Scared Scriptless
by Alison Sweeney
Release Date: June 3, 2014
Kindle Edition: 309 pages
“Maddy Carson is a mass of contradictions. She loves her job as Script Supervisor on a hit TV show, but hates “Hollywood.” Super organized and down-to-earth, Maddy is clearly one of the best at her job, and her strict dating rule – “No Actors!” – helps her keep focused on her career. However, a budding relationship with Craig, one of the executives at her company, may even propel her into the big leagues. Could Wolf County, her beloved hometown in the mountains, be saved from a financial crisis by creating a reality show featuring the eccentrics in the small ski village? Maddy is determined to try, even when she learns that Craig’s agenda doesn’t exactly line up with her altruistic goal.
Meanwhile, Maddy still has a full-time job to manage, her family to deal with, and a gorgeous new actor, Adam Devin, determined to wear down her resistance. Eventually Maddy must learn to break all her self-imposed rules and simply follow her heart.
Scared Scriptless offers and engagingly relatable heroine, laugh-out-loud humor, and a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at how television is made.”
Scared Scriptless is a compelling, relatable and hilarious novel about what life is like behind the camera for a closet hopeless romantic that loves quoting movies. Sweeney’s novel is a girly romance type of book, but with real substance, drama and intrigue.
Maddy’s character is a Type A individual that’s surprisingly down-to-earth, from her annoyance with LA traffic to her perpetually messy knot of hair and avoidance of high heels and too much makeup. Her job as a Script Supervisor on The Wrong Doctor perfectly utilizes her compulsive attention to detail and need for organization. I connected with her being a self-professed ‘list person’ and I love that she uses actual notebooks, rather than just an iPad or laptop. “I feel energized by the organizational tools-there’s nothing a girl can’t do armed with Post-its, markers, and a fresh notebook.”
Maddy underestimates her own talents and abilities and holds herself back from the job that she really wants. “There are the creatives and there are the worker bees. I’m a worker bee and that’s fine. I love my job; it’s what I want.” She claims that she’s not creative, but she’s always itching to be in charge and would be an amazing producer, if she just got out of her own way. Everyone around her knows that she can do anything she sets her mind to, if only she would stop being her own worst critic. I loved the notion of not second-guessing yourself and the importance of believing in yourself.
Her “Never trust the actors” mindset influences her control at work in keeping meticulous, detailed notes and serves her well in her professional life. However, it also extends to her number one rule of no dating actors. When a gorgeous new actor comes into her life, will she be able to avoid his attention and ignore her own attraction to him? To ultimately be successful, Maddy must determine what she wants out of her personal and professional life and realizes that sometimes it’s difficult to keep those two lives separate.
“”Living in the present?” I think about how much time I spend mentally making lists of all the things I need to do and remember to do in the future…I should try living in the moment, I think. And then can’t help but laugh at the thought…”I wouldn’t last five minutes without trying to plan something.”” Can Maddy learn to let go a little bit, open herself to the possibility of falling in love, and loosen the reigns on sticking to the script?
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review!
Alison Sweeney is an actress and talent agent, known for her work on ‘Days of Our Lives’ and ‘The Biggest Loser’.
Nice review, well written.
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