Joy is revolutionary. / 'The Diplomat'

It's been a while since I've connected with you!

First, there was a two-month lapse in my ADHD medication, because the pharmacy near me was out of stock as the shortage on stimulant medications continues to be an issue. This meant that my bandwidth and executive functions were extremely limited between September and October, and Pomonok Entertainment often took a backseat to one of my three freelance gigs, or the tail end of the 10-week Writing Interactive Fiction course I took with Greg Buchanan. Look everyone! I created a short, playable prototype of a game and graduated from the workshop!

It was all I could do to drag myself through each day, getting the bare minimum done, and prioritizing only the most time-sensitive of deadlines where others expected things of me. This is why the only Pomonok project I kept up with was Finding Felicity! If I didn't have a diligent co-host who expected me to show up for recording sessions and edit half our episodes, it'd be too easy for me to let that go by the wayside, too.

And then, there was the U.S. election.

I won't get into it too much here, but you can check out this video I made the day after Election Day, where I share my journal entry from that night. What I will say here is that this past week after Election Day has been emotionally and spiritually draining, but it's also allowed me to refocus my attention to what matters and clarify my priorities in the way that crises often do.

I want to prioritize my work through Pomonok, as well as the work I share with the television industry, for three reasons:

1. One of the strongest skills I have to offer this broken world is my ability to break down complicated ideas or important information in a way that is palatable, entertaining, and more easily manageable. I've had people tell me that they appreciate the way I make certain topics accessible for them, or that they're grateful that I generally present information in a nuanced, level-headed, non-judgmental way. The current moment is pulling me toward "helping," and my storytelling skills are the most useful thing I have to offer, in addition to my manual labor.
2. I am a cis woman, Puerto Rican, Jewish, bisexual, and disabled. I'm married to a trans woman who is a disabled, Jewish lesbian. My perspective is important in that it's intersectional as hell. Already, in my own personal network of family and friends, I've been a valuable window into unfamiliar communities and ways of life for them. I've allowed them to better understand and align with so much about the world, simply because I exist openly. If I had the storytelling gift I mentioned, and didn't use it, the world would be worse off.
3. And personally, I think it matters that I'm claiming joy as a revolutionary act. People at the intersections of all my streets aren't supposed to prioritize joy or fulfillment. Our communities tell us that survival at all costs is paramount. Our oppressors tell us that we don't deserve joy. Telling stories brings me joy, and as long as I have a working mind, and a way to get the words down, I will continue to tell stories however I can. I get to pursue what brings me joy. It's not too much for me to want.

So, you'll be hearing a lot more from me and Pomonok Entertainment moving forward. I'm so grateful that I have such a kind, intelligent, and generous network of people with whom I can share my creative work. Thank you for being here.

With love and solidarity,

Teresa

POMONOK UPDATES

• Pomonok Theatrical produced a staged reading of Lesley Lisa Greene's The Turnaway Play on October 18, 2024 at the Loft Ensemble Theater in North Hollywood as part of a nationwide campaign called The Turnaway Project, which aimed to raise awareness and activism around the fight to regain and protect reproductive rights leading up to Election Day. Our production raised $540, which we donated to the National Network of Abortion Funds.
• ROBOT GIRL, Pomonok Games' first offering, is still underway, and I currently have a wonderful artist named Aisling Kesinger doing character portraits for the game! Go check out Ais' work on Instagram, and subscribe to the Pomonok Games newsletter for a sneak peek at some of her ROBOT GIRL work!
• HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HAROLD!, a short film from Pomonok Pictures, is still in pre-production, with a portion of its budget raised! Subscribe to Pomonok Pictures' newsletter for more updates about that, as well as other planned filmed projects!
• SEVENTY-NINE, the short fiction project from Pomonok Publishing, will be returning later this month with a THIRD short story. Subscribe to the Pomonok Publishing newsletter to receive each new, monthly story as it's released, as well as to read the stories that have already been released when you log into our website's member-only access.
• And as has been the case since September, Pomonok Podcasts' FINDING FELICITY, with hosts Teresa Jusino (aka, ME) and Kat Street, continues to drop new episodes every Friday.

TERESA IN THE WILD

If you're in the Los Angeles area, love indie theater, and could use a good laugh right about now, check out the latest offering from Force of Nature Productions (the North Hollywood-based theater company of which I'm a member!)!

Shpider!, by Matt Ritchey, is a "B-movie creature feature live on stage" that is hilarious fun (especially if you're a writer of any kind–it's very "inside baseball" in the best way)!

But make sure you also get a ticket for the post-show "SiFi Focus Group", where you'll help the fictional SiFi Network choose their next schlocky offering. I wrote one of five short "trailers" performed as part of the experience, and LOVE how it turned out when I saw it this past weekend! Check it out! And keep all your eyes peeled for "The Octometrist!" (that joke'll make sense if you see the show)

There are TWO MORE WEEKENDS of performances at NoHo's Brickhouse Theater, but tickets will sell out fast, especially for the final weekend. So, get your tickets NOW!

**NOTE that the "SiFi Focus Group" is only performed Fridays and Saturdays, NOT after the Sunday matinee!

There's more from me at THE MARY SUE this week, too! First, check out the latest issue of TMS' free newsletter, The Clubhouse, where I wrote a post about how to cope with post-Election Day feels (and activism). And subscribe while you're there, so the powers-that-be at TMS keep letting me curate the newsletter!

On the site proper, I wrote this piece reminding us of our progressive wins, and also about the fact that that most Tr*mp voters--even in the reddest states--ALSO supported progressive policies at the state/local level. What gives? Check out "Believe it or not, good things also happened on Election Day."

And lastly, I wrote this piece for my fellow citizens on the Left. "Dear fellow progressives: marginalized folks shouldn’t be revolution fodder."

POMONOK APPROVED: TELEVISION

If you haven't yet watched Netflix's The Diplomat starring Keri Russell, Season 2 just dropped and you should prepare yourself for your next great binge watch.

Created by Debora Cahn, The Diplomat tells the story of Kate Wyler (Russell), the new U.S. ambassador to the U.K, as she helps defuse an international crisis and adjust to being in the spotlight. She's also navigating her fraught, complicated marriage to her husband Hal (Rufus Sewell), himself a fellow career diplomat with a much different approach to the job.

So, why this show? Honestly, it's some of the best writing on television right now. Cahn and her writing staff have done an amazing job writing smart, incisive, nuanced stories that will have you on the edge of your seat and force you to interrogate your values and worldview in exciting ways. Also, the world of diplomats is an intriguing one that most people know very little about, so The Diplomat explores politics and international relations in a way that's rare on television. The show having a woman showrunner and a majority-female writing team is a definite plus for us!

Keri Russell gives an amazing performance as Kate, and the entire cast is fantastic (if the cast weren't brilliant enough in Season 1, THE Allison Janney joined the cast for Season 2!). What's more, the cast is diverse in many ways, which is a huge boon to the show's storytelling.

Seasons 1 and 2 of Netflix's The Diplomat are available NOW!

Have a question or a comment for us? Reply to this email, or email us directly at teampomonok@gmail.com! See you next week!