March 2025: "Yes," "No," and "Later"

If the past few years have been a tumultuous swell, 2025 feels like the crest of the wave – it hasn’t crashed yet, but we’re all living with the anxious knowledge that it’ll crash any day now. Waves don’t stay suspended forever. 

I’ve been thinking a lot about what should get my attention and energy in the current climate. Though my ADHD-addled brain tries to tell me otherwise, I don’t actually have to do everything. The world is on fire, but I’m not the only firefighter. I’m not even the most qualified firefighter. Hell, I don’t even have a hose. I have a bucket. And a spray gun. 

This metaphor got away from me. 

As much as I worry that I’m not “doing enough,” the truth is that we're always doing enough as long as we’re doing something. And “something” can look different for each of us.

I’m a writer. I’m a storyteller. I craft stories in multiple mediums and disciplines. It's what I love, and it's what I'm best at. It's my strength – the most valuable thing I have to offer the world. 

I’m also a queer, fat, Puerto Rican, Jewish, neurodivergent woman at a time when all those things are looked down upon at best, and dangerous things to be at worst. The world is trying to convince me (and itself) that people like me don’t matter. 

This is incorrect. 

So, for the foreseeable future, I’m prioritizing two values, and everything I make time for will need to align with one or both of these: Connection and Storytelling.

Part of that shift in priorities means that I’m changing my approach to Pomonok. I’ve decided to take a page out of the playbooks of other writers I admire. Rather than doing a banal, weekly “company” newsletter and leading with my "company mission," this free monthly offering will be more in-depth and personal.

You’ll still hear about Pomonok's offerings, but Pomonok Entertainment, and all its departments, are just...me. I want to share myself, because personal connection is valuable.

Welcome to From the Desk of Teresa Jusino – a monthly snapshot of the previous month. Sharing with others helps me process, cope, and grow. I hope that you’ll glean information that interests you and maybe even feel seen/supported by the things I share. 

Pull up a chair, get comfy, and grab your favorite warm beverage. I’m glad you’re here.

Love, 
Teresa

One of the biggest things in my life right now is that I’m a Development Trainee at Sony Pictures Television - Nonfiction. What does that mean? How did that happen? 

THE HOW:

Last year, I was a Fellow in the Disability Belongs TV Drama Writing Intensive. Since the program ended, Disability Belongs has been great about putting us in the path of real, tangible career opportunities. One of them was this available Trainee position from Sony.

At first, I wasn’t sure I’d apply. After all, I want to write scripted television, so I never really considered nonfiction (docuseries, reality shows, competition shows, dating shows, etc). Still, I participated in an awesome workshop with filmmaker Sarah Moshman last year and had an amazing time learning about documentary filmmaking as I worked with a team of four to produce a short doc where I was co-Story Producer and the Sound Mixer. Plus, I hadn’t had an industry-related job since 2022, and I missed working in TV. So I applied. And in November 2024, I started my new position!

THE WHAT:

The Trainee program's basically an internship for people out of college. The program allows for hands-on learning in our assigned department, but instead of working part-time for less pay and college credit, we're paid more and work full-time for a fixed term. My six-month term ends May 30th.

This is the first time that Sony Pictures TV Nonfiction has had a Trainee, so I’m a guinea pig, but so far this experience has genuinely been amazing. It'd be so easy for the team to dismiss me and give me busy-work. However, from the beginning, the team has treated me kindly and with respect. 

I’ve been told that they hired me, because they were impressed with my writing, my freelance journalism career, and the research that was clearly done on my spec pilot, Project Blanca. Despite my being new to development, they respect the industry knowledge and experience I do have (one exec specifically said he likes my taste) and they encourage my opinions about ideas and projects. When they don’t respond to an idea, they always explain why, which teaches me something. When they do respond to an idea of mine, they give me more responsibility and let me take more ownership of certain parts of the project. 

More important than any of that, though, is the fact that everyone is genuinely kind. My previous TV job that ended in 2022 burned me out, in large part because it was a toxic work environment. This gig reminds me that there are genuinely kind, respectful, smart, talented, and humane people in film and TV.

STORY IS STORY: 

Whenever I’ve done production work–whether as a COVID Testing Manager, or an Asst. Production Coordinator–I’ve thought of it as “Showrunner Boot Camp.” Production work has taught me so much about how TV is put together and what all these talented professionals do to make it come together. Development is an area of television that’s really helpful to know about, because development execs can find and champion a writer/producer’s work and get it made. These are the folks who know what buyers are looking for and where something might find a good home. Honing a development brain is useful as I continue to move forward as a writer/producer. Not because it will affect how or what I write, but because it will help me steer what I write toward better homes. 

I came into nonfiction development skeptical of "reality TV" and knowing nothing about it. But story is story. Whether you’re creating a scripted or an unscripted project, good stories matter most. Selling a project has less to do with IP or a big concept than one might think. It’s the take on the concept or IP that matters, and that take needs to include a compelling, character-driven story. 

I’m glad that I get to exercise those muscles, even if it is on a side of the business I wasn’t expecting. This gig has me feeling pretty lucky right now.

ANNIVERSARY RUSH: A DECADE OF FON

Come see my work as a writer and director LIVE in Los Angeles for THREE PERFORMANCES ONLY.

In 2016, Force of Nature created a fun little show as a last-minute request to fill out a weekend. The show called RUSH became a huge success and a staple of the company’s season year after year. Now, in its 19th iteration and celebrating the company’s 10th anniversary, Force of Nature honors a decade of laughs, tears, and craziness with Anniversary RUSH: A Decade of FON.

Nine original plays; a decade of FON memories.

Friday, April 25 @ 8 p.m.
Saturday, April 26 @ 8 p.m.
Sunday, April 27 @ 2 p.m.

Location:
LOFT Ensemble (Main Stage)
11031 Camarillo Street
Los Angeles, CA 91602

Tickets are $25 and are available in advance at fonproductions.com or at the door on a first-come, first-served basis.

NEW 'TEAM POMONOK' SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN IN THE WORKS!

In response to *points at everything,* I've been making a plan to divest from the "Metaverse" (Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp) both personally and professionally as well as find alternate ways to social media communicate with people about my life and work. That means that where you can find Pomonok Entertainment will change in the coming months.

Don't worry – it won't be sudden! There'll be plenty of lead-up and warnings before our old feeds are abandoned. However, if you want to get a head start on going where we're likely going to be, consider joining the following if you're not on these platforms already --

The Metaverse replacements:

• Bluesky (the non-cesspool X) – This is the link to our Pomonok feed! It's empty now, but it's there!
• Pixelfed (Instagram, minus shadowbanning & insistent algorithms) – join the server "Pixelfed.social"
• hell, maybe Tumblr, too (something between X & IG to replace FB – but if anyone has suggestions of other platforms that would be a decent FB replacement, I'd love to hear them!)

Videos/livestreaming:

• TikTok – this is the link to our existing Pomonok account. It's sparsely populated now, but that'll change. If you want to check out my film, TV, and book reviews on TikTok, you can find them on my personal feed.
• Kick (the livestreaming platform not owned by Bezos) – we might be doing more livestreamed gaming content as well as some chill writing sprints!
• YouTube (yeah, yeah. I know it's Google, but I have less trouble with Google than I do with Amazon and Meta for now. One thing at a time) – this is the link to our Pomonok YouTube channel, and will be for content that's specifically intended for YouTube/the internet. You can also subscribe to my personal channel, Teresa Writes Stuff.
• Vimeo (the video platform that's not YouTube) – this is likely where Pomonok's longer-form content like short films will live. Stuff that's not primarily intended to be "digital content."

For community:
I'm trying to figure out good places to gather, either in larger group discussions, or in smaller, organizing sessions. I'm already on both of these personally, and now I'm going to figure out how I plan to use them for Pomonok.

• Discord
• Signal (it's exactly like WhatsApp, but actually secure, and was founded by a woman who's not pre-obeying fascists)

SLATE ANNOUNCEMENT COMING JUNE 2025

I'm planning and preparing a schedule to roll out Pomonok's projects consistently and sustainably for the second half of this year. I'll share that release schedule in June, featuring all the upcoming projects that you can expect through Pomonok Games, Theatrical, Publishing, and Podcasts!

Then we'll start MY BIRTHDAY MONTH (July!) with the release of some of our most exciting projects, and new releases will continue all the way through November.

Projects that have been getting my creative attention recently:

BEST SELF and WAR, FAMINE, AND BAILEY!

I'm a member of an independent theater company called Force of Nature productions. Our next show is our 10th anniversary Rush! What's a "Rush?" It's an evening of short pieces where writers, directors, and cast are put together by lottery, and writers are given prompts to incorporate into 8-10 minute pieces. The whole thing is assigned, written, and performed in 3-4 weeks.

Our 10th anniversary Rush is titled A Decade of FON, where writers were assigned specific prompts that needed to be incorporated into each script, and I've written a piece! Each of us had props, lines of dialogue from previous FON shows, and a random pop song from the past decade randomly assigned to us. My prompts? A stuffed Hello Kitty "voodoo doll," 'Lovin' on Me' by Jack Harlow, and a random, hilarious line of dialogue from an early FON show. All that became a short piece called Best Self – the story of of a teenage boy and a young woman trapped in an unusual villain's chilling effort at self-improvement. I wrote it in about two weeks and handed it off to its director and cast, who are doing amazing work with it, and I'm so excited to see the finished piece!

I'm also directing a piece in the show! The short play, titled War, Famine, and Bailey!, was written by fellow company member Jonathan Josephson. It features an all-female cast and is about two of the Four Horsemen (women? people?) of the Apocalypse being accosted by an unexpected third at what seems like the end of the world. I'm having lots of fun with this one, and I'm looking forward to putting it up!

HARDLY WORKING

Thanks to my friend and producer extraordinaire, Nkechi Ubabuike, I've been pulled into the orbit of an upcoming digital series called Hardly Working, created and directed by a talented comedy writer named Desirée Levingston. When Nkechi told me about this project, it sounded like lots of fun, and I asked if there was any way I could be of help. I met with her and Desirée, vibed with the story Desirée is trying to tell, and ended up coming on to write two episodes! More on this to come...

PALIMPSEST

I'm putting the finishing touches on revisions to my latest, original, hour-long spec pilot called Palimpsest. It's the story of a 30-something, Latino journalist in 1970s NYC whose investigation into the missing child cases everyone else ignores pulls him into a labyrinth from which there's no escape – his own mind. I'll be getting notes from my writing group as well as another trusted writer friend this week, probably do one more set of revisions...then I'll be ready to inflict this script onto the world!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAROLD

I've written a short film called Happy Birthday Harold, about a couple in 1940s New York and three different versions of the life of a gifted book. The script is done, and I've found four wonderful actors to play the lead roles! Now that casting is lighting a fire under me, I'm ready to get production under way. Aiming to shoot in mid-June...

Untitled Children's Sample

I love working with and teaching children. In the back of my mind, I've always bandied around the idea of creating for a young audience. Recently, through my Trainee gig, I got to have a great meeting with the head of Children's Programming at Sony to talk about that particular market and what I should be doing if I'm serious about it as a space I want to write in. He mentioned a couple of children's programming fellowships I should enter – one I was already aware of, the other one I wasn't – and suggested them as a solid first step. So, I'm now working on an 11-page sample for these children's television fellowships.

The Adaptation I Can't Get Out of My Head

The other project that won't leave me alone is an adaptation of an older novel as a limited series. I've reread the novel while taking a stupid amount of notes (there's a spreadsheet), I have a unique take, and I have certain leads on people/companies to help move this forward once I have a pitch together. No one is waiting for this, and this is definitely less of a priority than my original stories...but this is something I need to write and direct. It will not let me go. It'll be the undercurrent of every other project for a while. So, as I'm working on other stuff, I'll be outlining and planning for this. One day, I'll even tell you what it is.

"Yes," "No," and "Later"

Like many writers, I've written countless stories for little to no pay: stories that brings me joy and that I write because I can't help it. Then there's the independent stuff I collaborate on with others, like the work I do with FON, or joining folks like Nkechi on their creative projects.

I want to prioritize my creative projects. However, I still have a day job and other obligations that demand my time. I've often tried to do everything only to do nothing particularly well. Now, I've finally gotten to a place where I have better gauge of when I should take on a new project, when I should postpone it, and when I should say no altogether.

This is a "yes!"

Whether a writing opportunity is paying me or not, whether it's my own original specs or a collaboration with others, it needs to provide something of value. If it's not money, it needs to be one of three things:

Gaining experience in a new role

Earlier this year, FON was seeking producers for the Rush, and I volunteered. I always want to help the company, and I produced last year's Rush, so I had the experience. However, after thinking about the time commitment and workload required, I realized that I didn't want to use that level of energy on something that I'd already done before. So, I pulled out a day or two after I volunteered. But then I learned that the director of our first full-length play of the year was looking for an assistant director. Since I'm looking to broaden my directing experience, I jumped at that instead and ended up becoming the show's impromptu stage manager, too. I haven't stage managed since high school, but I'd surprisingly missed it. It feels good to take care of people and ensure a well-steered ship.

Not only did I take on a new role to broaden my skills as a director, but taking on a lower-pressure, behind-the-scenes role allowed me to have the bandwidth to write and direct on the Rush, which I would've been too exhausted to do if I were also producing. Sometimes, you say "no" so you have the energy to say "yes" to the right things.

Challenging my craft

Believe it or not, when deciding what to work on, my fear is a huge help! If I'm scared to write something – if thinking about a story causes a knot in my stomach as I nervously flap my hands and pace around my living room – that usually means I'm on the right track. Fear tells me two things: 1) this story matters to me (otherwise I wouldn't have strong feelings about it) and 2) my ambition is starting to get bigger than my experience. While that's a terrifying place to be, it also means that I'm ready to grow into my ambition.

I'm a good writer, but I always want to work on being better. If I'm spending my limited free time writing something, I want it to stretch me as an artist in some way. Either the storytelling is ambitious and challenges my craft, or I'm writing something meaningful and emotionally-charged that challenges me to be more vulnerable (and honest, and brave) in my work. Projects like this deserve a "yes."

Aligning with my career goals

Then there are the projects I do because, in addition to being enjoyable, they can somehow move the needle forward in my career.

These are often the projects on which I work with others. I choose to join these efforts, because 1) It's more certain that the project will be made when there's a team in place, and 2) other people's projects allow me to get to know more creative people, which can only help when I'm ready to assemble writers, or find crew for a project of my own. My biggest career goal this year is to have my name listed as writer on more produced credits, whether they are studio projects or independent ones.

This is a "no!"

Like many ADHD-ers, I've said "yes" to a million projects at once, because if I don't feel like I'm doing something every second of the day, I feel like a big, fat failure who's doing nothing. "Staying busy" sounds great, until I end up burnt out and needing to recuperate for a month while spending that month feeling guilty about everything I'm not doing instead of actually relaxing.

Being more targeted about how I use my energy has become increasingly important to me. So, there are three considerations I need to make:

Am I only saying "yes" because of FOMO?

We often say "yes" to things we aren't genuinely excited about so we can seem in-demand, busy, and prolific. But, and I say this from experience, no amount of FOMO is worth sacrificing your mental health or your physical/emotional well-being. And regardless of what we see on social media, no one is actually handing out awards for "productivity." Quality will always be more important than quantity, and there is more than one way to flourish and thrive as an artist.

Is there a timeline, or is this open-ended?

As an ADHDer, my happy place is Spontaneity. Left to my own devices, I'm irritated by things like guidelines and deadlines, scheduling anything, and having "demands on my time." Even things that I genuinely want to do can feel like a noose if my brain interprets that someone is "making me" do something.

What's messed up is that deadlines, guidelines, and structure are exactly what I need to meet my goals and finish the stories I want to tell. I absolutely hate this fact. To work with my brain, rather than against it, I need to be realistic about not only what I can take on creatively, but about the other things I need to make time for to take care of myself.

I used to try and cram every second of free time that wasn't at my day job with work on my creative projects...totally ignoring silly things like eating, or sleeping, or going to the bathroom, or showering or, I dunno, spending time with the people who matter to me, like my spouse. Or just as importantly, time to relax and recharge, allowing my brain the freedom to daydream and bounce around and do whatever it wants without obligations. I would ignore all of those self-care things and not only would I not be able to do my best work or finish half the things I set out to do, but I'd also be run-down and feel like shit about myself.

Yup. I have to consciously take time for things like meals, connecting with others, and time for my brain to wander. If I don't, those things disappear, and I become depleted of energy and motivation more quickly to the point that everything starts to feel overwhelming. Cue Procrastination, the ADHDer's "favorite" Freeze Response.

The list of creative projects I had in my head at the start of 2025 was much longer than the projects currently listed above. But "prioritizing storytelling" means prioritizing telling my stories well, which meant thinning out my list and giving my limited energy to the few that are most important. Anything with a built-in deadline (like a contest/fellowship I want to enter, or someone expecting to read a draft) is easy to find a place for. If something doesn't have a deadline, I create one to work toward. And I try to have no more than 1-2 big writing projects to focus on in a month.

My body doesn't steer me wrong

I often have trouble articulating what I'm feeling, but my body doesn't lie to me. It often sends me signals before I even know what they mean intellectually. So, there have been times when I will consciously decide to put a project on my plate while ignoring my body's clear signals not to, only to process those signals later and have to change my mind. I'm trying to be better about giving myself time to sit and listen to my body before committing to anything. Whether my body tightens up with anxiety when thinking about the project, or doesn't feel anything, signaling that it doesn't excite me enough to give it my time, it makes it pretty clear when I need to say "no."

The Third Option

There are yeses and nos, but like a good bisexual, I want to talk about an oft-underestimated and overlooked third option: "later."

A project might meet all the criteria of a "yes," but might have to be a "no" for now. Sometimes, good ideas need time to cook to become the better ideas that are worth our time. Sometimes, we need to say no to working with someone right now, so that we can be better collaborators on a future project (or on the same project once it's better developed).

My original pilot, Project Blanca, was originally an idea I had over a decade ago for an indie superhero comic. The idea wouldn't leave me alone, but I also never felt that visceral, nervous excitement about writing a comic script, so I kept it in the back of my head. I ended up writing it as a TV pilot in 2021, which I was super-jazzed to write, and it got me my first representation and placed in several competitions. ROBOT GIRL started as an idea for a one-woman stage show. As I became more well-versed in the world of game writing, I realized that ROBOT GIRL's story could be better explored as a video game, and that's what got me excited enough to actually work on it.

A big fear that many neurospicy folks have is that if we postpone something, there's a good chance we'll never do it. And you know what? That's valid. We've often spent our lives in the thrall of all-or-nothing thinking. Either we do everything now, or we don't do it at all. What I've learned is that, if an idea is truly worthwhile, it sticks with you, and this allows for something between these extremes. It's okay for me to postpone something I'm excited about – because if I'm truly excited by it, that excitement won't go away. And if it does? That probably wasn't genuine excitement to begin with.

Tl;dr – life is short. Write what lights you up.

ONE GREAT BOOK

Saving Five by Amanda Nguyen – a beautifully written and powerful memoir by one of the most badass and inspiring activist/astronauts of the 21st Century. You can check out my TikTok review HERE.

ONE GREAT SHOW

Adolescence (Limited Series - Netflix) – a fascinating, breathless exploration of toxic masculinity and its effects on a 13-year-old boy and his father through a murder investigation. These five episodes of television are some of the best hours of television I've seen in a long time. You can watch my review of the series HERE.

ONE GREAT FILM

Black Bag (directed by Steven Soderbergh) – a masterclass in incisive dialogue and finely-etched romantic relationships. It's as if a spy thriller and a marriage drama had a baby. Check out my review HERE.

ONE GREAT SONG

'NISSAN ALTIMA' by Doechii – I haven't been able to stop listening to this song since I first heard it a couple of months ago! Put the motherfucking money in my motherfucking hands... aaaaaah! Love it. Doechii's flow, theatricality, wordplay is unparalleled...not to mention the fact that she's gorgeous and my new favorite bi-con.

SEE YOU NEXT MONTH!