What I’ve Always Wanted to Do

I recently got a job as as writing center tutor at a local university. It’s been amazing and the people I work with remind me a bit of the Hollins Ch.Lit. MFA community, always sparking the most lively and interesting topics of conversation. Yesterday, I was talking to one of my co-tutors, and she’s a full-time freelancer writer, working on her own creative endeavors, tutoring and blogging for pay. She said something that really stuck out at me:

This is what I’ve always wanted to do.

It made me smile, because, as unglamorous as it is juggling two or three different gigs to pay the bills, it’s fabulous to be able to say that one is doing exactly what fulfills his or her dreams. I realized that although I don’t have a 9-5 or a company-sponsored 401K, I get up in the morning and can say that I am living the dream.

I have time to work on my own creative goals. I get to exercise my critical skills and educational muscles on a daily basis. I set my own schedule. I have time to spend with family and at church. I work with students from elementary through undergrad, which, I have to say, builds material for future writing projects. I have time to read and stay connected with what’s on bookstore shelves today. I have time to take care of myself, from working out to cooking healthy to keeping my living space neat and tidy. I have time to keep in touch with my friends from out of state.

I am so grateful for this phase of my life. I know it will shift. I know one day publishing deadlines and other responsibilities will start to infringe on some of the freedoms. But for now, I’m enjoying every moment.

This week has been a bit sad for me. My heart has felt heavy and broken. Taking the time to reflect on all of the blessings that fill my life has been like salve on a wound. Trying to keep things in perspective.

<3

Hang in there – some writer-ly encouragement

I just wanted to share a great article written by my professor, and great writer, Hillary Homzie. Hope it encourages all other writers out there!

http://hillaryhomzie.com/2012/01/dear-frustrated-almost-published-and-almost-agented-writer/

Happy 2012!

You want to read this book!

A few weeks ago, I tore through Veronica Roth’s Divergent and I was so sad to turn the last page on my Nook. Tris was such a great character. Her transformation from a submissive member of the Abnegation faction that doesn’t know if she truly fits, to a fearless member of the Dauntless faction working hard to shed the nickname of “stiff,” to a self-aware Divergent ready to kick butt and take names was beautiful to watch. Tris’ growth was organic and never seemed over the top or overdone. Cliche and stereotype were rare finds in this book, and Tris was no exception. I have to say that I did roll my eyes a bit at her cluelessness in the romance that begins to develop, but then again, my 16-year-old self was just as clueless, if not more.

I was met with surprises throughout a plot that diverted (hehe) from the typical, run-of-the-mill dystopia, while still keeping true to popular themes in young adult science fiction, such as the confused protagonist has a skill and stubbornness that will help save the world that is seen in books like Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games and Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game. Readers root for Tris in, what I’ve noticed in retrospect, was a very Hunger Games-esque trial of skill in order to be initiated into the Dauntless faction. Her role as ‘savior,’ however, didn’t just come out of nowhere. With her father in leadership, and in the public eye, it made sense for her to take action to clear his name, revealing faction secrets in the process that could start the war they attempted to avoid by creating the factions. I guess I’ll have to wait until book two to find out if it gets that far.

By the end, I was ready to pre-order book two, and get a tattoo to match the three Tris gets during her Dauntless initiation. I highly recommend this book, just be prepared to procrastinate on all other life activities in order to reach its exciting conclusion.