifting through the hundreds of Batman and Red Ranger action figures at the stores, trying to find that one “staff spin action Lord Zedd” or a “deadly confetti launcher Joker” figure that I was really asking for. Heck, when I played with my toys, I didn’t have a hero figure to save the day, it was an all out turf war between all the bad guys I owned.

Why you spoiled little brat!

Sorry, I didn’t mean to get on a tangent of how I was a messed up little boy growing up. Point was I loved all the villains and I drew them. I loved drawing them and putting my own spin on them. It was the most fun I could ever have. And even now, I can tell you that I still do this. When I’m not drawing every single Batman villain ever created, (Check out my instagram for serious Batman fandom) I’m drawing my own. In fact, when I start creating a story in my mind about a world in need of a hero to save it from ruin, what is it do you think my mind creates first? It creates the evil master mind who’s ruining the world, that’s who. But again, bad guys have all the fun! (Why do you think Congress has so much fun?) I love me a good villain with an evil laugh, vicious plot, and a back story that will put you in tears.

So you’re messed up in the head? Who cares!?

Sorry, point of this blog was the art and practice of sketching and drawing. In an earlier blog, I talked about how people always ask me how I got good at drawing (even when I think I’m mediocre at best) and I said it takes practice, just like you would need with any instrument. Again, I stand by that. Practice does 100% make perfect. I draw almost every day and there’s still so much I learn. I mean last week, I just learned a technique on how to simply draw knuckle wrinkles on the hands of my characters! I know that doesn’t sound exciting, but it was for me! And I’m sure if there are any fellow artist’s who just read this, they’re probably going, “Ooooh! I wonder what his technique is!?”. But that’s what I love about sketches is that you can see your work and progress grow and improve right before your eyes!

I looked through those sketch books I found in my closet, that I had used through middle school and high school and I could not believe it. I thought I was so good back then, but truth is, I wasn’t. I know a lot of artist’s can be critical of their work, but nope, this stuff was awful! So, I re-drew some characters to compare… and did it make me happy. I’m not doing this to brag or say, “Look at me! Look at me!”, but I know a lot of young artists out there who love creating and drawing stories out as much as I do. Yet, adults say it’s a fad and that they’ll grow out of it. DON’T DO IT! Draw!!! Draw like the wind! Do it everyday with warm ups and character designs. Go with one design and then build on that by doing a different one and a different one after that. Maybe your characters a guy, make him a girl and see how that looks. Maybe that character is tall and lanky, try drawing them short and fat. It’s practicing and it’s fun. And the best part is, the more you do it, the better you’ll get.

Put your pencil where your mouth is, Mr. Michelangelo!

So again, I create antagonist’s before protagonist’s (I don’t know.. I’m weird) and these were two big baddies I created for a comic plot I had in high school.

The location is Revelation City, a crime corrupted place (Just like Gotham or Hell’s Kitchen) where one single gang rules with an iron fist. The leaders little lackey is Peter Fin (a.k.a. The Piranha). A dwarf with a sharp set of chompers and doesn’t mind biting a few fingers off a guy to get his voice heard. Fin had to work his way up the food chain of the gang and didn’t let his height get in the way of that. He may not be the brightest bulb of the bunch, but the boss keeps him around for his savagery and knows he’ll get the point across with a mere smile of his pointy chompers.

Can you believe the difference? That is practice and 10 years later, friends. So please heed me when I say, you got to keep practicing! Now for the next big guy who I absolutely adore!

Meet William English, (a.k.a. Bulldog) right hand man to the Boss of the gang. Of course, as you might have suspected, he’s the muscle. The man has incredible strength and endurance as he stands at 7 feet. But don’t be fooled, he’s not your typical slack-jawed bruiser. He’s actually quite intelligent and hides it from his Boss so that he won’t appear as a threat. William’s parents died when he was just a pup, and he and his older siblings were raised by his grandmother in London. He was the runt of the litter (His older brothers were much bigger and stronger than him) and his granny took him under her wing and taught him everything the books in her private library had to offer. It wasn’t until he reached his teenage years that he decided to test his body in muscle and strength. With his strong frame and unique intelligence, William set out for his fortune with the urge to prove himself. When he sailed across the pond to Revelation City, he was not noticed for his intellect like he had wanted to be, but for his intimidating looks and size. He soon became an underground boxer, making good money as he beat the crap out of opponents who didn’t stand a chance. This caught the Boss’s eye and approached William with an offer, thus naming him “Bulldog”. William then learned that it’s not knowledge that makes you someone, but pure animalistic power that makes you the alpha dog. Though he stands as the Boss’s attack dog right now, he schemes and waits for his chance to take over the gang and make it his dog house.

BOOM BABY! Those are some mean ol’ baddies right there! But in order to create such villains and get the details you want for them, you got to practice and keep creating the idea over and over again. Whether it be on a piece of paper or in your mind. One of the biggest lessons I learned is the first draft is never the official one. You got to allow that idea to grow and take on new forms before it can reach it’s final stage. The same goes for art.

How Acting Found Me

So along with sharing my ideas and projects with you, the reader (who’s not forced to read my stuff against his or her will…), I do want to share my life and its journeys. I hear blogging can be quite therapeutic so lets give it a shot. And what better place to start than the time when the Lord added a new path and talent in my life. ROLL THE TAPE!!

Back when I was a wee tot…

I’d say I’ve always had a story-teller trapped within me as I grew up. The ability to draw and sketch only increased it as I got better. When people ask me how did I learn to draw, I always say it’s like learning to play an instrument, it takes practice to perform it well. Which it really does. But I think strong imagination helps the process move a lot faster and that’s something I also practiced.  As far back as I can remember, I had a designated tree in the yard I’d go to and pace around. It was known as (and still is..) ” the pacing tree”.. I know, right? But I would pace all around that tree, swing my arms back and forth and become lost in my imagination. I do admit that even today as I creep upon my 25th year of life, I still do this. But in all honesty, it helps me so much. There actually isn’t an idea I have had where I don’t do this. I love it even if it does make me look like some crackpot in my front yard, it’s my method and outlet to get away and pretend. Yet, little did I know there was another avenue for this.

Ughhhh, who cares about a stupid old tree, ya hippie!?

So all throughout high school I was the guy who could draw and I was labeled artistic and funny and yadda, yadda, yadda. I then graduated and went to OSU Newark for two years where I began to work on my degree in Illustration. I wanted to be a cartoonist since the day I could pick up a pencil. I wanted to bring so many characters trapped within my mind out into the real world so others could experience them and enjoy them as I did. But I always knew I didn’t want to stay at OSU and wanted to transfer somewhere, anywhere else. Praise be to God, I did. I transferred to Liberty University in 2012. Here’s why:

1. It was a conservative/christian college that believed what I did and could help me grow with Christ.
2. The campus was beautiful! Mountains and all!
3. They told me they had a great animation program.
4. Had a great animation program.
5. Had an animation program.
6. Animation Program.
7. Animation…. They said they had animation.

You’re probably thinking the list above is a typo, it’s not. That’s suppose to be humor, because when I arrived to my first art class (42 minutes early I might add because I was so gosh darn excited) the professor had the class stand up, say our name, where we were from and what our degree was. It became my turn to go and I stood up so proud and said, “My name is Sam Van Fossen. I am from Columbus Ohio and I am here to study animation.”. Two students laughed (probably because I said it with goofy optimism) while the professor quickly jumped in, “No you’re not, because we don’t have an animation major here.”.

I stood there with what I can only assume was a blank face. I then laughed with everyone else as I sat back in my seat and the professor suggested I should go see my academic adviser, which I did right after. Alas, that didn’t quite help me either because my adviser then told me it wasn’t even a minor, it was a class. I left and went back to my dorm, called my parents I don’t know how many times, pleading that they take me out of the school immediately! I was so scared for my future. How could I go to a place that wasn’t going to teach me my dream of animation!? How to show people my imagination and tell them a unique story? I was devastated.

Awwww! Poor little art boy.

I was poor little art boy! I was ticked that this school had told me it had an animation program and had lied about it! Who wouldn’t be? I was mad at God for taking me to a place that I knew he wanted me to attend, but didn’t even have what I wanted to learn. All sorts of emotions raged within me. BUTTTT it just so happened I had decided to take another class that was out of the ordinary for me (kind of). On a last minute decision when signing up for classes that fall, I needed an extra elective class to fill up some hours. I signed up for Acting I and didn’t think a whole lot about it. Sure, I was (and am) a huge film buff and loved to geek out over that stuff and liked to make stupid little YouTube films with my friends (I’ve always been a ham), but never did I ever really try acting. I didn’t even pursue it in high school. I was the guy who could draw and had only ever done that. I did try taking a Theatre 101 class at OSU, but dropped out after the first day because the professor and students petrified me…

So the next day began and I started it discouraged and frustrated. I walked all the way across campus to the theatre department (because I was too scared to take the bus). I entered that theatre hallway as all sorts of commotion was ensuing. People were hugging one another, singing songs, piggy-backing, dancing around in trained choreography and I had no idea how to take it. I quickly walked into the studio classroom and sat down at the very end. Directly across the room from my row of chairs was this long mirror that covered the entire wall. I could see all the other students in the room through that mirror and everyone was doing the same. We all sat quiet, looking in the mirror or staring down, listening to the frivolity going on outside in the hallway. It’s funny to think as I write this memory out, I had no idea that some of those shy, quiet students sitting in that large room with me, would be people I would come to know and love dearly (As well as the crazy idiots making a ruckus out in the hallway).

The silence was then broken as the door leading from the offices opened and in entered a young, dashing, shaggy headed man, with a cocky smile. He nonchalantly strutted to the center of the room and stood, clipboard in hand, still sporting that cocky grin. I’ll be honest, I thought this was some senior student just walking in like he was all that. He then announced he was in fact our professor, which shocked me only because the last theatre professor I had (at OSU) looked like Nosferatu’s and Prince’s love child (Imagine that). But this professor, Andy Geffken, would soon introduce me to a whole different world of imagination and story telling. Him and the other creatively talented, hilarious, spiritual, and loving professors I would soon meet in the theatre department at Liberty University. They would open another path and God would soon confirm it in my heart that this was a direction He wanted to introduce to me.

Who cares!?

I only shared this part of my life (with more to share) because I like to lay out where I come from in order to put together where I am going. This is a very fond memory for me because it was the beginning of a chapter in my life. God showed me I could do more than just draw out my imagination, but I could even act it out. Now, I don’t share this to say I’m the next Meryl Streep or Anthony Hopkins. In all honesty, my goals aren’t set for Oscars or Tony’s. I want to live out my life doing what I love and using the talents that God gave me to do so. Acting became another tool I honed (And am certainly still honing) to tell a story. I’m excited to see where I go in my future with tools of drawing, acting, writing, and imagining. And I want you all to join me on this adventure.

                Me, Andy Geffken, And Gordon Levanowicz at the 2013 theatre banquet.

The nutcase who blogs here

Look at me!! I’m blogging! I’M BLOGGING! Welcome to all you bored and lost, to my blog: The Curse of Imagination. Let me outline a simple walk through of what you can expect from this blog if you were to stick around and follow.

Reading the babbling’s of a man child

As you might have read in my description, I have a very overactive imagination. I don’t mean to sound like I’m bragging about it, but it’s the one thing that I do truly treasure about myself. I also, at times, do find it as a curse only because everyday I have a new idea. It can be a small story, a simple character, just one little dialogue line, a catchy tune, a developed image, etc. And from there i’m forced to set it on a already overcrowded shelf in my mind that gets covered in mind dust and cobwebs. It calls out to me and distracts until I have time to even try and release it. Isn’t that sad!? But fear not! that’s kind of what this blog is for. To illustrate and share with you my ideas and what-not’s so that I can see them develop and get some feedback from ya’ll. No longer will I have to bug my close friends who block my calls and messages. Or talk to myself who i’m giving the silent treatment at the moment because HE KNOWS WHAT HE DID!!!… Ahem… Here’s what’s to come!

Art

I draw… a lot. It’s kind of that basis of where I start my idea process. I see the character in my head and I have to set them free before I can even start developing their story. I love sharing my artwork and will plan on doing that. Just don’t steal it or I will hunt you down and do the unthinkable lol… Haha…. MWAHAHAHAHA!!! Any who, You can follow me also on instagram to see my art: @therealsammyv

Writings

From children’s stories to scripts, I love to create worlds for people to enjoy almost as much as I do. I’ve always been a bit of a writer growing up just to get the ideas out of my head so I can make room for more, but ever since I discovered the wondrous world of theatre when I attended college, it opened another passion of storytelling. Not just acting, which is something else you can expect on here, but how playwrights can prepare a story to be told on a stage in front of an eager audience. The process makes me so giddy I just can’t stand it. And I have a lot of projects on the assembly line so expect that.

Life/Career

I graduated May 2014 from Liberty University with what is basically an overall degree in Art. I soon found out how worthless it can appear. Yet, I try to stay optimistic through prayer and through my loving family & friends, I will get out there and do the many things I want to do. It is hard to believe at times and it has taken its toll on me, but I find myself growing in patience and wisdom as I figure out my future and what God has planned for me. So be ready to hear about future adventures and also at times the walk I take in my faith with my Lord and Savior.

Projects

If you know me already, you’ll know I set a lot of projects for myself… A lot of projects. And what happens? They fall through. It hurts and stings and I curse horrible things towards my enemies, tare off my clothes and howl like a wildebeest at the moon. But I have discovered that i’m the one hurting myself and I need to be more constructive and plan accordingly. So I ask not only that you read about my status of certain projects, but keep me accountable and tell me to keep going. Unless it’s a horrible idea that will flop then just yell it, “For the love of ham! Stop, Sam! Stop!”.

Etc.

I really don’t know what else to tell you. To be honest just expect the unexpected. I have so many ambitions, dreams, schemes, plans, diagrams, layouts, blueprints, napkins with messages written on them that I can’t read or understand that I could really just blog about anything. I only want to impact you and someone to say, “Huh… that’s neat.”.

Is this thing on?..

I’m Samuel Robert Van Fossen and no, I don’t have a trust fund. If you read or follow this blog you will discover that the right side of my brain never shuts up with ideas, stories, characters, songs, acting and what not… Though some would think this might not sound like a problem, I find that at times it can be a bit frustrating. Especially when the world doesn’t see and imagine what you do. Yet, I still thank God every day for the imagination He blessed me with and where it takes me. If this sounds like your kind of blog, then stay, sit back (Or stand, Idk) and read what I blab. Love you!