Meet Sylvan Hills Writer and Photographer: L. Paige Fenn

Today we’d like to introduce you to L. Paige Fenn.

L. Paige, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I have always loved the Arts. It started with film. As a child, I would recite every single line of my favorite movies and started acting around the age of 10. Then as I got older, my love for music began to blossom. I was completely obsessed with recording songs from the radio onto tapes or downloading every song imaginable from Napster (I know- Bad girl!). Music is still such an important part of my life today. I can’t live without it.

Once I got to High School, I participated in Drama Club and was able to live out my passion for acting. Then out of nowhere, these ideas started coming to me. I guess my life was getting to be a bit more interesting since I was older and I started to take my experiences and mold them into stories that I would have wanted to see on the big screen. I started writing a screenplay- a romantic dramedy of sorts. The catch was that I kept it all a secret. I’m not sure why, but I didn’t really tell anyone about it. It scared me thinking about what people would say. So, I kept all of those ideas to myself.

College time rolled around and I folded to the pressure of choosing a “reliable” major rather than something in the Arts. I majored in Broadcast Journalism which later changed into Public Relations. It was time for me to chose a Minor and again, I was pressured to make the smart move and minored in Business. And that lasted for half a semester.

Luckily, I gave Photography a shot as a minor. At first, it was just something fun and enjoyable to try. Then after every project, my professor gave me feedback that my work was actually really good. This was inspiring! It was challenging and I loved it. I would say my life changed when I traveled to South Africa. Besides it being such a beautiful place, the people were beautiful. No matter their conditions or circumstances, there was beauty present. I took the best photos of my life on the trip.

Sometimes, I still can’t believe some of the shots I got. It felt like God was speaking to me.

My story changes course a bit when I let my best friend/writing partner, Natasha, in on my writing secret. She expressed that she too loves to write. After that, magic happened. We developed a concept for a TV show. We began writing Music Video treatments together. One of them was made and did really well! That was a breaking point for me. That showed me that it wasn’t all in my mind. It showed me that it is possible for you to create art, put it out there in the world, and inspire others.

If I had to pinpoint where my story is now, I would say that I have taken all of the experiences, lessons, mistakes, inspirations, and everything else in between and I have finally mustered up the courage to put it all out there through art. I am no longer scared. I no longer have intentions of being silent. I am fully committed to sharing my story with hopes it inspires someone to share theirs too.

Has it been a smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. I experienced the tragic death of one of my Best Friends in college and that pretty much broke me. It changed the way I saw the world. It reminds me of the movie Pleasantville, it felt like I started seeing realistically in color and some people had no idea and still saw it in grey.

Maybe it was that I knew then that we are not immune from death or tragedy and that can be a scary realization if you see it up close. It was a domino effect from that point. That incident broke my heart and broke my spirit and it took a lot of work to put it all back together.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Writing “The End” on my first feature film screenplay was a HUGE accomplishment for me, but the proudest moment of my career as a filmmaker was seeing a video treatment I wrote on TV and YouTube. My writing partner, Natasha Clark, and I wrote a treatment for Trey Songz. The song, “Love Faces,” was his latest hit. We came up with our first treatment to Drake’s “Houstatlantavegas” and still to this day hate that we never got to see that come to light. So this was a big victory for us.

I was proud of this moment because I was finally able to see my words on an actual TV screen. It brought me back to the nights where I would listen to the song on constant repeat. I’m talking hundreds of plays just trying to figure out a narrative. Closing my eyes to visualize movements to the beat, the words, and the story behind the song. The process can appear crazy if you’re watching it from the outside, but it is an invigorating experience. An experience I hope I can continue to have for the rest of my life.

So while, I am most proud of the content in my screenplay, I have learned to not put too much stock into patting myself on the back until I am able to physically see my art come to life. I just will never forget showing my the video Mom and her responding, “Wow! Paigey, you wrote this!?!”

Tell us more about the struggles you’ve faced along the way.
In addition to the struggles I discussed earlier, I would say my other struggles stemmed from failure. It’s hard to pinpoint a particular year or moment of struggle. To be honest, it felt like a string of years of just feeling like a complete loser and failure. It felt like everyone around me was moving towards something and I was just stuck on the hamster wheel.

In our world today, Social Media can play tricks on you. I would be a liar if I didn’t admit that I’ve gotten lost in someone else’s Instagram “Portfolio of their life.” It could be as big as seeing someone who not only just got their law degree, but they’re getting engaged on a helicopter- in the South of France. Sometimes it was as small as seeing someone’s perfectly balanced breakfast along with their perfect cup of Joe that had that perfectly filtered foam leaf shape on top.

This shouldn’t bother the average person. Right? Except, imagine your current situation had leftover pizza on the menu for breakfast with a side of “Job” that doesn’t fulfill you. These moments felt like the Ghost of Christmas Past, Present, and Future coming to tell me how much I sucked at life.

In addition to my Millennial struggles, I became a single mom at 26. I won’t pretend that is a unique narrative and I definitely do not expect pity or sympathy. What I can say plainly is, the struggle is REAL. You honestly can’t understand until you become a parent- single or married. It’s just a different beast. A beast that does not allow you to sleep while also beating you up at every corner.

This was a struggle for me because I am not clueless to society’s views of Single Mothers, especially “Black” Single Mothers. I know what people are thinking. I know I am now a statistic to some. And I know that even though I have one of the cutest, most intelligent, and honestly… truly… COOLEST kids on the planet, people will still judge me because there is not a husband attached to the equation.

There are nights when I lose sleep over this. There are nights when I wonder will I have failed my son if I don’t give him a full family unit of a Day-to-Day father with some siblings on the side. He has an Amazing Dad who I peacefully co-parent with, so I am blessed he won’t have to struggle with not having a father figure. The fear lies in him growing up and feeling like something is missing when he’s in MY house.

All in all, I welcome the struggles. They feed me and make me stronger. And the good news is they also serve as great writing material. Stay tuned.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Absolutely hands down, YES! There is so much opportunity here. I am extremely lucky that Atlanta has now become a hub for Film. What’s great about Atlanta’s film industry is how the city can still encompass it’s Southern charm and vibe, while also generating big industry business. With all of the studios being built, it is only up from here. What I discover in my everyday work is that Atlanta is a small enough place to where you most likely know somebody who knows somebody who can get you in the right door.

Also, what I love about Atlanta is that I consistently encounter people who want to help. The minute I tell a person my interests, they are so kind and helpful by giving me a name of someone I should link with or a piece of advice. That’s something I didn’t necessarily feel in other cities and since I’m an Atlanta native, this is perfect for me and my Southern Soul.

I would definitely recommend someone to start out here. You can have a nice life in Atlanta. You can have a yard. You can see trees. You can have space to be comfortable. On the other side, you can meet people who are doing big and innovative things. You can meet the people who are pushing Art, Film, and Music in an exciting direction. You can even get involved in the Political arena and be a part of some exciting changes that are coming to our city.

I know there is an allure to big cities like LA and NYC and trust me, I get it. I’ve seen the beauty that is in Sunny California and I lived in the hustle that is New York. I’m never going to give someone the advice that they HAVE to live in Atlanta because I know that certain places just don’t work for people.

So I guess what consistently sells Atlanta for me is that I can have such a beautiful quality of life along with the growing opportunities that are at every corner of this city.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sbphotos.carbonmade.com/
• Email: lpaigefenn@gmail.com
• Instagram: Southernbohemia