Everything is Copy

But should it be?

Hello everyone,

I know the writers here are already familiar with Nora Ephron’s “everything is copy” phrase, which came from her mother. Essentially it means just that — whatever happens to us in life is fodder. About five years ago, my copy of “Heartburn,” Ephron’s novel about a pregnant woman who discovers her husband is having an affair, made the rounds among my friend group. One friend texted me while reading it, “Can you imagine finding out your husband is cheating when you’re seven months pregnant?” I replied, “Yeah and also imagine your husband is Carl Bernstein.” She wrote, “This is about Carl Bernstein?!” There may have been even more explanation points in there.

I like Ephron’s philosophy, which goes along with, as I’ve mentioned before, Carrie Fisher’s “Take your broken heart, make it into art.” But this week I’ve been wondering whether everything should be copy. This thought all started with an upcoming personal trip I’m taking and wondering whether I should try to pitch a story out of it. I mean, why not? Travel poses an opportunity. And for freelancers, especially, there’s the constant nagging voice telling us that we need to optimize every situation, make money, get a byline. I’ve often felt that anytime I’m “not working” (freelance journalists are always working) feels like wasted time, a missed chance to seize the moment. At the same time, I also just want to go on vacation. Not everything has to be a reporting trip.

New York’s first snow in, what, two years?

Then there’s the question of distance (mental not physical). I think, “Well, I could go on the trip and then pitch a story if something arises.” In other words, sometimes we need to do the thing, be in it, then get some distance and see what stories emerge from there. I often find that I actually find ideas while I’m on the trip. This makes sense, right? You’re talking with people, immersed in a new place, noticing what excites you. I visited southern California about 18 months ago and came home with a whole list of ideas, none of which had been on my radar beforehand. Still, it is nice to find the story first and then get paid (at least in part) to take the trip itself.

Of course, none of this is confined to only travel. Sometimes experiences happen in my personal life and I wonder whether I should pitch an essay, write a short story, file away an absurd incident for a script (recently just did this, actually). But then other times, I simply want to just sit with my experience and not feel the need to turn it into something for consumption. Or I worry that I’ll write something — or about someone — and come to regret it. But then at some point I remember that the only way I — and all writers really — grapple with my pain, frustrations and troubles is to write about them. Even if it’s just in my journal.

Mentioned last week I’m reading The Little Friend, the last of the Donna Tartt novels in my queue.

That also isn’t to say a piece of work has to emerge immediately following The Experience, though Ephron published “Heartburn” in 1983, three years after her marriage with Bernstein ended so we can presume, I think, that she wrote the book while the experience was still fresh. The book, according to The Washington Post, made her “famous-famous.” This adds a whole other layer to the “everything is copy” discussion, particularly for women. From the Post article: “It is a withering revenge novel that follows one of her most Instagramable, tote-bag-worthy dictums: ‘Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.’ With ‘Heartburn,’ Ephron reaped artistic and financial hay from the heartbreak of her second marriage. Others have followed her lead ever since.”

So, yes, I like the idea of “everything is copy.” But I like the idea of being the main character in my life even more.

Thanks for being here <3

Britta Lokting

Endnote: It’s hard to read much else this week except the news coming out of L.A., which is terrible and devastating to watch. A good friend lost her house and others I know had to evacuate, still waiting to hear about their homes. With that, I’m sharing the link to the LA Times’ live coverage, which they put in front of the paywall.

And because we’re on the subject of Ephron, whatever happened to NY Mag’s Fixations column? Looks like it ended in 2023? RIP if so because that was always on my writer wish list. Anyway, I loved the one analyzing the photo of Ephron looking miserable while another woman sits on Bernstein’s lap (pre-“Heartburn,” maybe a foreshadowing).