Ghosts of Horatio Alger

Leaving a secure and well paying job was not an easy decision. But I had interests that I wanted to pursue and tethered to a desk 10 hours a day was no way to go about accomplishing them. When I left I didn’t have any concrete plans, but I had a few ideas that I hoped to quickly turn into goals and definite projects.

Today I am happy to announce my first project: Mike and Zack’s Righteous Journey.

My good friend Mike Kershner and I are writing a screenplay telling the true story of his Great Grandfather, a Polish-Jewish Immigrant in America in the first few decades of the 20th Century. One day, Joseph returned home from his successful tailoring business to find a letter from his wife’s family back in Poland. Jews at the time were targets of Pogroms, their family was no exception and they were now hiding out to avoid persecution. They needed Joseph to come save them.

It’s a beautiful story filled with determination, grit, sacrifice and love. And we’re going to write about it. Kickstarter is a super-cool microfinance community that allows writers, film makers, artists, photographers and other creative types to realize their dreams. I say a community, because each contributor becomes a part of the project. They share in the success and receive “rewards” for different donation points. Each project gets from 30-90 days to raise a specific amount of funding … if it fails to reach it’s target in the allotted time, the project does not go forward and the donation is never charged.

I’ve participated in a few Kickstarter projects in the past, and I can say that it is very rewarding to receive a copy of a book from someone who put it all on the line, quit their job and dedicated their life to one of their goals. That’s what I’m doing, and I can appreciate the type of risk something like this is.

So, if you have the time, head on over to Kickstarter and check it out. Maybe you’ll find a way to become a part of a project that resonates with you, or maybe, like me, you’ll find the inspiration to follow your own dream.