Leaving docstoc and Going Back to the Original Plan

March 15, 2009 in breaking news, inspirational, LA

Wow… this is a really hard post to write, and I’ve been putting it off for a while because I don’t know how to write this. (NOTE: There will be rambling in this post) I’m the type of person who analyzes things to the “T,” and tries to make sense of everything little thing that happens, but recently…I’ve stopped. Truly. I mean, as markets fall, people lose their jobs and life savings, and uncertainty is the name of the game, nothing really makes sense to me anymore. People are probably wondering everyday, “How did we get here?” and most importantly, “What am I supposed to do about it?”

Life is RANDOM and doesn’t always follow a set planbook, even though you might be Type A and try to make it. (perfectly diagrammed with tons of notes/guidelines/stick-its).  So, right now is the time to figure out how to make things work.  My brother has always been pretty hard on me, treating me like a brother because he thought that it would toughen me up. (which it kinda did)  He always said, “Handle it,” meaning to not have any excuses and just do it. Finish the job. Do what you gotta do.

So… I’m going back to auditioning full-time, and also creating content for two websites, Twirlit, a fashion/beauty site, and also becoming the female voice for the men’s site, “Manolith. For the past six months, I was unable to audition because of my job and would work 50 hours per week, and then work on a comedic screenplay with Mark, my writing partner. (We’ve had meetings about this project and things are moving along….)

I was basically a robot that worked constantly and started to kind of lose myself, who I was.  With the constant influx of negative, scary Economic news around me, I just put my head down and worked like a very efficient elf.   Woke up, went to the gym, went to the office, and then met with Mark for a late night writing session.  But one day, I woke up and realized, “I can’t do this anymore.  I can’t give up my dreams/goals because you only get one life.” It was just one of those realizations and for once, my heart told my brain to shut up.  I decided to go with my heart, so I’ll be leaving docstoc where I’ve rocked the docs, uploaded a ridiculous amount of content, learned about SEO and HTML, worked with J, Alon, Ilya, and Andrew in our tiny office in Beverly Hills and then watched as the company moved to Santa Monica and grew.  Best of luck to you guys as the company continues to grow!!!

As for me, I’ll be going back to auditioning and will be blogging more about that process, and just more of the creative projects that I’ve been working on… and to start it off, I’ve decided to interview myself. Yup. Weirdo….yes I am.

“Why did you actually come to LA?”

Well duh, it was to act on TV shows/movies, do improv, write screenplays and sell them, live in a place where it barely rains, maybe date a cute surfer guy before realizing all he does is surf. Sigh.  Oh, and drink Coffee Bean iced blendeds. Those things are bomb.

What were your first jobs when moving to LA?

I worked as a waitress in Beverly Hills and then in West Hollywood, logged for reality TV shows (OMG…awful job but taught me a lot about sitting on my ass and staring at footage), worked as a tutor, worked as a temp…  Craziness. Was very broke. But, I do think everyone should work in the service industry at some point in their lives… you learn about patience and just being nice to people. People can be so rude, but working as a waitress taught me how to deal with a-holes, snobs, cheapskates and more delightful characters. So, remember to always tip well!

How the hell do you write a screenplay?

Uh… lots of drafts of crap where you wonder why your characters are way too obvious, why your scene needs to be cut, and if it’s funny enough.  I tend to lean towards writing comedies, and it just takes lots of practice. You need to read lots of produced scripts, watch a lot of TV shows (good and bad), read a lot in general and just be passionate about it.  Every single successful person has told me this… You really need to love what you do in order to make it.  Truly. Madly. Deeply. (Sorry.. OLD SKOOL SONG FROM THE 90′s)

What’s auditioning like?

Well, you go into a room with a Casting director, and if you’ve been called back, its with a few producers, an assistant and a camera.  Everyone is usually pretty cordial and then you have about 3-5 minutes to really nail your audition.  Pretty nerve-wracking, but like anything in life, you get better with practice and experience.

How come you gave up auditioning while working at docstoc?

My parents’ financial situation was pretty dire starting at the end of last year, and I had to decide between continuing with my dreams/goals and staying at a steady job to help out my parents.  It kind of tore me up inside to have to choose and I definitely felt as though I was sawing off my arm when I had a call with my agent saying, “I can’t audition anymore.”  She understood but you have to understand that even getting to work with a good acting agent who pushes for you and believes in you is VERY DIFFICULT. There are tons of actors in Los Angeles and to be able to get representation who actually thinks you’re worth making calls for, pushing for projects, etc… is something you have to be grateful for.  Anyway, it almost killed me when I had to stop auditioning, but then… I decided to put my creativity into screenwriting.

What’s screenplays are you referencing?

One is a comedic screenplay that we’ve gotten some buzz about (sorry, can’t be more detailed than that), and the other is a sports movie that is “Mean Girls” meets “Bend It Like Beckham.”  I started writing it about two years ago, did numerous re-writes, annoyed a bunch of people who gave me notes/suggestions on it, and just kept plugging away at it.

Why haven’t you quit yet?

Well, I’m basically psycho. Or crazy. Maybe a little bit of both.  The truth is that I’m driven by passion and my love of stories and making people laugh/making fun of stereotypes.  I grew up seeing a lot of injustice, hatred, racism, ignorance and would always daydream, write songs, and write short stories.  This was my escape… by creating stories in my head… and singing, of course!  Also, I’m a believer in God, and think that he has a bigger plan for me, these stories, and even this blog.  Hopefully the plan is to just inspire people to find their inner goals, passions and talents, and use them to give back and help others.  As an actor/writer, I also hope to inspire little girls/boys who might look different or just not fit in, to just find their talents and learn that what other people think really doesn’t matter.  Seriously.  I wish I knew that when I was younger.

So, what’s going on with the acting?

Well, I had a producers’ session for an NBC Pilot last week, and am just starting it back up again.  People look down on acting, but it’s something that entertains, inspires, and makes people laugh/cry.  I absolutely love playing weird/random characters like when I was on “The Office.”

Will you miss documents?

Hell to the yeah.  I mean documents have been my life for the past year and a half.  I used to go to bed thinking, “Oh snap, what do I have to upload tomorrow?”  Also,whenever we’d go grab a drink, one of my friends would say, “Kat, YOU CAN’T HAVE MY DOCUMENTS,” all because I asked him to upload his documents ONE time.  To this day, he still says this.  If you’re reading this Rich, I DON’T WANT YOUR DOCUMENTS!!! LOL.

Do you feel like a tool/loser for interviewing yourself?

Um…yeah, what else is new.  Story of my life.

Docstoc Releases DocShots!

February 19, 2009 in LA, Uncategorized

The team here at Docstoc has been working hard to release this new product called, DocShots, which allows you to convert any posted document on a website or blog into a hover-able link that shows up in a pop-up window.  DocShots eliminates the need to download a document to preview it, avoiding wait times and system crashes, not to mention making for an easier user experience. Check out these docSHots Links for docs I’ve uploaded. All you have to do is hover over it. Cool, huh? obama-lincoln-speech how-to-embed-a-docstoc-document-in-wetpaint Here’s MORE INFO and the video below to explain how to use it: Here’s how to GET IT

And Robyn, our VP of Biz Dev, my office mate, and a rock star (plus she’s got me saying the world “Fabulous” all the time) got us a partnership with Lizzer, a great new bookmarklet that makes it easy to insert links and embed a variety of content (i.e. Docstoc Documents) into your blog posts or web-based email. Lizzer also lets you use your Docstoc account login information to easily access and embed all of your saved Docstoc Documents wherever you are on the web. Visit lizzer.com to learn more.

We’re in Investor’s Business Daily and He’s Just Not That Into You

January 25, 2009 in Uncategorized

The docstoc crew is in the January 26th edition of “Investors Business Daily,” in an article entitled,
“A Knack for Making Startups Stick Together,” by Brian Deagon.  Check it out!!!
investors-business-daily-article1

And… I had a role in one scene of the upcoming “He’s Just Not That Into You,” directed by Ken Kwapis, but it didn’t make the final cut. Sad. Anyway, it was still cool to meet some of the big stars of the film, work with Ken Kwapis and have a trailer. Well it was a tiny one, but I still felt cool. Here’s the trailer and I think its true with the male species… It’s usually obvious when they like you or don’t. They’re actually much more direct and black/white than I previously thought.
The real question is… Which guy do you like? Smart, driven, and kind men are the best. I can’t stand the bad boy type, though most girls do go through that phase, myself included. Thank God I’m through with that!

Digg MeetUp- HOLLYWOOD and…Who the Hell is Jelly D?

January 14, 2009 in Events

Okay, first of all, we’re all going to this Digg Meet up tonight at the Knitting Factory. Shout out to Matt Van Horn who stopped by our offices and gave us wristbands!!

So, I found this video on the Digg blog from their SF meet-up, and was really impressed.
They know how to party, especially this Jelly D character, and then an appearance by MC Hammer!!! OMG, if I see Jelly D tonight, I want to rap with him.

Digg Meetup @ Mighty in San Francisco from Digg Meetups on Vimeo.

The New York Times Uses docstoc!!!!!!!!!!

December 4, 2008 in docstoc

I’ve been an avid reader of the New York Times since I was a pre-teen. My mother only spent money on anything educational, so my clothes/shoes would be from the “Sale” section, but she made sure that anything that was food for my brain, was taken care of. Thus, the annual subscription to the Times!

I recently reached out to the New York Times to use the docstoc embed feature, and they used us today to post the “MTA Rescue Plan.”

Here it is for your viewing pleasure. This plan has already stirred up much debate in the comments section.

press_1204082Free Legal Forms

Robyn and Serena…More Estrogen in the office at docstoc

November 26, 2008 in People

I took a long, hard look at my blog and thought…”Um, where are the pics?”
So, from now on, I’m definitely going to be posting more JPEGS, which will provide for a better viewing experience.

I’ve never formally introduced Robyn Ward, our VP of Business Development, who worked in NYC with much experience in the start-up world, plus she used to be an i-banker so she’s used to holding her own against the boys. Here she is in Paris. Isn’t this a kick-ass picture?
I asked her, “So, what’s your favorite document?” because we only speak about documents at the office.
Robyn: Any wine list. I’m serious.

robyn

And here’s Serena Ehrlich, formerly of Business Wire, and our new Director of Marketing.
I asked her, “So What’s Your Favorite Document,?”
Serena: The Bacon Flowchart
Sometimes, a girl just needs some bacon. Ya know?

serena

Here is the official Press Release about our New Hirings.

docstoc “Community Manager” Hip-Hop Re-mix by Kathrien Ahn

November 25, 2008 in comedy, documents


docstoc “Community Manager” Hip-Hop remix – Get more Creative Writing