Aren't these flowers just gorgeous? They were a very special gift from Dusty on the night I started my writing group. Seems he knew I would be nervous and wanted to send me out into the night feeling confident and cheered. Sweet, right?
About that writing group. I love it, absolutely love it. I'm still not sure that I have what it takes to "make it" as any sort of a writer, but the lovely folks in the group have been great at providing that gentle push that has me starting to build a portfolio of work and taking those first baby steps toward applying for the MFA in Creative Writing.
You see, I've really been agonizing over this whole question of whether to pursue a Masters at all and in what, but the few years out of academia has given me the chance to see that get a masters in the "right" field is no guarantee of finding the right job after and that lots of folks end up doing something really different than what they are "trained" in. I still love a lot of other fields, the idea of a psych degree or gender studies still really intrigues and attracts me, but in my heart of hearts I have wanted to be writer since I was eight years old. It's been kind of a secret, because lets face it- there's a lot of want to be writers out there, a whole lot of broken dreams all tangled up in slush piles everywhere. I'm afraid of failure. But at this point in my life, I am more afraid of not trying to do the thing I want the most just because I might suck at it. Thanks for letting me practice on all you nice people, really, thank you.
About that writing group. I love it, absolutely love it. I'm still not sure that I have what it takes to "make it" as any sort of a writer, but the lovely folks in the group have been great at providing that gentle push that has me starting to build a portfolio of work and taking those first baby steps toward applying for the MFA in Creative Writing.
You see, I've really been agonizing over this whole question of whether to pursue a Masters at all and in what, but the few years out of academia has given me the chance to see that get a masters in the "right" field is no guarantee of finding the right job after and that lots of folks end up doing something really different than what they are "trained" in. I still love a lot of other fields, the idea of a psych degree or gender studies still really intrigues and attracts me, but in my heart of hearts I have wanted to be writer since I was eight years old. It's been kind of a secret, because lets face it- there's a lot of want to be writers out there, a whole lot of broken dreams all tangled up in slush piles everywhere. I'm afraid of failure. But at this point in my life, I am more afraid of not trying to do the thing I want the most just because I might suck at it. Thanks for letting me practice on all you nice people, really, thank you.
Hi Melyssa!
ReplyDeleteIt's so cool to read your blog. I'm excited that you're going to pursue your dream, and from what I've seen of your writing and the insightful feedback you give, I believe you're on the right track. I love being in a writing class with you.
Love,
Deb