The Actor's Life

A Survival Guide

Ranked #4 in Acting, Ranked #10 in Actorssee more rankings.

Jenna Fischer’s Hollywood journey began at the age of 22 when she moved to Los Angeles from her hometown of St. Louis. With a theater degree in hand, she was certain everything would fall easily into place. Never mind that she didn’t know a single person in the entertainment industry. She was determined, she was confident, she was ready to work hard. So, what could go wrong?

Uh, basically everything. It would be eight long years before she landed her Emmy-nominated role of Pam Beesley on The Office—nearly a decade of failure, struggle, rejection and doubt.

The...
more

Reviews and Recommendations

We've comprehensively compiled reviews of The Actor's Life from the world's leading experts.

Matthew Weiner Creator/Mad MenHow lucky for those who dream that Jenna Fischer has written this book and candidly explained the hard work, persistence, and delusion required to become a working actor. This book is generous, practical, and in the right hands will be a talisman for the deserving few who refuse to give up. (Source)

Jon Hamm Actor / Mad MenI loved reading Jenna's honest and sincere appraisal of the actualities of breaking into, finding one’s way, and then thriving in this business. I hope it is given out as a guidebook of sorts to any young actor when they land at LAX. (Source)

Christina Applegate Actress / Married with ChildrenIn The Actor's Life, Jenna Fischer lays out exactly what aspiring actors can expect from this crazy, unpredictable industry both practically and emotionally. Nothing is sugar-coated, nor is it cynical. It's just reality, plain and simple. At every level of success, we are all just artists trying to figure it out day by day. That’s the truth. (Source)

Julianna Margulies If I had Jenna's book when I was a struggling actor it would have eased the pain and encouraged my journey. This is an insightful, funny, sweet story from one actor to another; we all need a leg up, a hand to hold, and the encouragement to keep going when we truly find our passion. Jenna manages to do that and more in this very helpful guide for an actor finding their way into the business. (Source)

Allison Jones Jenna Fischer's story is an excellent resource for anyone who is involved in the life of an actor. Much of this information was new to me; I have always respected the actor's journey, but now I am in awe of it. It's also entertaining from beginning to end. (Source)


Rankings by Category

The Actor's Life is ranked in the following categories:


Similar Books

If you like The Actor's Life, check out these similar top-rated books:


Learn: What makes Shortform summaries the best in the world?