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chemicalpink · 3 years

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☾✧゜BTS TAROT READING: POST-SCAMMY ENERGY + Message* to ARMY ☾✧゜

Pairing: none, this is a tarot/oracle reading.

WARNINGS: PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE NOT IN A RIGHT STATE OF MIND, we know just how dirty they did the boys, so obviously it is not a very happy reading, but they might hold a message or two for ARMY.

A/N: I am doing this reading from a right place deep inside my mind, I will be performing a calming/ peaceful spell for them (that hopefully goes through) I am not doing this as an attempt to invade their privacy, the feeling they are feeling are entirely theirs only. *By “message” i do not mean they spoke those words, I am referring to their thoughts/energy placement is for ARMY

So first I did a quick check into the whole vibe using the pendulum divination, asking some questions to test the waters. So far, to put it simpler, they would have been exponentially more surprised if they were to win the award (honestly I don’t know what’s more upsetting) but it’s good to know that they were mentally prepared for a negative outcome, the emotional toll wasn’t as high. It seems like they weren’t disappointed, which to me sounds like a good thing, they are clear as to what’s the most important milestone in their career and the scammys just aint it chief. It’s just like... something every artists is meant to try their luck at and that’s what they did.

However of course we are all only human and yeah, feelings are all over the way, mostly tired, this was the easiest reading that I’ve done for BTS so far, their spiritual guards were down, probably letting themselves feel whatever they need to feel.

And so the reading goes a little like this, i used a traditional tarot for the general energy per member (cards went flying all over the place) and then i used a guidance oracle to know where their personal reflection on the situation is headed:

Kim Seokjin ☾✧ ゜

Queen of Swords Reversed, Seokjin is a tiny bit bitter at the outcome, he feels kinda overpowered, like he’d seen it coming (the outcome) but still somehow felt like there was a tiny bit of hope out there and he reprimands himself for believing there was a chance.

However, as he dwells on the feeling, he thinks of this as an opportunity to heal, to grow and let go, he’ll come around to believe that it wasn’t wrong to have hope, that this light at the end of the tunnel is what fuels us humans to dream and to achieve.

Min Yoongi ☾✧ ゜

8 of Swords Reversed. Min Yoongi my manifestation king. This man from the very start since they were nominated had already considered it as a HUGE milestone, he feels free now, not winning the award is giving him a whole new perspective on his reasons to make music.

Of course, he knows that it is a truth VERY hard to swallow since they’ve worked so hard but deep down, he knows this experience will only strengthen them in every possible aspect.

Jung Hoseok ☾✧ ゜

Another Queen of Swords Reversed. Just like Seokjin, Hoseok feels bitter about the outcome, he feels for his members just how much effort and everything that comes with it has taken a toll on everyone that worked for the nomination so yeah, he kinda feels like they should be cold hearted towards the western music industry for that reason.

This ray of sunshine is obviously thinking of ARMY first handed, he’ll come around the idea that no matter how badly he wants to let go of the western music industry, there’s a lot of ARMYs there too and he just wants all of this situation to help him focus on giving nicer things to ARMY.

Kim Namjoon ☾✧ ゜

Page of Swords. Joon, evermore the 148 IQ academic he is, is really REALLY curious as to exactly what parameters were used to decide the winner, he is very obviously dedicating A LOT of mental energy to this situation and paired with his curiosity, it’s causing him to be restless, big time. He just wants answers.

He’ll come around to know that sometimes we’ll have to deal with not nothing the full story, that he needs fresh air, a break from all of the storm that them not getting the award has caused everywhere. He’ll also most probably take part in a board meeting and that’ll exhaust him so please send all your love and good vibes to Joonie.

Park Jimin ☾✧ ゜

The World. Watch out major Arcana. He has welcomed the exhaustion, he had been preparing on an anxiety driven haste that he is just letting it all go, he feels a sense of fulfillment, no matter the outcome, he’s just happy it’s over, he feels like they’ve completed a whole era in their career and he’s just happy about it.

Somehow he considers this situation to be a perfect timing, knowing fully that they worked so hard, they’ve completed their task and it’s a chance to grow better, stronger. I also got the feeling like they’ve already got something prepared and its going to be HUGE.

Kim Taehyung ☾✧ ゜

Forever Vmin soulmates, The World Reversed. much the opposite of Jimin, TAe feels like this is an uncompleted goal for their career, they went so hard and for what? he feels like the whole task was left unfinished, like they could have done better, tonight, there��s no closure for him.

However he’ll come to realise that there’s beauty in life, in their career, Grammy or not. He’ll also come to realise that perhaps the western music industry is not their place, not as in they don’t belong, but more of a place they don’t want to be at if they can’t see the beauty in their art without money involved.

Jeon Jungkook ☾✧ ゜

9 of Cups. So I feel like over all, the whole ‘Grammy nominated artists’ spoiled rotten too fast for them, especially for Kookie, what was meant to feel like an awesome achievement was turned into the start of a greedy cycle of always aiming for more even when they were not yet ready for it. He’s found some kind of emotional stability within the outcome of tonight’s awards, he feels comfortable now, like he can breathe again after a long time.

He’s also come to realise that things must be questioned, if all that comes within making it great by other people’s or general standard for music is really worth the emotional toll.

Finally, a message for ARMY:

“We trust that we hold the power within ourselves, our music, our art and hard work are all enough to fulfill our dreams and milestones, they are not to be used to fill someone else’s dreams or intentions.”

#bts #bts tarot #bts astrology #bts reading #bts readings #bts grammys #its so late #i did a healing and protection spell on them too #probably gonna cost me a great migraine tomorrow

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vagisil · 3 years

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The Rise of Fundamentalism Through Romantic Literature

Modern fundamentalism includes an array of ideas from the teachings of Bill Gothard and the Quiverfull movement to the multiple sects of The Church of Latter Day Saints, the various fundamentalist churches that pop up from time to time and many others. While these ministries do have somewhat different takes on Christian doctrine, the one thing that will always be shared among these groups is the idea that the modern society is headed towards a dangerous faith. Where most other extremist movements would have died off just as quickly as they were made, fundamentalism has stayed around for centuries no matter how advance the outside world became. My theory is that the reason fundamentalism remains a strong part of American society is because of the historical movements that back it, one of these movements being the romantic era of American literature. The romantic literature movement, better known as Romanticism, was a defining part of American society specifically academia and the arts. Created as a contrast to the growing social-political norms of the current culture around science and industrialization. The romantics strived to bring back the principles they’d deemed necessary to life such as emotion, spirituality, and individualism. Many of the early works of this movement criticized and flat out rejected scientific thought as a whole, believing it to be the destroyer of creativity and free thinking along with turning society to the worst through increasing the standard of secular living. This emphasis on science being the reason behind traditions being put aside, the multiple displays of the scientific taking over religious values in romantic literature along with the popularity Romanticism had, made it possible for more who agreed with the dangers of straying away from convention to continue the revolt against this new wave of enlighten secularism. Taking this opportunity the romantics opened up for them.

Before the mid 18th century the Age of Enlightment was at its peak. At this time the culture was focused on bureaucracy, industrialization, and secularism. The head of these conventions changing everything from old to new was science. Science is seen as the bringer of all evil. The thing that was separating people from the beauty of the world in favor of scientific discoveries. That the practicality of living in a city, working an industrial job and leaving behind traditional core values, were brought on because of science. The Romantics saw and lived the potential harm this kind of thinking could and did come to later on in time. They saw how the lifestyle of living in a city made one disconnected from nature and therefore the world. How one’s relation to practicality and seriousness made them disconnected from their self. This inspired many to go against the grain and make work that not only expressed the issues they had with the rise of enlightenment but also encourage others to see through the ruse too. In much of the literature during the romantic era science is explained to be the enemy. Ralph Waldo Emerson, a fame writer of the romantic era, writes in his essays “The Poet” and “Self Reliance” how the culture of this time did more negative than good, and how it was better to go against what is the norm when it is not what’s best. Emerson touches on how the enlighten aristocrats do not know what is best for the world, comparing them to fools who are unable to see the true essence of the world around them. That we as individuals would be much better off not following in their footsteps. In “Self-Reliance” Emerson states “To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart, is true for all men – that is genius…. that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse..” (Emerson, 236-237) and in The Poet he says “…if you inquire whether they are beautiful souls…you learn that they are selfish and sensual… It is proof of the shallowness of the doctrine of beauty, as it lies in the minds of our amateurs.” (Emerson, 254) Where Emerson was subtle in his criticisms of this new wave of thought others were not. Edgar Allen Poe, another acclaim romantic, describes in his poem Sonnet - to Science how the character of science is the direct cause of this ruining of the creative and spiritual soul. In one line Poe outright displays science to being a predator while “the poet” is its prey, stating “Science!...Why preyest thou thus upon the poet’s heart, Vulture, whose wings are dull realities?” (Poe, lines 1-4) As time went on and Romanticism became to be at its peak this anti-science rhetoric spread. Many people agreed that this push towards innovation and modernity was bad for society. Specially the group that was the strongest on the idea of revolting against invasive secularism were the fundamentalist Christians of the 19th century.

In Romanticism’s prime years a smaller new movement, the Fundamentalists, had come along. This movement had similar concerns for the culture, they too thought that the trajectory of modernization would lead the public astray of its values, that this kind of environment was corrupting to the mind, body and soul and that lessening the importance of religion was unhealthy overall. The popularity and scale of Romanticism grew to become a huge inspiration to others who felt similar about the new ways of the world. They saw how Romanticism took off and figured not only could they do the same but that they could do it better. However, before completely detaching from the romantics they also learned a lot from their endeavors. Romanticism and Fundamentalism have a shared commonality on needing to save the current culture from falling into ruins by the hands of the secular scientific elite. Where in Romanticism science pushes people further away from creativity, for fundamentalist science pushes people away from God. Rather intentional or not, the romantics made it a point to portray secularism as dangerous. Insisting the public worry about what they thought would come of it in the future. Although, for the most part it was probably more intended as an analogy of how new conventions destroy the older ideas. Fundamentalist are known for their very strict and literal interpretations of the world, therefore whatever written down on paper is what they take away from reading the romantics works. A clear example of this is the story of “Young Goodman Brown” written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Young Goodman Brown tells the story of a man leaving the familiarity of his home to explore uncertainty. The symbolism of this tale criticizes one’s choice of venturing the unknown and daring to question faith. In relation to the romantics and their plight this story represents on a deeper level how although intriguing at first, the call for enlightment will lead to destruction. This story also however heavily parallels the fears of the average protestant of these times and modern. Young Goodman Brown’s life was never the same after his encounters in the woods. Due to him, quite literally, leaving his faith his entire course of life was altered permanently. This directly follows the structure of the “Umbrella of Protection” in fundamentalism. The Umbrella of Protection is a model of how one should live their life formulated by three umbrellas. The first one being the largest representing God. The second, positioned directly under the first to represent the man of the household. Along with labels of the things he is meant to do like protecting the family and providing. The last umbrella being the smallest representing the woman of the house, with her purpose being to manage the house and children. Followers of this mindset believe that if we as people don’t act according to our roles in this life structure, if we step outside of this bubble of protection dangers will come our way. Young Goodman Brown stepped out of his umbrella and because of that the foundation of his life and spirit were forever broken. In this way Romanticism is portraying secularism much like one would portray a villain in a horror movie. Making it clear to the audience that secularism is the bad guy.

Fundamentalism has now grown to be a phenomenon in America, lasting for as long as two centuries. While Romanticism faded into textbook obscurity, Fundamentalism has kept the romantics anti-secularism roots strong. In the 1850s towards the end of romanticism’s peak and at the start of Realism, the overall culture was beginning to change again. Artists and academics were shifting to a more realistic perspective of the world wanting nothing to do with the un-natural or supernatural. Although this meant the days of romanticism were over this did not mean the values put in place were leaving too. As romantic ideology spread with time, many were taking more and more liberal, and most importantly less literal, takes on the notion of secularism in society and what it would mean for the greater good. So much like true fundamentalist fashion, they separated themselves from the romantics and created their own groups. Unlike the romantics however these groups were purely focused on religious aspects of the cultural criticism. Their goals were to make it known to the public how harmful secularism really was. Some of the earlier fundamentalist began their careers as soap box preachers, promoting the previously mentioned belief of disturbance in your life if you break away from religious teachings in favor of secularism. Highly influenced by the romantics, people flocked to this kind of thinking. These groups of Protestants and Catholics arose with time, becoming popular American attractions for some period of time as well. While no longer associating themselves with the romantics now believing them to have falling into the category of liberal theology, the romantics still are a large part of why this movement of radical Christians exist today. Walter E. Houghton mentions in his book The Victorian Frame of Mind, 1830-1970 that the romantics paved the way for individualism that went against temporal thought. His text states “Romanticism, also encouraged emphasis on process rather than on fixed or static truth.” (Houghton, 29-31) Referencing not only the Intelligent Design argument but also both parties’ stances on how to view the world.

Fundamentalism as it is today in America would not be if it was not for the work of the Romantics. Romantic ideology’s emphasis on rejecting modernity and uplifting individualism based around your core beliefs help raise a new generation of extremists in Christian sects. Popularized by influential authors of the time period, separating oneself from science became normalized. Allowing for easier indoctrination into religious groups, soon after the rise of early fundamentalism growing in America. Due to the usages of religious themes as allegories and other literary devices combined with the message of the stories it is no wonder the fundamentalist were drawn to these tales. Much like the origins of Romanticism, the ideology of sticking to the fundamentals of tradition is just as popular now in the modern world as it was back then; Proving how much impact Romanticism had within our culture.

#essays

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wellship · 4 years

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Hello hi I just wanted to say I am absolutely here for Leah and Haley being girlfriends... hippie artist and pretty fashion girl??? Match made in heaven. Thank you. My crops are watered.

LISTEN…….. You have hereby given me permission to wall-of-text about why I love this ship so much lmao…

I already started off loving Haley because she’s IMO the best bachelorette in the game. I love not only how she grows as a character (compared to some of the others who can feel stagnant, even though I love them all too) but how her “growth” doesn’t mean that she sacrifices her personality completely.She was the first villager I ever romanced playing SDV because I was curious to see how she would be written and I was so, so pleasantly surprised. It’s so easy and common for characters like Haley to either stay as a shallow caricature of a “mean, girly girl” forever as a punching-bag for the writers’ projections, OR for her to do a complete 180 as if being girly, or interested in fashion, or not academic are bad traits to be “fixed” in order for the character to become likeable - especially since this was essentially a first-person dating sim, which often plays into the fantasy where a mean girl is turned into a totally pacified wifey-type by the (usually male) PC. I was fully expecting and bracing for Haley to go from being a caricature of a “mall brat” Mean Girl to being a caricature of an “I’m not like other girls” Cool Girl (or worse, “I’m so glad I Grew Up and realised all I need in my life is my hubby!”, but I wasn’t quite getting that vibe from SDV).

But that didn’t happen. Major props to CA for creating a character who DID grow and learn to appreciate things outside of her little bubble without feeling the need to abandon/criticise the things she used to like. She learns that shopping/makeup/boys (wink) etc. aren’t the only important things in her life, and she expands her horizons, but those things are still important to her. As someone who’s also interested in fashion and makeup it was refreshing to see those hobbies still portrayed in a positive light as opposed to something she had to “move past”.

So. Anyway. That’s why I love Haley so much and why I particularly like a narrative of her discovering she’s a wlw (thank you Stardew Valley for watering MY crops by giving everyone canon bi~ reads) as it ties in with her growing and maturing as a person.

And so when I looked at the roster of girls in Stardew Valley I felt like Leah was the best one to complement her character in a relationship:

Haley’s biggest obstacle in her life right now is that she’s very sheltered and, as a result, a little spoiled. Her parents are globe-trotting and her older sister has been left to look after her. The age gap between the sisters doesn’t seem to be that big and Emily isn’t very confrontational at the best of times, so I think she just took the path of least resistance, which was to do everything herself rather than argue with Haley who still sees her as a peer and not an authority figure.Leah, conversely, has had to become extremely independent and self-sufficient, very recently. Her narrative plot line about leaving an (if not abusive, then at least implied to be toxic/unhealthy) relationship and a position where she was “comfortable” but unhappy is very fresh and it’s exactly where Haley needs to be. Leah is in a prime position to, basically, give Haley a kick up the rear and tell her to get her act together, but without it coming off as too sanctimonious or parental since Leah is still going through it and learning herself. Two young adults navigating their way through adulthood and pulling each other along rather than one grabbing the other by the hand and “fixing” them.

The flipside of this is that Leah is in her position through choice, which she was privileged to be able to make. She CHOSE to leave behind a life in the big city and a stable career to pursue the aesthetic of living in a little country cabin and making art all day. Haley wants the opposite, but can’t make it happen. Haley would KILL to be able to pack up her life and move to the city to pursue her dreams - Fashion? Photography? Fashion photography? - but she can’t. She’s sheltered because she has everything provided for her in Pelican Town, but that doesn’t translate to having the same opportunities for forward momentum as Leah. Her parents aren’t implied to be very supportive of her dreams, so they’re not going to fund a move for her, and we constantly see that there are limited employment opportunities in Pelican Town unless she wants to work for minimum wage at Joja. So she’s kind of stuck. Narratively, we’re supposed to see Leah’s desire to move from the city to the country as a positive story arc (because it mirrors the player’s) while we’re supposed to see Haley’s desire to move from the country to the city as somehow being shallow or consumerist, and I think Leah herself would fall into the trap of thinking that way, which would be eye-opening for her.When you look at it, their narratives mirror each other. It’s easy to say that Haley is spoiled and out of touch with the “real world”, but Leah is also out of touch with reality in that not everyone can do what she did. I like Leah a lot and I’m not saying her life or her decisions were easy - and she definitely does seem to be genuinely “roughing it” and struggling for money when we meet her in-game - but she still got there by choice and she still does have a safety net of sorts, since it’s implied she could probably get re-hired in whatever lucrative field she worked in before moving. Haley doesn’t have that - her “safety net” of her parents’ house and her sister only works to support her as long as she stays put.I can see this being a really delicious and rewarding narrative point between them as they started to get to know each other, because I think they would probably HATE each other at first, lol. Leah would think Haley was childish and represented everything she disliked about “fake” city living while Haley would think Leah was pretentious and ungrateful.

Also I definitely love that hippie girl/mall girl contrast BUT please consider - Haley is also an artist and I think they’d both “get” each other on that level. Nobody in town considers Haley an artist. Leah is a “real” artist, a fine artist and a sculptor. Elliott is a “real” artist by way of being an author. Emily is a “real” artist for her sewing and… y’know… general aura. Those are defining aspects of their character. But to the other people in town, and even to the player, art is not one of Haley’s notable features. Her photography is just a throwaway idea. She’s the shallow, frilly, pink, bubblegum-scented boy-crazy “girly girl” who just also happens to take photos sometimes.But photography is serious TO HALEY. It’s pretty much the only thing she does around town other than wandering aimlessly. She has some pretty impressive equipment and she even builds a dark room for herself, either implicitly converting it from a walk-in wardrobe (which demonstrates how she sees her own priorities, regardless of how others see her) OR she builds it from scratch, which is even more dedicated. I think Leah is the best person in town to recognise that Haley is also an artist who’s dedicated to her craft and probably the only person to really encourage her to pursue it, to tell her that it’s worthwhile and not just some silly hobby. Leah would be able to see a lot of her own internal struggles over art in Haley, about whether it was “good enough”.

Conversely if there’s one thing Haley has which Leah lacks, it’s confidence. Leah is full of self-doubt about her art, her life choices, etc. whereas Haley’s main issue is apathy; once she finds something she’s actually passionate about, she’s very self-assured. I think once they broke the ice and started to become friends, if Leah expressed even a smidgen of self-doubt Haley would shut it down with very over-the-top but sincere pep talks.

I also just think their personalities contrast well, lol. Haley is extremely blunt but she’s not really trying to be rude, it’s just that the things she say often come from a sheltered perspective (i.e. “appearance is important to me” -> “[my concept of] appearance is important to everyone” -> “I should tell people if they’re doing Appearance wrong”). Leah on the other hand is very casual and polite but also hard to offend. She’s mostly content to let the odd comment roll off her back, but as we’ve seen with Kel, she’s also not afraid to tell people off when they’re being inconsiderate, which is what Haley needs - someone who won’t ditch her for putting her foot in her mouth, like most would/do, but also someone who won’t just enable her to stay sheltered.

Also in the context of this being a wlw ship/narrative, I think Haley would need a partner who was comfortable in their own sexuality since Haley (and her thematic counterpart Alex) are both extremely stuck in compulsive heterosexuality and sort of need a partner who… isn’t? Or else they’d just get sucked into a “will-they-won’t-they” vortex for a million years where neither of them know how to make the first move. Leah is the only bachelor(ette) who by default has any canonical LGBTQ relationship before the farmer, and that energy just translates well for Haley, IMO. I think if Haley found out Leah was a wlw then it would force Haley to reconsider her assumptions about her own sexuality.

Leah would go absolutely googoo gaga over Haley IMO and it’s just fun to picture her at the start of their interactions being like “god dammit she annoys me so much but DAMB .. .. .. girl pretty”

I doubt anyone read all of this but I HAD FUN and I’m really really glad to see such a positive response to that art!! I would love it if more people started shipping and making content for them 👀

#Anonymous #Stardew Valley #long post #text

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portbayrp · 4 years

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ABOUT THE CHARACTER.

★ ━ ( ross butler, cis-male, he/him ) ━ ★ just to be clear, ya didn’t get this information from me. The person you’re lookin’ for is CAMERON KAO LIANG REED. also known just as CAM. Last I heard they were born on MAY 17TH, 1990 in NORWICH, VERMONT, but he’s been livin’ in THE NORTHWEST DISTRICT, for about TWO YEARS. Word around the districts is, this cat, CAM can be STUBBORN, UNCOMPROMISING, & POSSESSIVE, but i gotta tell, ya, alls I seen is good things, like the fact that he’s PATIENT, GENEROUS, & RELIABLE. I guess that depends on how well ya know ‘em, though. the last thing ya need to know is that he is currently a GRADUATE STUDENT. I don’t know much about what that’s all about but I do know that’s all I can tell ya the rest you gotta find out on ya, own. ━ ( ooc: nadia, est, 28, she/her )

BIOGRAPHICALLY SPEAKING…

growing up he was exposed to;

Academia and creativity were two opposing tenets that thrived in the Reed household. His father, Arthur Reed, is an Economist and Professor at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire while his mother, Jun Jie (goes by Jeannie), is an artist whose focus is on naturalism and realism and who regularly showcases her work in art galleries on the East coast. His childhood home in Norwich was secluded, surrounded by 12 acres of privacy and the Connecticut River just past Route 5. As a child, Cam could spend hours running through the forest on the property, finding places to hide among the trees before heading to a country estate that felt too big for his family of three, finding his mother painting and his father reviewing his upcoming lecture. His parents made sure to foster both his educational and artistic pursuits, which resulted in Cam participating in a wide variety of activities throughout his school years and juggling between being a star student as well as a dutiful son.

all about the family & their relationships;

Cam was raised as an only child with two working parents in an upper middle class lifestyle and overall, he has a mostly great relationship with them. He has always felt the need to play many roles in his life and he understands the expectations placed on him to do well in whatever career that he pursues. Despite the time differences, he is able to talk to his parents every other day and they regularly update him via text about whatever mundane event that goes on in their day to day life. Cam understands that he is privileged to have their support as he continues with higher education which is why there is a part of him that is scared that he is going to lose it all. He feels that he can not tell them everything about himself and his biggest fear is losing the support that he has always had.

the road to portland starts with;

The story behind how Cam made his way from Vermont to Portland is practically as long as the journey itself. Growing up, there were expectations that were placed on him by his parents: go to school, get married, get a good job. The schooling part was easy, at first. As a minority growing up in an area that is 95% white, there had been concerns that he wouldn’t fit in with the rest of his classmates or that he would be ostracized for being different. Those fears turned out to be unfounded within the four walls of his high school. He was popular and academically stellar and by his senior year, he was both Class President and Prom King. When it came to decide what his future looked like, it was an easy decision to choose Dartmouth. After all, his father was a tenured professor and the school was literally a five minute drive away from home. It was at college that for the first time, he started to explore the different facets of his identity. It was at college that for the first time, Cam experienced people questioning him about his background and his parents and where he came from and why he looked the way that he looked. He had never understood the stereotypes that came with his race but it wasn’t until then that he started to look outside of the privileged bubble that he had grown up in and realized that others weren’t as lucky as he had been. Adding to that were the questions about his romantic status, about the girls in his classes and if any of them seemed like marriage material. Cam couldn’t dare tell his parents that while he did like women, there had been a fair amount of experiences with men that confirmed his feeling that he wasn’t 100% straight. Despite all these revelations, during college and after he graduated with his Bachelors in Psychology, every night, he was headed home to his parents house and back to the expectations that had been set. Go to school, get married, get a good job. After four years of floating through dead end jobs while living at his parents after graduation, the opportunity of the Masters program at Lewis and Clark was a godsend. He loved his parents, he really did, but he felt stifled where he was and hell, his parents were willing to pay for the entire thing. Portland would be a fresh start for him, the place where he could explore the parts of his identity that had become stagnant. What he hadn’t expected was that the first two years of graduate school would basically make him a hermit. Now that he’s on his last year, he can see the light at the end of the tunnel and he’s determined to make Portland the home that he has always needed.

his occupational perspective;

Currently, Cam is in his third and final year of graduate school at Lewis & Clark Graduate School of Education and Counseling. He is hoping to finish and graduate with his EdS degree in School Psychology. For his third year, he is required to complete a full-time internship in a public school setting, which doesn’t leave him time to also work a full time job. His parents have been paying for both school and his expenses while he completes his degree. He is sent a monthly allowance, though his mother has been known to transfer money into his account without his knowledge. Though Lewis and Clark College is located in the Lake Oswego neighborhood, Cam chose to move to the Northwest District as it was closer to the two schools he is interning at: Chapman Elementary School and Lincoln High School. As for how he feels about graduate school, Cam thinks he feels the same way that most graduate students feel: ready for it to be fucking over.]

#pb: resident: cameron kao liang reed #character: male #age: 30s #residence: northwest district #ross butler fc #bio

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goodticklebrain · 5 years

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Q&A August: Austin Tichenor of the Reduced Shakespeare Company

They say you should never meet your heroes, but obviously “they” were never enlightened enough to consider Austin Tichenor of the Reduced Shakespeare Company a hero. Like many Shakespeare geeks, I was exposed to Reduced Shakespeare Company’s performance of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) at an impressionable young age. Once the DVD came out, I watched it over and over again, soaking up the irreverence and affection for Shakespeare like a sponge. It never occurred to me that I would one day meet the curly-haired pompous idiot in the black pants whose antics had entertained me so much, let alone be lucky enough to call him a friend, but that’s exactly what has happened.

I first met Austin (after exchanging mutually admiring tweets with him) in April of 2016, during their world premiere of William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) at the Folger Library. I was prepared to be utterly starstruck, but Austin was so wonderfully down-to-earth that within minutes I felt like I’d known him forever. Totally lacking the pomposity and idiocy of his stage persona, Austin was overwhelmingly encouraging and supportive of my work, immediately welcoming me to play with him in the Shakespeare comedy sandbox. I had literally just started working full-time on Good Tickle Brain, so his enthusiasm meant the world to me.

I could gush about Austin for many more paragraphs, but I’m sure you’d rather hear from him, so here he is, my Comedy Fairy Godfather, in his own words!

1. Who are you? Why Shakespeare?

I’m Austin Tichenor, a playwright, director, and actor. I'm the co-artistic director of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, a three-person comic theatre troupe that reduces long serious topics into short silly comedies.

My first exposure to Shakespeare was undoubtedly in the original series of Star Trek! I read Shakespeare in high school English classes and got to see fantastic productions of Shakespeare at American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco and the Berkeley Reprtory Theatre, but I didn’t get to actually WORK on Shakespeare until grad school where I both played Claudius in a production of Hamlet and reduced my first Shakespeare (it was a directorial exercise: a five minute reduction of Much Ado About Nothing). My first professional theatre job was creating plays for young people so I went to Shakespeare immediately, creating 45 minute cuttings of Much Ado, Midsummer, and The Tempest.

So the opportunity to join the RSC in 1992 and perform its signature work The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) (written by the RSC’s founders) in London’s West End for eight months combined all my theatrical loves: smart silly comedy, non-realistic theatricality, and Shakespeare — which is kinda redundant, now that I think about it

2. What moment(s) in Shakespeare always make you laugh?

My favorite moments are typically when characters make incredible discoveries about themselves, and these are usually comic. Malvolio’s “I am…happy!” Terrible actor Francis Flute fully committing to the moment on “Dead, my dove?” Benedick’s “There’s a double meaning in that.” Hamlet toying with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, or telling Claudius he “shall nose” the dead Polonius as he goes upstairs. Olivia’s “Most wonderful!” when the penny drops and she realizes “Cesario” is actually Viola (and Sebastian’s twin).

3. What's a favorite Shakespearean performance anecdote?

I have two!

1) We were performing William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) for the Shakespeare Theatre Association conference — the savviest and most knowledgeable group of people I’ll probably ever perform for, ever. I was playing Richard III and limping downstage to say my first line, one of the most famous first lines in all of Shakespeare. But I was distracted because I saw there were people sitting on the sides and I didn’t want to limp too far downstage for them to see — and in my distraction I said, “Now is the moment of our...” As soon as the word was out of my mouth, I knew I’d blown the line (it’s supposed to be “Now is the winter of our discontent”) and I knew I couldn’t pretend that it hadn’t happened; not in front of that crowd, not in our style of show. So I quite audibly said, “Oh f&$# me,” and limped back offstage to come in again. This time I said the line right and emphasized the first word: “Now is the winter of our discontent!” It brought down the house and everyone asked whether I’d planned it. Sigh…no, I hadn’t.

Mya interjects: I was in the house for this performance and this moment remains one of the highlights of my theatre-going career. What Austin neglects to mention here is that Reed, who had been left alone onstage after Austin had retreated, went over to the wings as if to confer with Austin, and said, sotto voce, “No, I don’t think anybody noticed.”

2) We were performing The Complete Works on a stage that had a little runway that circled the orchestra pit. In one of the scenes, Adam Long (one of the RSC’s founding members) decided to hop over the pit, from the stage to the runway, and he ended breaking the runway floor and falling through the boards. Thankfully uninjured, and delighted that he had this opportunity, he immediately uttered the immortal words, “Don’t worry, it’s just a stage I’m going through."

4. What's one of the more unusual Shakespearean interpretations you've either seen or would like to see?

I’m glad that nowhere in here have you asked what my favorite play is. I don’t have favorite Shakespeare plays, but I do have favorite productions. Here are two:

1) The Folger Theatre at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington DC’s production of Love’s Labor’s Lost was delightful from start to finish: Incredibly smart, wildly funny, and wonderfully charming. The director and her team made the King’s desire for “a little academe” quite literal by re-creating the Folger Library’s handsome reading room onstage. (I wrote about this terrific production here.)

2) The Chicago Shakespeare Company production of The Tempest, co-directed by Aaron Posner and the magician Teller, turned Prospero into an actual wizard and filled the production with literal magic. (There must have been magic in Shakespeare’s original production as the First Folio has a stage direction that mentions that characters disappear by means of “a quaint device”. Teller filled his production with many quaint magic tricks and devices!) With music by Tom Waits and great comedy from its clowns, it was the most entertaining and completely realized production of The Tempest I've ever seen.

Favorite moments?

When Henry IV (Jeremy Irons) slaps his snotty son Prince Hal (Tom Hiddleston) in The Hollow Crown adaptation of Henry IV, Part 1 taking him (and the audience) by total surprise.

When Francis Flute’s (Sam Rockwell) emotions bubble to the surface unexpectedly in the ridiculous “Pyramus and Thisbe” in the film version of Midsummer.

When Juliet (Claire Danes) stirs and almost wakes up in time to prevent Romeo (Leonardo DiCaprio) from killing himself in Baz Lurhmann’s Romeo + Juliet.

When Antigonus (Gregory Linington) distracted the Bear, dooming himself but preventing the death of Perdita, in the Goodman Theatre production of one of my least favorite plays The Winter’s Tale.

5. What's one of your favorite Shakespearean "hidden gems”?

The hidden gem of Shakespeare is actually right out in the open: He’s written incredibly theatrical plays, filled with rich and elusive characters that still fascinate us 400 years later, and even the most serious of his plays (including his Histories and especially his Tragedies) contain more comedy than is generally realized (or pulled off). Shakespeare was a showman whose livelihood depended on entertaining his audiences, so he created plays filled with music, devices, comic bits, fascinating characters, time jumps, changing perspectives, and shifting tones that are always serious (especially his Comedies) but never solemn.

(You don’t ask what my Shakespearean pet peeve but here it is: Productions that lack urgency and ignore the above, as in: Comedies that are beautiful-looking and melancholy but not funny. Histories that ignore the comic chaos that Shakespeare layers in. Tragedies that are one-note, over-the-top, and not in any way believable. Romances that equate pastoral with languid and not compelling. Argh.)

6. What passages from Shakespeare have stayed with you?

Oh so many...

Beatrice’s “Kill Claudio,” which comes seemingly out of the blue and yet is so right.

Falstaff’s honor speech, when done right, in front of a live audience.

And I find Miranda’s “O brave new world that hath such people in’t” just incredibly moving. (I’m always moved by Joy. Tragedy can suck it.)

Mya interjects: “Tragedy can suck it” might be my new personal motto now. Thanks, Austin.

7. What Shakespeare plays have changed for you?

Henry VI, Part 1. Reading it again recently, I was struck by the level of chaos Shakespeare depicts in a kingdom struggling without a ruler. It’s almost like Monty Python meets Veep: Sentences can’t get finished because people are running in and out, declaring “I’m in charge! I’m in charge!” with grand impotence. Of course Shakespeare would write it like that: He needed to entertain his audience, who were probably also nervous about their aging queen who had yet to declare a successor. Shakespeare created a chaotic warning that England shouldn’t descend into that kind of comically dangerous madness again — a warning that wasn’t really heeded, unfortunately.

8. What Shakespearean character or characters do you identify the most with?

Having played so many of them (albeit in reduced forms), that’s a tough call. But because I’m also an actor and a playwright, the ones I probably identify with the most are Shakespeare's seemingly autobiographical ones: Peter Quince, the only (I think) actor-playwright in the canon. Hamlet, the Danish prince with surprisingly strong opinions about theatre’s power and how certain speeches should be played (and how annoying comedians can be). Benedick, who struggles with his writing so comically. Suffolk, who in Henry VI, Part 1 declares, “I’ll call for pen and ink and write my mind.” And Bottom, of course, who thinks he can play anything.

Mya interjects: PETER QUINCES OF THE WORLD, UNITE!

9. Where can we find out more about you? Are there any projects/events you would like us to check out?

I’ve spent the last several years doing incredibly deep dives into Shakespeare, across many media:

My RSC partner Reed Martin and I wrote Pop-Up Shakespeare, an incredibly fun (and useful) introduction to the Bard’s life and works with beautiful, amazing, and funny illustrations by Jennie Maizels.

I contribute monthly essays about the intersection between Shakespeare and popular culture for the Folger Shakespeare Library’s Shakespeare & Beyond blog.

My weekly podcast (now in its 13th year) is a backstage glimpse into the life and works of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, featuring interviews with our many comedian, actor, playwright, author, director, composer, dramaturg, and artist friends and many many deep dives into matters Shakespearean.

Reed and I also wrote the definitive irreverent reference book, Reduced Shakespeare: The Complete Guide for the Attention-Impaired (abridged), which is still inexplicably in print (perhaps cuz it’s definitive).

We also wrote the stage play William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) (“An absolute resolute hoot of a bawdy comedy of errors!” Broadway World), which premiered at the Folger Theatre in 2016, has toured the US and the UK, and is available for licensing via Broadway Play Publishing.

And in November 2019, the RSC will perform the international premiere in Israel of our brand new script Hamlet’s Big Adventure (a prequel) — what would happen if Tom Stoppard wrote Muppet Babies. It’s the comedy of the Prince of Denmark!

If after reading all this, for some insane reason you still want to get in touch, come find me here on Twitter. I think Mya will agree that it’s a much more civilized and fun place than its reputation suggests.

(Back to Mya) Thanks so much to Austin for taking the time to answer my questions! If you want to HEAR us actually talking to each other check out:

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #493

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #532

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #653

Q&A August continues next week with two phenomenal women who are using Shakespeare to build the most amazing things.

#Q&A August #shakespeare #reduced shakespeare company

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juleswolverton-hyde · 5 years

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Raven’s birthday

Top o’ the mornin’, lads and lasses, As mentioned just a few hours ago, it is now officially February 20th which also means it also marks the 20th nameday of a wee Raven. Now, personally, there is not much value attached to growing yet another year older and there is a more likely chance of whining about ageing than rejoicing in youth. Certainly, yours truly is that person. Another reason why the day is not all that special is because it is a weekday and university requires attention regardless of special events, which occur annually so is it truly all that extraordinary, as do friends in need of moral support during their presentation. As you can see: nothing is going on as it is a normal Wednesday. Also, as much as I would have liked to, an all-nighter was not pulled in order to complete the present I have for you because: a) I am too old to go all night. b) Coffee can only do so much before causing an overdose. c) It is better for the physical and mental health. Nevertheless, it has to be said that there are feelings of guilt mixed with the relief at not spending the nightly hours behind the screen finishing up the project and editing it. Quality is important and one should not rush projects as it can affect it quite a bit, but it still weighs heavy on the artist’s mind when they do not complete a promised work in time.

I sincerely apologize for this, regardless.

Alright, let’s put the negativity behind us and crack on. Lingering in toxic places has helped nobody in the way of progress. Instead of boring you with the same old morning routine and spending the coming hours as described in the last day-in-the-life blog, I want to tell you a bit about the dreams which have arisen over time and now form new perspectives on happiness. In particular, I like to talk about two which have especially shaped a vision for the future. In the last academic block, a couple of weeks ago, my literature professor made a remark that was carelessly disregarded at the time because it somewhat formed part of a preach about us not truly participating nor understanding the texts (may I remark that the sonnets and political texts were near incomprehensible without proper explanation which we did not get straight away, only acquired after really pushing through with questions and still ending up having to do our own research). Anyhow, he remarked how we are blessed by having opportunities others at our age might not have, saying how we carry the history and meaning of literature to the next generation and the public. The last part is all well and good, but it is the first part which started a long train of contemplation. It has to be said that it was also caused by a comment from an ARMY about the lads studying beside their glorious careers that gave even more food for thought. Because here I was, moaning about being stressed all the time due to university, while the guys’ life is so much busier than mine and they never seem to complain. Moreover, as said above and if it is true, they also study besides working their arses off.

What in the bloody Hell am I doing then?

I should not be moaning about it because attending university in the custom manner and living like a student is a privilege not many get. Certainly, our lovely boys do not and mayhaps thus have their moments during which the wish to be normal when it comes to matters like these seems like an unachievable goal. Hopefully, one good day, there is an opportunity for normalcy. For a life less bothered by the public eye. I hope that day comes. Secondly, I have never said much about personal dreams aside from the shallow goals set in the resolutions for 2019 (here). Truth be told, those as of yet unachieved achievements do contain the fancies of a lass who wants to create a grander reputation as an author, but it does not tell anything about the ultimate life mission. In the younger days of youth, all that was desired was a place in the city, a big name and being the centre of attention because apparently there was some great deal of importance to a girl who was essentially nothing. Now, however, after a lot of travelling and growing older, a cottage on the cliffs of Ireland or in a quiet Scottish town far removed from society and simply working on stories in tranquil anonymity is a very pleasurable future prospect. A goal to stick to despite the way of the world.

And it is that which personal belief judges as the most amazing birthday present: having something immediately or mayhaps in a few years that is truly worth it. For me it is a wee place to call “home” across the narrow sea, but what is it for you? What brings you happiness? Treat yourself.

Forever yours,

The Red Raven

#personal #update #get to know me #get to know the blogger #get to know the writer #Get to know The Raven

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racheljax-blog · 5 years

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Politics of Design (Reflection)

I just ordered Victor Papenek’s The Politics of Design on amazon because I think I need to question my visual decisions more often. I need to push myself to see how they relate to communities outside my own. My academic career has dictated to me a specific definition of “good” and so often I feel like its parameters are faulty and rely heavily on Western sensibilities. Swiss design feels archaic as a standard even though I so often find myself adhering to its principles. What does it mean when I find myself imitating the work of European white men who were most active in the 1950s? Is this a visual language that can be reclaimed or by accepting this as the baseline for “good” am I in some way perpetuating the values of an era anchored in exclusivity?

Conversation about vernacular design also fascinates me because the term is frequently met with repugnance, yet throughout the canon of art history artists have virtually always appropriated from the “naive.” (I’m thinking primitivism, pop art, any movement that seeks to lay claim to what was initially seen as lowbrow).

Basically: Why do I like what I like?

I really hate that “good” design feels elite. I mean this mostly in terms of print design. I think in some ways digital and UI/UX design, even though they can be used to market goods in the same way, are inherently more democratic because they exist in the “free” space of the internet. Over break I remember going into the gift shop at MoMa and spending at least an hour picking a book for myself. One book and I felt incredibly guilty about purchasing it for a sum of somewhere around $50. Art books are atrociously expensive, and while I understand why and empathize with their prices from the perspective of a designer, I also recognize that if I didn’t have the opportunity to travel to larger cities, to look at books within institutions like MoMa--my taste in design would probably be completely different. I think this is one of the reasons I love hoarding thrift store books--something about them feels so detached from what I’ve been trained to see as “right” and I love that about them.

I think the most interesting objects exist in a space outside of what we deem acceptable. Somehow I need to keep that in mind as I work on this project. I know at this point it isn’t going to morph into something radically experimental but I still want some sense of...me....and the quest for democracy that these communities represented.

Guess it just feels strange to think about artistic intent in a field that evolved for commercial application. Have no idea how to reconcile conceptual art with design but I...will....keep thinking about it...

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joeygattotv · 6 years

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Columbia University Essay 2018

Imagine giving a nineteen-year-old the chance to say anything he wants to a sold-out Yankee Stadium crowd. This was my reality as a young internet personality with a large social media following—though while Yankee Stadium only holds 54,000 people, I was able to reach hundreds of thousands of followers every day. As an entertainer, I founded a social media company with a network of collaborators, accumulated 650,000 social media followers, and headlined a ten-city music tour in the span of three years. Two years ago, however, I made the decision to depart my full-time job as an entertainer to pursue a career in academia.

My decision to change career paths baffled my peers: “But you made it! Why do you want to go back to school?” On the surface, being admired by others for one’s work is something many spend their lives trying to achieve. I loved that my work contained elements of creativity, but at its core, I had become a business. I had constructed an algorithm for appealing to internet users and was effectively implementing it.

I found the most success early on in my career as a professional vlogger. The vlogger has recently taken the internet by storm by providing a new form of entertainment which provides the viewer with a lens into his or her own life. It is not the role of the vlogger to produce well-written sketches or beautiful music. Instead, the vlogger’s role is to be a real and accessible person, a virtual friend. This dynamic creates a new and more powerful type of influencer in today’s social media-based society. When I gained a new social media follower, it was not only due to my artistic ability, but also because I had made a personal connection. This connection was a powerful tool from a business prospective—brands like Audible.com, Postmates, and MTV were all very eager to work with me due to the level of influence I had over my audience.

As my follower count grew, so did my dreams. I began to focus on expanding my business by collaborating with other online content creators. My networking skills developed rapidly and I was soon collaborating with creators who had tens of millions of followers. I went on to start my own social media company, The Settle Down Kids, which was a collaborative network of creators who produced video content under a common social media brand. Everyone in the network assisted one another in their own personal brand development while simultaneously producing collaborative content under the Settle Down Kids brand. This provided a route to more rapid business expansion and greater content innovation. The Settle Down Kids went on to produce live shows, merchandise, and web applications.

Sadly, the entertainment industry has a dark side. My relationships with other influencers became purely functional. I would get fantastic opportunities to work with creators with huge online followings, yet the content we produced together was never of the highest quality. We were only collaborating with the intent of promoting ourselves in front of each other’s audiences.

We were abandoning the craft because it made our businesses more profitable. This began to feel unethical as my content became more ingenuine. I had more eyes on me, yet, they were no longer seeing the real me. I was someone young people looked up to, which was a big responsibility that I was no longer taking seriously. I had been given the power to communicate ideas in a way people readily responded to, yet I was no longer using my power for good.

Two years ago, I rebranded myself and began encouraging my followers to pursue higher education. With the vast amount of anti-science rhetoric in the United States today, I felt I could make the greatest impact by making school “cool” again. From anti-vaxxers to climate change denialists, the mass open disregard for scientific facts has become too difficult for me to ignore. As an influencer, I felt uniquely positioned to combat this fraction of this epidemic impacting our youth. Alongside my general pursuit of knowledge and hunger for a greater challenge, I felt the world was missing a major social media influencer who was also an ambitious academic. Therefore, I enrolled in my local community college as a computer science major in the spring of 2016. It was here that I fell in love with science.

An elite scientist must find a union between logic and creativity to answer complex problems. From programming to mathematics, I found that the same skills that I used to produce content could also be used to solve technical problems. I could be producing a review of the Grammys or proving the cosine reduction formula, both have many different solutions yet some are more elegant than others. Finding the most creative way to get from point A to B is really at the core of both art and science. My studies helped me develop not only scientific skills, but also a scientific perspective which allowed me to comfortably engage my followers in discussions on climate change, artificial intelligence, and social policy. I greatly admired scholars like Andrew Ng, Neil Degrasse Tyson and Geoffrey Hinton who not only progressed their scientific fields, but also effectively communicated their ideas to the public. As my academic career progressed, I found that my desire to do good would be best fulfilled by devoting my life to science and pursuing a career in scientific research.

My dream became a reality this past summer when I was accepted into the National Science Foundation’s “Research Experience for Undergraduates in Data Science for Advancing Human Services” program. It was here that I spent ten weeks alongside Professor Usman Roshan and his graduate student Girish Sukhwani from the New Jersey Institute of Technology conducting research in data science. Together, we worked on optimizing the efficiency of image classification algorithms used in the field of computer vision. While Professor Roshan and his graduate student worked on the production of his new computer vision algorithm, I was in charge of developing artificial neural networks for image classification tasks. Our team was able to successfully reduce the vast computational expense typically required by computer vision algorithms while maintaining a high quality performance level. I also lead the authorship of our project’s abstract, which was published in the NJIT 2017 Book of Abstracts and presented our research at the NJIT Summer Research Symposium. I left the program with advanced knowledge of data science and have been invited to stay at NJIT as a part time research assistant.

In the future, I hope to continue research in computer vision, which I believe is the most important topic within the field of artificial intelligence. While humans can learn a lot by touching, hearing, tasting, and smelling, we gather the most significant information through sight. In order for a computer to become truly intelligent, it must be able to see like a human. Computer vision research will be the key to unlocking the true potential of artificial intelligence and I am very excited to be a part of the most cutting-edge developments in the discipline.

I currently have a second place submission in the ASSISTments 2017 Educational Data Mining competition. This competition is based off of data collected from a 2013 study co- authored by two Columbia researchers that searches for correlations between a student’s affect estimates and their raw state tests scores. The task at hand is to use this data to predict if students will go on to obtain jobs in STEM fields. As someone who has spent the past two years focusing on artificial intelligence and educational awareness, I felt an immediate connection with this project. It not only challenged me intellectually, but also sparked my desire to attend Columbia University. My ideal university not only delivers a great education but shares my desire to use data science to revolutionize the educational system.

Before I participated in the research program this past summer, I had no real interest in Columbia’s School of General Studies. As an aspiring scientist, I was skeptical of the liberal arts degree. The engineers at my college scoffed at those not pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science. Upon gaining real research experience, however, I now see the great value a liberal arts education will bring me. As a researcher, technical proficiency is a must, but equally as important are verbal and written communication skills such as conducting captivating research presentations and writing eloquent papers. The diverse range of courses in the liberal arts degree train one to think critically and provide a wide breadth of knowledge that is particularly important in the realm of data science. The most impressive part about the Columbia School of General Studies is the structure of their Data Science program. As Data Science and Artificial Intelligence are relatively new fields of study, most schools do not have a program that properly prepares students for graduate-level work in these fields. Data Science is truly a cross-disciplinary study of Computer Science and Statistics, and Columbia is one of the only universities offering such a program to undergraduates.

To most, being a machine learning researcher may not be as cool as being a vlogger. I think it’s time for that attitude to change, however. The online community needs a passionate and educated voice willing to show everyone how amazing providing public service through science can be. Columbia will prepare me not only to be a researcher, but to be a leader. My goals require so much more than a traditional education—they require a Columbia education.

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bettsfic · 7 years

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for fanfic authors considering a creative writing graduate degree

i’ve had a few people PM me about the grad program i’m in, and i thought maybe i would share some information i’ve learned about creative writing graduate degrees plus all the stuff i wish someone had told me before i started applying.

to give you some context: i own a house (that i purchased, i didn’t inherit) and i support myself completely. i’m not married or in a relationship and i don’t have kids yet. my undergraduate degree is in psychology. i came from a lower-class upbringing. i had never written an original work of fiction before applying; i had only written fanfic. i worked in finance for ten years at a dead-end job before i decided to go back to school. i applied to six schools and got accepted into one.

basic info

usually a creative writing graduate degree is called an MFA, or a Master of Fine Arts. it’s considered a terminal degree, that is to say, it’s the highest degree you can attain in the field of creative writing.

however, some programs are also MAs, and usually those are combined with literature or pedagogy. there are also a number of creative writing PhDs, which are less about the craft of writing and more about teaching and research.

MAs are generally two years, MFAs are anywhere from two to three years, and PhDs are around four. most schools offer the MFA, so going forward that’s the type of degree i’ll be discussing. the MA doesn’t stray far from the MFA, and the PhD is a whole other beast.

you’ll need to choose a focus for your degree. most MFAs offer fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. some offer scriptwriting or experimental/hybrid forms. some expect you to play around with multiple genres.

MFA classwork revolves around the creative writing workshop. a workshop is a class where you meet with your peers once a week to discuss the work you’ve read the prior week. you take turns submitting a story, poem, or excerpt, and while you’re the one being workshopped, you take notes while everyone talks. when you workshop your peers, you offer a letter of critique and participate in the discussion. workshop is also the place where you can ask about craft, publishing, or anything else you have questions about. workshops are run by a leader, usually a professor, someone who has a significant publishing history and experience teaching.

other classwork for MFAs include literature seminars, where you read already published work and discuss it with your peers while applying it to established theory.

an MFA thesis is generally a book-length work of your given genre, due at the end of your studies to grant your degree. it may also include some research component, like a craft essay or reading list, and an oral examination. you work with an advising committee throughout your degree to hone and revise your thesis, and generally use workshop to get peer feedback on early drafts.

MFA extracurriculars include working on your school’s literary magazine, doing readings of your work, and participating in your English department’s student organizations. there are usually additional opportunities that pop up throughout each semester, including meeting with established visiting writers (and hopefully these are writers of the super famous variety, which makes for great networking).

applying to an MFA involves a writing sample (the most important piece of the application), undergraduate transcripts, letters of recommendation, and a letter of intent. some also require the GRE. many have a $50-100 fee, but sometimes you can request a waiver.

assumptions debunked

here are some misconceptions i’ve come across and some i had when i began researching.

expectation: i can’t afford it

reality: that’s possible, but consider that many programs are fully funded, that is to say, the school will pay you to go there. no tuition, no loans, just a stipend that you’ll receive in monthly disbursements. it’s not a lot, but usually enough to get by.

the way it works is that in exchange for grad classes, you teach undergraduate english. this is usually a class called english composition, and many schools make it mandatory for all incoming freshman, which is how the english department gets funded, and they can return those funds to you, the grad student.

personally, teaching has become one of my favorite things i’ve ever done. i want to continue teaching when i graduate because it’s just really fun and incredibly rewarding. i highly recommend this route for an MFA because you won’t end up in debt afterward and you’ll gain a marketable skill (pedagogy) if your writing career doesn’t take off immediately.

expectation: i can’t quit my job

reality: there are a growing number of what are called low-residency MFAs. the above fully funded scenario are programs called full-residency, where you have to be on campus a few days a week, but low-res programs are mostly online, with 1-2 weeks per year spent on campus.

the downside to this is that there is usually minimal funding for these programs, which means you’re paying for them out of pocket or with loans. the people who go into low-res programs are usually people firmly established in their lives with some disposable income and a desire to improve their work. this is a great option if you’re currently working full time and can’t move to be near a fully funded program.

expectation: but my undergrad degree isn’t in english or CW

reality: GOOD. that’s what’s so great about writing as an academic discipline -- when we get nothing but formally trained writers, we get too many stories about the formally trained life.

your background, your work history, and your life experiences are all enormously valuable to a writing program. the weirder and more diverse you are, the more intrigued admissions people will be. they want people who can bring new perspectives to workshop, who see the world in different ways than those who have been trapped in academia for ages.

it’s definitely valuable to have an english undergrad degree, but it’s equally valuable to have life experience.

expectation: i’m just a fanfic writer

reality: GOOD. do you know how amazing fanfic is? of course you do, you write it. now imagine the sense of community and purpose and drive you have while writing fanfic, and put that in a physical place, and you basically have grad school. so if you like fanfic for all those things -- community, purpose, drive -- you’re going to love getting an MFA.

from a skill perspective, fanfic authors have something major that non-established ofic writers are missing: an audience. if you write fanfic to post on tumblr or ao3, you’re writing it with a specific audience in mind. you are probably acutely aware of how that audience will react, how to entertain them, and most importantly, HOW TO DEVELOP CHARACTERS.

i really thought i would get into an MFA and turn into some kind of holier-than-thou snob about fanfic, like suddenly my eyes would open and i would gain such an appreciation for, idk, Hemingway or some shit that i would completely forget about my fanfic roots.

N O P E. i’ve found a lot of published authors i like, sure, but i like them because their writing reminds me of my favorite things about fanfic. you will not have to sacrifice your love of fanfiction* to pursue an MFA, and you won’t have to change the things you love writing. people may think what you write is weird, but fuck ‘em. write what you want to write.

*you won’t be able to write actual fanfic in grad school, but there’s nothing stopping you from filing off the serial numbers. if str8 white men can do it over the entire span of civilization, so can you.

expectation: i don’t need an MFA to be a writer

reality: god, so true. if you write fanfic, you probably already have all the skill necessary to begin the publishing game if you want to go that route, and potentially all the feedback you need to keep improving. which begs the question, why would you even want an MFA?

i can only tell you why i applied:

i had reached a ceiling in my writing and wanted to explore and experiment with things i knew would never fly in the land of fanfic

i wanted to belong in a physical community of people who took creative writing as seriously as i did

i wanted ofic reading recommendations and a structured environment in which to work

i wanted to teach!!

i wanted to learn about and discuss literature at a level that is difficult to find outside of academia

i didn’t feel like my education was complete, and while i could have gone back to school for psychology, my qualifications more closely aligned with creative writing programs and honestly, it just sounded way more fun

i wanted access to databases beyond jstor

i had a lot of perspectives and opinions i wanted to learn to voice more articulately and in an artistic or research-based form

i was tired of my job and looking for a different career path

you might have different needs, or maybe some of these resonate with you. people get MFAs for all sorts of reasons. plus, your perceptions might change when you get there; mine definitely did.

expectation: i only write genre fiction, not “literature”

reality: you can write whatever the hell you want for whatever reason you want. you’re going to get feedback regardless, and your peers are going to care about the things you care about, and if they’re worth a damn, they’ll give you crit on their perception of your priorities, not what they think is important to the field of literature.

in the past year, i’ve read workshop submissions ranging from the onion style satire, to children’s literature, to hard sci fi. the point of an MFA is that you’re there to explore the work that interests you. you don’t have to conform for anyone for any reason. you are there to do your work, and the program is there to guide you and offer you support.

expectation: i’m not qualified because don’t have any publications

reality: you don’t need to be published to apply for an MFA. most people aren’t even published by the time they graduate. what you do need is evidence of your commitment to writing and the discipline thereof, that is to say, you write consistently, you’re passionate about writing, and that your writing sample shows both a command of writing as well as promise of improvement.

expectation: i don’t have what it takes to pursue a graduate degree

reality: i promise you do. the reason i’m writing this is because the fanfic community has some of the most humble individuals i’ve ever met, who are compulsively shy about their craft, and who have no concept how good they actually are. i see so much self-defeated mentality, so much impostor syndrome. but please believe me when i say

LITERATURE NEEDS YOU

literature needs the way you see humanity, your compassion, your interest in telling stories without want of profit, your eye for character, your drive, your commitment, your voice.

you are so much better than most of what’s out there. you may not see it now but it’s true.

expectation: i won’t be able to get a job with an MFA

reality: ehhhh kinda true, but if that’s the only thing stopping you, ignore it. a (full-res) MFA trains you for three things: writing, editing, and teaching. all of these are lucrative careers that are no more difficult to establish yourself in than most other fields. the graduate chemist has the same concerns about the job market as the graduate writer. it’s all gatekeeping rhetoric steeped in a terrible economy. you just have to trust you’ll be ok.

expectation: i don’t know what i would write about

reality: you can figure it out when you get there. no one else knows what they’re doing either.

i’m happy to answer more questions if you have them! i hope this helps some of you who are curious about how MFAs work. i’m sharing this because i never thought i would be able to do a graduate degree, and now that i’m here, even though it was a huge risk, it’s the best decision i’ve ever made.

[writing advice tag]

#writing advice #dow17

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zak-animation · 5 years

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Helen Schroeder: An Industry Perspective In this week’s Media Roles lecture, professional storyboard artist and animator Helen Schroeder returned to discuss her own journey into the industry, and offer a few tips for our own. Here, I want to discuss her own personal journey and the advice she offered to us as aspiring animators ourselves. Whilst this isn’t strictly related to my own research into Golden Wolf Studios or motion design, I felt this was important to document here as a way to evidence primary research into an industry professional and write down some of the key ideas she was discussing how to ‘break into’ the animation industry.

Firstly, Helen established her own stance on whether or not we should specialize in animation techniques and processes. Her own personal approach was that of a generalist: having done ‘lots of different things’ in the industry, Helen has developed and maintained a multi-faceted animation practice, with the ability to jump between disciplines. We were reminded that character animation is a highly competitive field and that we need to specialize now if we want to be high-level animators for clients such as Disney or Dreamworks.

This is something that I thought would happen, given how academic courses such as this one teach us to generalists. We have the opportunity to specialize either in our own time or after graduation. Whilst I appreciate the appeal of this approach, I can’t help but feel like we should be specializing even at this early stage. As students, we are encouraged to experiment with a range of mediums and animation techniques - something which subsequently prevents us from specializing and developing professional skills in one area.

With over ten years of working experience in animation, Helen followed a meandering and explorative path into the industry. We should be ‘open-minded, positive and opportunistic’ - a mindset that has worked for her, allowing her to jump from project to project without a specialist focus in mind. As a result, she’s had the opportunity to work on a range of assignments and with a variety of clients, gaining a wealth of industry experience that employers are looking for.

As an example, we should be open about our position and careers within animation. Helen herself was interested in stop motion animation and developing a character performance using puppets, but was scouted out as a model maker instead. It’s this idea of being open to new experiences and areas within animation that was key to her success in the industry and develop an understanding of the production pipeline. As a freelance animator and model maker, Helen found work with a variety of clients from television to advertising. Commercial and advertising animations can be a viable industry to explore further, as it ensures an audience and results in a stable, well-paying job. With this, however, we simply need to understand that we would be working on projects we do not personally like.

Working on this idea, we have to consider a balance between opportunities and pursuing our own personal goals as artists. As an industry, stop motion is incredibly mobile - and if we are not able to travel and move around frequently, it’s unlikely that we would be able to get a career in that specific medium. Fortunately, stop motion isn’t an animation technique that I plan on exploring further on this course. Personally, I’m more interested in exploring the potential of CG and 2D animation further as specialisms for the second and third year.

Something that Helen had to consider, however, was her own commitments. She wanted to work in the animation industry, but she ultimately wanted a family. With this personal goal, she was unable to go traveling with the industry and instead, looked for work that she could complete at home. In this time, Helen worked on a range of short term projects, before being accepted to storyboard for the BBC animated feature film Watership Down. With this project, she would commute two days a week into London, and work at home. This industry experience led her onto her current project on Locksmith, where she’s storyboarding an upcoming animated feature film.

As a result of this, Helen works primarily within pre-production, as a storyboard artist. This ‘is a great area’, she reminded us, because it is so close to the start and initial conception of the project. We’re at ground zero, and have the ability to really shape the project at this early stage. Personally, I’m more than happy to commute to a studio every day (which is likely, given how London is the central for animation in the UK) and I don’t plan to work as a storyboard artist. The actual animation process is what interests me, and it’s that idea of performance and movement that I will be focusing on moving forward.

Ultimately, we should take every opportunity we can ‘to get our foot in the door’. We are reminded not to set too much stock in our degree, and simply use it as an opportunity to learn and absorb all the information we can. Animation is an incredibly competitive industry, and people will always assume we know nothing if we arrive without any studio experience. With this, we should be focusing on developing craft skills, and looking into opening positions in developing studios. ‘Sideways entries’ are a good start, meaning beginning in a menial role such as a runner and working up the ladder from there.

After discussing her own personal journey into the animation industry, Helen then continued to explain best practices to maintain our careers - something which came down to a few main ideas: having a goal, being professional and opportunistic, and knowing what my strengths are. As students, we should be developing a professional attitude to our work. We need to take responsibility for our own work, our attitude and the promises we make. Helen reminded us that this sense of professionalism will be the ‘main thing’ that keeps us in work, and our ability to be adaptable.

Every project will be different and have its own dynamic. As industry professionals, we should have the ability to adapt our own attitude and skills to fit the brief: to look at the positives and take everything we can as an opportunity to gain experience and learn new things. We shouldn’t be arrogant about the work we create, and embrace the studio culture of making work as a team. Helen discussed her own experience with these ideas through anecdotes of working in the studio, but the main takeaway was to develop professional integrity and dedicated practice. If there’s a problem, we need to understand that (even though it might be) it’s never someone else’s fault, and we should take responsibility to solve the problem.

Something which I didn’t consider is the hierarchical nature of feature animation: it’s a ‘very hierarchal industry’ and those with higher positions demand respect. As animators working on part of projects, we need to develop a collaborative attitude and understand that we are working to benefit the team. Helen concluded her lecture with the class by reminding everyone that we don’t have to be ‘the best of the best’ to have a successful career in animation: just be open-minded, enthusiastic and ready to work.

Even at this early stage, though, we should be considering what type of career we want to pursue: whether we want to be a cog in a larger wheel, or develop our own wheel. Personally, I see real potential in working as a freelance motion designer and animator and starting my own independent business. This sense of independence from a larger studio does appeal to me, as I would be able to have complete creative control (with obvious exceptions from clients) over projects and develop my own professional practice.

However, I see a real appeal in working as a team and want to explore studio culture in more detail through Golden Wolf Studios and their own practices - so at this point, my focus is simply on developing my skills within animation, and understanding that there is a place within the industry for me to work. It’s important to consider where we want to go beyond this course, but always put a focus on developing our practical skills and professional practices.

Here, I’ve been able to discuss Helen’s own personal journey into the animation industry, but also elaborate further on some of the tips and advice she on ‘breaking in’. An idea that I really took on board here is ‘getting our foot in the door’. Ultimately, this is what we should be looking to do at this early stage - get out there, and introduce ourselves to professionals within the industry. This was my main takeaway from the session, and I will be reaching out to Golden Wolf Studios through email and Instagram to see if they would be able to discuss studio life with my team and I, to gather primary research for the presentation in a few weeks.

References:

Developing and Maintaining a Multifaceted Professional Practice. (2019). Helen Schroeder. https://prezi.com/iaclycyd4euh/developing-and-maintaining-a-multifaceted-professional-practice/?utm_campaign=share&token=7f031eb4afdbb 17bfe9201515a73b7001b0037f21ce20e88f26 426908dc227d8&utm_medium=copy

#ba1b:mediaroles

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blschaos3000-blog · 4 years

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Its 7:00 pm hot/humid

Welcome to “8 Questions with…….”

I was recently sent a new film called “To The New Girl” of which I loved and I think its one of the best films of the year. After watching it for the fourth time,I knew I wanted to interview EVERYONE involved in the film but also knew that wouldn’t be practical. So I went with the top two of my wish list and was lucky enough to land this interview with the playwright who wrote the play and later on the film,Sam Macher. Yes,I know my title says “Samantha” but the lady likes to go by Sam. Sam is one of the most multitasking artists I have met yet….writer,playwright,teacher and producer. She does this while also working in the professional world (as long as there isn’t a pandemic going on). I really wanted to know how her play has become such a powerful film and so I went slightly wild with my questions. Sam is the type of artist that you find yourself saying “8 Questions?? To hell with that….I got waaaaay more then 8 Questions to ask”. I hope you all enjoy this interview and getting to know the voice behind one of the best films of the year in “To The New Girl” as I ask playwright Sam Macher her 8 Questions…..

Please introduce yourself and tell us about your current project

I’m Sam Macher, the writer/producer of “To the New Girl”, an independent feature film from New Girl Pictures and Dragon Hunter Productions. I’m a playwright by training, producer by necessity, and storyteller by birth.

How have you been doing during this pandemic? Have you found it challenging to remain creative or has it been easy?

The pandemic has presented as many challenges as it has opportunities in a lot of ways. On the one hand, I was laid off from my stable day job, but on the other, I had more time and energy to dedicate to helping get this film project (and others) off the ground. All in all, I feel lucky to be safe and healthy, and though this hasn’t been the most creative time for me, I’m still able to work on projects I love with people I love.

What was it like growing up in your house as a child? Were your parents artistic and how did they encourage you to be creative?

I would say both of my parents are incredibly creative and imaginative in their own ways, so the nice thing about being their child is that there were no limits to what they thought I could do. My dad is a first generation American and built his own transportation/logistics business in our garage (it’s now been around for 30 years this fall!). My mom has worked her way from office manager to VP at a national non-profit and now works at a architecture firm, in part because she has an incredible passion for design. I think they both come from a “follow your passion- you’ll either figure it out or you’ll change direction” mindset. A lot of folks I’ve met during my career had well-meaning relatives that told them to pursue more traditionally lucrative fields of study and warned them away from unstable careers in the arts, but thankfully I never worried too much about that. For me, as the first one in my immediate family to go to college, their perspective was that so long as I got my education, everything else would work out. They turned out to be right. I learned the skills I needed to run my creative career like a business by producing my own work and this eventually translated into working at small non-profits then small businesses, and eventually even Fortune 500 companies. Once they got past my weird job history and somewhat irrelevant degrees, hiring managers saw my creativity as an asset and not a liability. I will say though that I got (and still get) a lot of benefit of the doubt along the way. Attending the right schools and having the right connections has undoubtedly helped me succeed. I don’t say this to undermine my talent or work ethic, but to highlight that lots of talented folks work hard and unfairly don’t even get in the door in creative or corporate spaces.

When did you start writing and what type of writing did you do? How important was reading to you growing up and who were your favorite writers growing up?

I started writing at a pretty young age. I think the first story I wrote was when I was six or seven. Thankfully, my mom kept all of my “early work”, and it’s funny to me that even then, it was surprisingly dialogue heavy. I also used to write TV shows for my friends and I to perform on the playground and spent countless hours making movies on the family camera. I read a lot as a kid and some of my favorite books were the Anne of Green Gables series. I think I read them/watched the Canadian miniseries dozens of times. I also loved RL Stine and all the Goosebumps and Fear Street books. I adored Steven King. I still can’t get enough ghost stories. One of these days I’ll finally get around to writing something spooky!

You attended and graduated from the University of Virginia,what was your college experience like? How much did your creative writing blossom while you were in school?

College was… weird. I wasn’t a great student, but I loved my spiritual writing and playwriting classes and probably took 6 of them during those 4 years. Even though my academics were a little subpar, I learned a ton. I learned how to write in a workshop, give and accept feedback, and self-produce my plays, which was completely invaluable. The training I got in the UVA playwriting program (headed by Doug Grissom) was a huge part of how ready I was for my MFA at Hollins (led by Todd Ristau). While I was at Hollins, I already had the toolkit to be a good collaborator, but they helped mold me into a good writer. So many of the opportunities I’ve had over the years have come from the reputation I established at Hollins and the classmates and instructors that believed in me enough to produce my work. To this day, I still have a strong relationship with both programs. UVA brings me back as a guest artist about once a year, and I’ve even gotten to be a guest lecturer as well. The Hollins New Works Initiative still functions as a production office for my films, allowing me to fundraise through their 501c3 infrastructure. Not all schools take this kind of risk on their alums. I’m grateful that my schools do.

What drew you to live theater and how did you get your start as a playwright? How is writing a play different from screenwriting?

Ah! I have always desperately wanted to be an actor, but alas, this is not a gift I possess. I don’t know what to do with my hands when I’m on stage. I can’t remember lines to save my life. My reactions as a person are wildly exaggerated, and so on stage they somehow look even more ridiculous! But, I figured if I couldn’t be on stage, I could certainly still be near it. I’ll tell you a quick story: My senior year of high school, we were supposed to have a spring musical. Then, our drama teacher left to go work at another school, then the person who took over the program resigned mid-year and the musical was cancelled. I was furious. Though I am a fairly crappy actor, I’m a pretty good singer (and am really enthusiastic) and thought for SURE this was going to be the year I was going to be in the play! So I did what I thought anyone would do, and wrote the spring musical with a role for me in it! It was funny because I wound up being so busy with rewrites and eventually producing, that I had to recast myself in the show, direct it, and then wound up producing the other student-written one-acts that we needed to couple with my play to make it a full evening of theater. The whole point was to be IN the play! But once I saw how awesome my classmates were, I really couldn’t envision it any other way. From there on out, I stuck to what I did best. Lurked backstage like the Phantom of the Opera, and lived vicariously through the folks in the spotlight. The second part of question is a little harder for me to answer. Aside from this project, most of my film work is documentary and movement pieces, so I don’t really write for the screen in a traditional way. Generally though, when I have written more straightforward screenplays, it’s a lot more “Show” and a lot less “Tell”. You think a lot more about what can be communicated with the character’s actions, their facial expressions, their moods, rather than what they’re saying. The classic axiom is “When you write a play, the audience should be able to know what’s going on just by listening to it. When you write a film, the audience should be able to know what’s going on even just by looking at it.” I try to just do that.

How did you get the inspiration for “To The New Girl”? How hard was it to take your words from paper to a live stage?

I went through a divorce in my early 20’s after a brief marriage, so the play itself is very loosely inspired by that emotional journey (not the factual one), but also by the women in my life who’d been through divorces as well. The stories I heard were both sad, and heartening. In their own way, they were telling young me that things would be hard, but you’ll get through it. I think I was trying to find a way to capture the essence of their advice to me to share with others, and wound up twisting it on it’s head a bit to tell the story we have now.

Have you ever done spoken word yourself and what drew you to basing your play on this format?

I have incredible respect for those who tell their stories this way, and also it seems, they have made an obvious (if not intentional) impact on the way I tell mine, but I’ve never performed spoken word poetry. I think the reason this way of storytelling appealed to me when I first started writing TTNG is that when you don’t have other characters to play off of, or a clear setting, it’s the voice of the character itself that tells you a lot about who they are. Is this character a fast talker? Does this person take long, deliberate pauses? Does this person invite you in, ask you to sit, and then tell you their life story? What do the answers to these questions tell you about how they live their lives outside of this play? When you bake in the pauses and emphasis, I think an actor gets a lot to chew on (or ignore, which is also fine). I think the acknowledgement that how and when we speak is almost as important as what we say, is something that spoken word poets and I have in common. How did you find your “voices” for “Girl”? How many original actresses made the transition to the film?

The original production at SkyPilot Theater Company in Los Angeles was developed in close collaboration with their actors and the original director Jeanette Farr-Harkins. I went to auditions, heard the women in the company read their monologues, and as I heard them speak, I started to see my characters realized. A lot of those speech patterns you see in the play evolved from imagining specific actresses in these roles. How they talk and how they move in a helped ground these characters while I was writing. Only one actress came from the original SkyPilot cast to the film- Samantha Carro. She played Elyssa in the original production. But Kelly Goodman is an actor from the original company, so when we were casting the role of Miriam, she came to mind really quickly. What were you feeling during Opening Night? What emotions were you feeling listening to your words?

I wrote this play so long ago (I think I was 24, so about 10 years ago at this point), so whenever I see this show, it’s a little like hearing people read your diary from that age. It’s surreal, but also incredibly cool. It’s nerve-wracking, but I also have enough distance from it to be able to evaluate the work for what it is today. I also feel incredibly proud that this play has had a decade of performances, and humbled/lucky that my collaborators have chosen to take it to this distance.

How did the idea of making “To The New Girl” from the stage to screen make you feel?

As an artist, in general, I’m very “let’s throw stuff at a wall and see what sticks” so I was on board from the get go. I also trust Laura Hunter Drago, our producer, with my very life so I knew for sure she was the person to trust with this project. I want to note that I was a little skeptical about there being widespread excitement for this project (sometimes I get in my own head about “why would anyone want to see my plays?”), but once the Kickstarter campaign was funded, I knew we’d have the support we needed to get it done. Laura never doubted it though. It’s amazing to have a producer with so much confidence in herself and confidence about the work. Did I mention I love her?

Did you have to make any adjustments in your play to fit the film?

Thankfully, not really. Since it’s such a simple script and setting (and it was workshopped pretty thoroughly), there weren’t a ton of edits needed to the final version of the screenplay. You are also a working professional,how do you balance your work life with your creative one?

I don’t 😊 It’s always kind of feast or famine either way. There are some times when I have the chance to throw myself into my writing and really go for it, and other times I have to hunker down and work so I can eventually support the writing. I think other writers definitely have more discipline in this way. I admire them greatly.

Where do you find the time to write and what is your process like?

At the moment, even in the pandemic with the layoff, I’m not writing a ton, but I am reviewing and revising work that I did in the past and making updates. I’m also seeing which projects I should be pushing for the next phase of production and which ones need to go to the back burner for a little longer. What I’ve found over the course of my career is that things that I worked on in the past have a way of becoming relevant again with time. TTNG is a lot like that- though I wrote it over ten years ago at this point, it has a new life and audience with the film. All that’s old is new again! When I am in writer mode though, it’s a little like a faucet. I’ll sit down over the course of a few days, get the whole ugly story, warts & all, out of my brain in a few sittings. This, of course, comes after months of thinking about the characters, hearing how they talk in my mind, and wondering what is it about this time in these characters lives that makes this part of their story interesting? Why am I dropping in on them now? Why would the audience want to see this? For example: With TTNG, I think we’re dealing with an emotionally charged moment for these women. They have something to say, they’re going to say it, and we (as a stand in for the woman they can’t say anything to) are going to hear it. We become a part of their journey- that’s why we’re here. After the inital brain dump,I honestly spend the next few months workshopping,rewriting,etc until I have something I can share with theater companies/filmmakers that I’ve worked that might be excited about it. Sometimes my collaborators love it! Sometimes they really don’t,or it’s not a fit for their audience. From there,I make a decision about next steps.Do I keep tweaking it or do I put it on the shelf for another time?

What do you enjoy about teaching theater? Do you feel live theater still has a viable voice in the face of all the streaming channels we have now?

There’s nothing I don’t enjoy about teaching theater, especially with younger students. It’s always a joy to share what you love with people, and watch them do it on their own in their own way. | One of my favorite classes I ever taught was with a group called Determined to Succeed in Los Angeles. They paired me and my friends Nikki Adkins (an amazing children’s playwright), Elizabeth Dragga (founder of the non profit Book Truck), Jac Sanchez (a wonderful children’s librarian) and Jaime Robledo (an accomplished LA Theater Director and Writer) with local middle school students, and together we helped them write, produce, direct and star in their own plays. The kids were already so awesome, but it was fun to see them blossom over the summers into actors, writers, and directors. I hope that even if it didn’t instill a lifelong love of theater, that it taught them to be confident in their writing, proud of their stories, confident public speakers, and most importantly generous collaborators. Theater teaches all of that.

How can live theater connect with new generations?

In the example with the middle schoolers, I think we saw a lot of intergenerational give & take. We taught them how to tell their stories in a new way and helped them start to understand why the stories we tell are important. On our end, we learned a lot about what’s important to middle school students- what makes them laugh, what makes them sad, what makes them hopeful, and were able to drop any preconceived notions we had about “kids that age”. They consistently demonstrated heart and maturity beyond what I would have thought possible from 12 year olds (shows what I know), and gave us an opportunity to think about all we had in common, even being more than decade older. (On a personal note, I also learned what YOLO means, which was great. I have used this term now unironically for long past it’s cultural expiration date to the eyerolling of everyone I know under the age of 25.) Live theater, particularly new plays, provides a platform for those who don’t always have the most power in the room (like kids) to tell the people who do (like grownups) about their lives. It elevates and validates the stories being told. A production that does this successfully says to its creators and collaborators “This show/film was absolutely worth the time we invested, the money we invested into making it happen, and we also believe it’s worth the time and money our audience is investing as well.” It says to the audience “We trust you enough to know what to do once you’ve heard these truths” (This holds up for comedies as well as dramas, I think). This is why live theater is so important. Not to say that every show you’re going to see will be transcendent (I know I’ve written some real stinkers) but again, at its best, you’re in the moment with those characters and their lives and their joys and sorrows. They become a thread in the tapestry of your understanding and empathy toward other people. You can’t replace that in-person connection. This is why it’s invaluable not only to have live theater but to have live theater that represents and values diverse voices and stories, and now more than ever elevates those who are underrepresented in the canon.

What do you like doing when you’re not at work or writing? Do you have hobbies,causes,activities you like to do?

In the pandemic I’ve become a pretty enthusiastic gardener! I’m also enjoying cooking with the plants that come out of said garden. I also work as a volunteer activities coordinator (at least I did in the before times) for a local organization called ECHO that provides day support for medically disabled community members. Otherwise, I like hanging out with my husband, Bryce, and my dogs, Bridget & Neptune. What will be your next project?

I’m currently in post-production on a documentary film chronicling the stories of Black equestrians in the county where I grew up with my friend and producer Nola Gruneisen. It’s called “You Should Be In Here, Too” and we’re scheduled to complete it hopefully next year! The cheetah and I are flying over to watch you launch your latest play but we are a day early and now you are stuck playing tour guide,what are we doing?

Wow! I’ll have to find some Cheetah Friendly places 😊

My perfect day in the hometown area: Start by seeing a matinee at the Angelika Mosaic Movie Theater in Merrifield, VA. They have the best popcorn in town and a fabulous film festival- The Northern Virginia International Film & Music Festival.

Then we’d want to talk about what we just saw, so I’d suggest the Lake Anne Brew House in Reston. It’s a great place to have a beer while looking at a Lake. Perfect for post-movie conversation, and they have a patio, so totally cheetah-friendly. And then grab a substantial bite to eat at Ariake Sushi down the street.

The next day, you should definitely take a drive out to Middleburg, VA (where Laura and I met, and most of my new film was shot) and visit The Upper Crust bakery for a Cow Puddle cookie. From there, you’ll enjoy the rolling hill drive toward the Shenandoah National Park. Stop at the Apple House for donuts near the entrance to the park. You won’t regret it.

I like to thank Sam (and Christa!!!) for taking the time to sit and talk with us about her new film,live theater and life in general. I can’t wait for “TTNG” to drop because I really believe its going to change and reshape a lot of people’s lives…..both from the creative side and also from the audience side. The fim will be drop this month on Amazon Prime so you’ll have plenty of chances to see it.

I like to thank you,the reader,for reading and supporting this interview. Feel

8 Questions with……….playwright Samantha Macher Its 7:00 pm hot/humid Welcome to "8 Questions with......." I was recently sent a new film called "

#8 Questions With #award winner #cow puddle cookies #family #original plays #peers #playwright #Producer #relationships #Samantha Macher #teacher #U of Virginia #Virginia #volunteering #writer #Writing

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ryanhsummers · 5 years

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Business Plan Presentation Post

It's kind of surreal to be at the end of the degree program. It hasn't seemed like a long dragged-out process. I think this is mostly because each course tends to keep you pretty busy. I learned a new level of time management over the last year. I think this has seemed like a longer process to my wife. She's never complained, but I've certainly taken time away from my family on the weekends. I usually tried to finish as much of my work during the week as I possibly could. I've never been one to allow others to determine my deadlines. I always tend to start assignments as soon as they're open, so I don't run into last minute problems. This also allowed me to ask the course directors questions during the week while they were still around. I'll give a run down of the courses here -

Mastery - I think the best part about the Mastery course, was Dan Spellman. He seemed like a genuinely positive and considerate person. I hear he left to go do some marketing work for Universal. I would have liked to have him in the Digital Marketing course, and I was looking forward to spending more time with him. Professor Woodward took over some of the Digital Marketing responsibilities, and he did a fine job. The Mastery course started me thinking about my goals more - within context of my career. It made me feel like I needed to do more research in general and it taught me to take on my research of my own in figuring out how I can create opportunities for myself.

Executive Leadership - Executive Leadership was an interesting course. I like the books we got for it. I'm a pretty big fan of John Maxwell. I think he has a pretty good feel for demystifying management concepts. On the other hand, I'm not much of a Robert Greene fan, unless I want to pick up some ideas about how to obliterate other people for my own gain. I know that's not the entire point of his writing, but I find his concepts to be a little more difficult to practice. I also felt some of his examples were a little bit of a stretch. This made the subjective grading of the assignments a little annoying. Overall, I took away from this course the necessity of really lifting people in management. I have always felt this way anyway, so it wasn't a challenging adjustment.

Project and Team Management - Professor Lester introduced me to project management software. I really like organizing things and creating timelines. I appreciate the free use of the software we were given while in the class. I hope the school has an opportunity to partner with another software developer at some point, because this software is a little buggy and that can be scary. I really want to run the Monday management software online, but it's pricey to spend $30mo for it, so I'm not there. I look forward to taking these legitimate concepts into my future planning work in my career and look forward to using this kind of software as well.

Business and Storytelling - I remember specifically getting into Adobe Spark for the first time and I hated it. I felt so limited. It wasn't fair to the course, but I remember trying to record voiceovers per slide rather than a narrated presentation take like we did for our final business presentation. I also spent a lot of time trying to figure out my business name. The name I settled on at the time was Orbalign. I was looking for a unique brand name I could trademark. I bought the URL and everything. Later I decided on High Harbor, but that URL was $1000, so I went with "High Harbors". It was a good exercise in brand identity and helped me discover the process for solidifying a name which allows you to reserve all of the social media channels that go with it.

Entertainment Business Finance - I thought this course would be really difficult, but I learned early on that I could find Excel formulas for everything and that made everything much more understandable. When you don't have to retain all of the math formulas, you can focus on the concepts a lot more. I think academically, the program is missing an opportunity to utilize Excel a lot more by showing students how to organize formulas for these things and creating a single document to use for reference. Instead, it becomes very intimidating to read through the book. In that course you have to watch the GoTo sessions with Chris before doing the reading. I tended to start the reading immediately. I learned I spent a lot more time worrying that way. This course forced me to lay out the math formulas for how my business plan would work. That took some time, but I like Excel and it was a real accomplishment for me. I spent more time in that course developing things than any other course. I was time well-spent.

Digital Marketing - Digital Marketing was good, but it was a little unorganized. Around this time, I also purchased a little book written by a family friend - Flint McGlaughlin from MECLABS. It's called The Marketer as Philosopher. It's all about understanding marketing from a perspective of understanding people and ultimately what it takes to cause people to click on every "call to action" to get a conversion. Since this course, I am much more critical of website design in general. I think that's a good thing. I think the less money a website has for implementing financial tools, the more calls to action they have to cycle for the buyer to purchase something. This is a detriment to conversions and revenue. I feel a good strong understanding of these things - tying in social media channels and digital retail tools together as efficiently as possible to create conversions.

Negotiation and Dealmaking - I liked this course for one simple reason. It trained me to be confrontational on purpose. I've always had an issue being confrontational, but when I understood how it is expected and you're supposed to return a better position for yourself, it made negotiation a fun concept to review. I liked this course. It also helped me save money on my car purchase a few moths ago…

Product and Artist Management - This course was good for helping me plan some personal marketing ideas for a music release I was working on. I planned a printing of a dual CD manufacturing. I also recognized that most CD printing services don't do dual CD printing any more. This was a good course for helping me understand how to create a target market and put an honest price value on goods sold. I think sometimes we find it hard to be honest about out market and what we can get.

Advanced Entertainment Law - This course gave me a good, continued understanding of contract language from the Negotiation course. It also helped me understand legitimate liabilities in my business model and how to cover for those. Starting a business is all about minimizing liabilities. My business model requires a number of legal agreements and contract templates. This helped me prepare for that process.

Entertainment Media Publishing - During the month, Professor Kim was recognized as educator of the year. This course came along right at a good time for me as I was preparing to promote a music release. I learned about the use of professional communication to reach out to publishers and music supervisors. This set my official release back because I recognized the work I needed to put into this and didn't have time for. My emails are ready to go out in a few weeks now that I'll have more time.

Business Plan Development - What can I say? My business plan is over 30 pages. This was the culmination of everything. It made the work I put in for the full degree program worth it, to finally summarize everything into this document. I feel good about my first business plan, but I also recognize that my business plans in the future will be much more cleanly developed. The first one is rarely the best one. I think I did good for my business concept though. I learned the uniqueness of my network marketing business and the challenge of pitching something so different from a typical revenue model.

Final Project Business Plan - I've enjoyed putting the finishing touches on the business plan and seeing the presentation through. In some ways, I was adjusting things right up to the last minute as Professor Bill was giving me suggestions. I don’t think a business is ever really fully developed until you get into it. I've understood the business plan is essential for documenting the process you've taken to think of as much as possible. It’s the only way to prove to investors that you're serious.

I'm proud of the process we all took and appreciate the organization of the degree. I think that due to the subject matter, this could be something that is always constantly evolving in the way the academics are organized. The process brought me through my first business plan and the presentation of it. I feel like I really know what I'm doing and know what I'm talking about. That makes it a relief to see the time I committed to it go to good use and contribute to my overall growth.

Ryan

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cynthiadshaw · 5 years

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#LadyBoss: redefining what a boss looks like

Too many of us grew up only seeing one kind of boss or leader in the media. The lack of representation for other groups reinforced harmful stereotypes and acted as a self-fulfilling prophesy, but would our opinion of what a leader looks like be different if the media did a better job at representing the true diversity of leadership in America?

Women and other under-represented groups are already leading many great companies, organizations, & academic institutions; others are authoring best-sellers, building engaged audiences, leading movements and more.

We had the honor of connecting with many of the best and brightest female leaders from in and around the city and we asked them our question of the month: What is the best advice you have for someone who feels like they are facing insurmountable odds.

We encourage you to check out the female leaders we’ve highlighted below, follow them on social media if you find their work or story interesting and most importantly do your part to #fightstereotypes.

Cristie Schlosser | Interior Designer | Real Estate Investor & Educator

When I am facing a challenge that I feel is insurmountable I meditate. Meditation helps to calm the mind and provide a space for clear thinking. There are a few questions I typically ask myself. 1) Is this a life or death situation? Most challenges are not life or death. After you have children, situations no longer feel so overwhelming. Life is precious and that reality has an uncanny way of anchoring oneself. 2) What long term effect will this challenge present? Identifying long term effects can really drive decisions and move us forward. Not taking action is a decision and sometimes it’s appropriate and feels better not to act; other times making a choice to take action allows us to have more control. Fear can be healthy. When I chose to change careers and go back to school I was overwhelmed, but I pushed through the fear and did it! 20 years later, I’m adding adjunct faculty to my area of expertise. A little fear can be a good thing. May you blessed with options of your choosing. Live well and with beauty.

schlosserdesign.net @schlosserdesign

Dr. Philecia Vassell | Physical Therapist & Certified Trichologist

If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.

ConfidentConcoctions.com @Confident_Concoctions @CConcoctions

Paola Castro | social media influencer | content creator

Keep your head up high and just remember after rain comes a rainbow. In order to learn and grow as a person you have to go through hard times, so stay positive, you’ll over come it and soon and by then you will see it as a growth experience.

@paojcastro

Evo Lineberry | Landscape Designer & Dallas Citizen Forester

Challenges spur growth — stay focused on trying to grow, rather than trying to beat the challenge. This mindset puts failure into perspective, and helps me to appreciate how far I’ve come instead of fixating on the areas that I’m not perfect in. When you cut yourself some slack, challenges suddenly don’t feel so daunting. I look at past accomplishments, remind myself that I’m capable, and face challenges with my head up. Trust the path you’re on, and take it one step at a time.

blueribbonlady.com @blueribbonlady

Madeline Stokes | blogger

As a Christian, I feel it is so important to turn to the Lord when things seem impossible. There is nothing He brings into your life that you cannot handle. Live each day one day at a time. Use the challenges you are facing as a lesson + learn from it, to one day share your experience with others who may face the same thing as you. In the mean time, coffee + bubble baths help too (:

themagnolialeafblog.com @themagnolialeafblog

Melissa Jennings | Real estate agent with Briggs Freeman Sotheby

I think mindset is key to overcoming obstacles. Envisioning the challenge being completed and the feeling of gratification you will get from it helps set the stage for what’s to come. I am a firm believer in the message “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right”

Angela Yaun | CEO Real Estate Broker | Owner of Day Realty Group & Founding Member of Forbes Magazine Real Estate Council

All of us at one point or another have faced or will face a challenge we feel is insurmountable. Did you catch that key word….”Feel”? In this day and age we live in, there can be too much focus or unhealthy obsession with our “feelings”. Those “feelings” can create bad habits, addictions, and make us choose a different life path that maybe we might not have chosen. So how do we overcome these “feelings” when we are faced with a insurmountable challenge? Ask yourself is it Really insurmountable? Is there a way out? Is there a way under, over, or around it? Let me give you an example….I hear a lot of times “I’m too old to start a new career”, or “I’m too overweight to date anybody.” Unless you have passed away, your age and your weight should never stop you from anything. Mary Kay Ash the beautiful and famous #ladyboss from Dallas TX and businesswoman founded Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc., when she was 45 years old (Wikipedia). Obviously Mary Kay didn’t let her age stop her from creating an entire company from scratch. Once you have determined that ok maybe you can go through this, now you have to sit back and allow your destiny to unfold. You see we all get so wrapped up in trying to figure out the “how” when God, or The Universe has this figured out for you. I often say this a lot to my clients and family….”Don’t limit God”. You see it is SO much easier to rest in Him and allow the flow to begin. So now that we figured out 1) You will not wallow in “feelings” long 2) You CAN do anything unless you are dead 3) Do not limit God or the universe The best part is….. 4) Take the Opportunities that will soon appear because they will Write down everything you want, everything you need, and everything you will overcome. It’s amazing how you will actually start to see the check marks on your list will outweigh the new tasks. I’ve seen it in my own life and I have definitely stopped limiting God. Let me package this all up for you into one word and let it be your motto when times seem tough and you want to feel those “feelings” and that word is HOPE.

FreeHomeListDallas.com linkedin.com/in/angelayaun @dayofangela @angelayaun

Akayla Sims | Makeup Artist

Model: LaRonda Davis Photographer: Johnathan Hill

To anyone facing a challenge that feels insurmountable, break that challenge down piece by piece & look at the bigger picture. I believe approach & perception is everything when it comes to facing challenges.

@1joystick_ @miss_kaayyyy @freshbvd squareup.com/appointments/book/HFAME95KNP7Z9

Tionia Nixon | Entrepreneur | Owner of SweetGyrl Cosmetics

The best advice I could give to anyone facing a challenge that seems insurmountable is to pray and then trust God’s answer and/or instructions. During any challenge I face I talk to God first. Then I reach out to someone specifically my mom who I know can get prayers through to God on my behalf. Naturally, I don’t stress or panic. I weigh the pros and cons of the challenge and tackle it head on with God by my side!

sweetgyrlcosmetics.com @_sweetgyrlcosmetics @theSweetGyrl @SweetGyrlCosmetics

Tamara Glennon | Mom | Wellness Advocate, Blogger at A Packed Nest

If you are facing a challenge that you feel is insurmountable, my biggest piece of advice would be to start your day, every day without fail, with a daily affirmation. Every morning! Just DO it! This is a good one. “My strength is greater than any struggle” I pair my affirmations with my favorite essential oil Valor! The oil of courage! Next break it down into bite size pieces. It’s feels less daunting that way. Now that your problem is broken down into bite size pieces “eat” (tackle) the biggest piece first. Remember this quote from Mark Twain “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” You got this!

@apackednest apackednest.com

Dj Teezy | Music Curator | Club & Mobile Dj

@anniedevinetx

The best advise I could bestow would be to keep moving forward. Even when it feels insurmountable, keep pushing. If there is a will there is a way and I truly believe in that. Everything will be okay in the end, if its not okay, its not the end.

@teezydoesitt

Jennifer de la Cruz | wellness coach an entrepreneur

Throughout my journey, I have learned so much. You see I am a mother of two beautiful girls. I married my high school sweetheart. I also have my full time job as a teacher assistant. I am recent graduate received my BA in education to peruse my dream career as a teacher. It seems like everything was going well, right? The true is I wasn’t happy as much as I tried to be happy something was missing. That was ME. I didn’t know who I was. You see my whole life I’ve always put someone else dreams before mine. My parents wanted me to have many roles in life. Since they never received a full education they wanted all of their children to do so. I have many backgrounds I have my medical assistant and cosmetology license is amazing to have many doors, but my passion wasn’t there. Until, one day I realized I was depress, I was diagnosed with deep depression I was always tired and full of excuses. I didn’t had a life nor memories. Then, it hit me. I needed to changed my mindset and lifestyle. I started with taking care of me. I slowly started going to gym I wanted to do something that could help me with my depression. I started losing weight started feeling good about myself and was gaining a bit of confidence. Then out of no where I received my a phone called that I needed to pay my last two semesters of not they weren’t going to give me my bachelors. I felt like that was the end of the world. After thinking to myself I told myself I wasn’t going to quick I came this far for nothing. I decided to become an entrepreneur I slowly started receiving extra income and was able to pay off my debt. Sharing my story to you. Might give you hopes or maybe your story might bring other a bigger impact. You see i never gave up even though I felt at times that i wasn’t enough to be able to do it. My daughter matter in my life and that kept me going. Your why needs to be so powerful that everything Ike you think about it needs to be emotional. I suffer so much financially I don’t want to keep struggling anymore. You will never know how it feels until you finally take action. Doing what I do now. I was able to open up my own business. I am able to help my community here in Grand Prairie, Texas. To remind me that someone may need a smile and give them hope. They matter and they are worth it. My advice is never settle and don’t let someone opinion get they beat out of you. Don’t let anyone opinion stop you from achieving what you want in life. Think about your goal, write it down and take action. If it wasn’t for me that I gained so much confidence because I now love myself. I am able to take care of someone else I wouldn’t have never started. Oh, remember this. The bigger the challenge the bigger the problem. Overcome your fears don’t ever feel like you need a paper to tell yourself you have skills. A paper is a paper at the end. Your passion is much more. Last, but not least. Your life is a plastic you are able to shape it in any way your heart desire you can even reshape it. It takes a long time to achieve something and be successful. Success is a pleasure. If you are not fulfill with what you are doing today you can not be possibly be successful. Get a goal and don’t stop till you teach it. Just because you reach it don’t mean your done. Master it and really understand it.

@jen_delacruz07 @Jennifer-Paz

Heather McGee | Beauty Blogger

The best advice I have for someone who is facing a challenge they feel is insurmountable would be to take that first step. It’s going to be the hardest and scariest thing you might ever do, but take that first step. Be patient and kind to yourself but also persistent. Celebrate every goal however small it might be. You are the only person standing in your way!

@heather_mcgee anotherbeautyblogger.com

Sarah Evans | Natural Hairstylist

If I was to give a person advice on facing a challenge they felt was insurmountable I would tell them they should release themselves from mental chains that is holding them down. Life is a mental game. You have to focus on the positive things. If you have the power to change things, do so. Be at peace with what you can’t and fall in love with the process. Its not about the destination, but the journey itself.

@babygurubraids

Alysa Teichman | Ylang 23 VP of Business Development & Buying

When I am coming upon a challenge that feels insurmountable, I spend some time visualizing my success. It really works! Better yet – when someone tells you that you can’t accomplish something, studies show that a mechanism kicks in that will make you successful. In sum, no means yes!

ylang23.com @alysa_ylang23

Ashley Bryan | Hand Tied Halo Extensions Artist & Salon Owner

In business and in life we all face obstacles and challenges. How we deal with those truly shows our integrity and character and honestly our commitment to our goals. In my case, once I decided on something in life or career, there was no going back. No obstacle that I couldn’t face and learn from and no one that could deter me from what I wanted. This was not always the case for me. In my college years, I was told that what I wanted in life wasn’t achievable, it was too hard, had too many cons and not enough pros and I was told to settle for the safe choices. I did that for a while and realized I wanted more, I wanted to stand in front of those challenges and prove to myself, my kids and my doubters that I could achieve whatever I wanted for myself and my family. Some days it was hard to look forward but I got up every day and chose to face the odds head on, whatever came my way I would be ready for it. Try to remove yourself from your situation and become a problem solver. This is an opportunity to learn and grow. Of course not giving up on your goals is key and working through the challenge will make you a better person, entrepreneur, or team player. Surround yourself with people that GET YOU and support you so that you can talk the issues out and maybe take a piece of advice. Align yourself with like minded people, even if that’s just your spouse or your best friend. But the most important thing to do when facing something that seems like it mind end your journey to your goal, is to not give up. It’ll be so worth it on the other side!

ashleybryanstylist.com 2tensalon.com @ashleybryanstylist @2tensalon @ashleybryanstylist @2tensalon @handtiedhaloextensions

Emily Hood | Recipe Developer | Food Blogger and Social Worker

While I have faced challenges in my life, there are many other people who have faced things more challenging than I can possibly imagine. On social media and my blog, I am a recipe developer/food blogger, sharing healthy and Whole30/paleo focused recipes with my community. However, the rest of the time I am a School Social Worker, and I have the opportunity to work with students and families who face challenges that truly do seem insurmountable. Some of the students I work with have an incredible amount of resilience and strength, and it is part of what helps them through their daily challenges. While I am may not an expert on how to face challenges, I am honored to be able to work alongside the students, parents, and families that trust me with theirs. They allow me to walk alongside them, listen to their struggles and pain, and try to problem solve where to go next. So my best advice? Find a listening ear, a family member or friend, a counselor or therapist – going through a challenge that feels too big to handle will feel much more manageable if you can do it alongside someone you trust.

theprimitiveplate.com @theprimitiveplate pinterest.com/theprimitiveplate @theprimitiveplate @primitiveplate

Jennifer G. Thompson | Artist | Educator | MFA Candidate

I think the best advice I have for someone who is facing a challenge that seems insurmountable, is to write down what your challenge is. Then, break it down into achievable steps and do your best to check each one off. It may seem hard, but please don’t forget to ask for help, take time for yourself and pray everyday. I know in life we all will face insurmountable challenges but you are going to make it to the other side victoriously. I believe in you. Believe in yourself.

jennifergthompson.com @tx_fad @_jennifergthompson_

Alleah Austin | Hairstylist + Makeup Artist

My advice would be to embrace the challenges in life, no matter how big or small. I think a lot of times when things get rough, human nature makes us want to give up. But I truly believe a lot of hard work and failure is behind most success stories. Challenging times are inevitable, but if you change your outlook and look at your challenges as an opportunity, your outcome can change.

@alleahaustinbeauty alleahaustinbeauty.glossgenius.com

Samantha Bedgood | Cookie Artist

My biggest piece of advice for someone facing a challenge that feels insurmountable is to ask for help! Find the people that love and support you and lean on them when you need it. They may have a solution or perspective that you wouldn’t have come up with on your own!

ohtastebakery.com @ohtastebakery

Angel Morris | Journalist by day, bargain hunter all the time

Consider your resources. Do you have family, friends, colleagues, acquaintances who can assist in any way? Are there groups in your community to whom you can reach out? Whether it’s a personal goal or an actual need you have, there is often someone in your circle who can help if you’re just willing to ask. We’re all put on this earth to ease one another’s burdens, in fact. Let others aid you however they can, then turn around and support the person behind you!

lifeonclearance.net/lessons-from-the-thrift-store @lifeonclearance @lifeonclearance

Hannah Kingsolver | Photographer and Bank Teller

It’s cliche to say, but everyone needs to hear it at some point or another… NEVER GIVE UP. Some people need to be reminded more than others that when there is a set back, you find a way to overcome it. Life is the BEST thrower of curve balls, and wow… you may strike out over and over again, but that’s life. YOU have the power to choose what your next steps should be. Set small goals for yourself until they become bigger and bigger, and when you’ve made it, reach higher. Just NEVER stop trying because if you do, you’ve already lost. Improvising and adaptability is key to over coming insurmountable issues, and it starts with your mind set. Just know that whatever problems you may have, there will always be a way to solve them if you are willing to improvise and adapt to those curve balls. You got this, and there are people out there who believe in you!

@svmragi hannahkingsolver.com

Davelyn Davenport | Personal Trainer & Mental Health Advocate

The best advice I would give is first shift your mindset. Within any challenge you are facing a positive mindset will propel you over the mountain when you thought there was absolutely no way you were going to scale it. Going into anything with the mindset of defeat guarantees you a loss before you even step on the battlefield. You have to be able to visualize yourself winning. Manifest it! Our minds are so powerful and we wield everything, positive or negative, upon our lives. So speak and think all things positive. It starts in the mind. The second piece of advice I would give is to stop forward looking. We are a generation of forward thinkers that we get so anxious for what’s to come before we barely began to crawl. Remain in the present and work on taking the action steps, small or large, before you deem something over or out of your reach. The last piece of information, and to me ties all these together, is change your environment! If you are constantly submerged in a negative space, with negative minded people & energies (this goes for what content you follow on socials as well), nothing positive can flourish. You become a product of that space. Find positive groups, whether online or in your community, and allow that positive energy to radiate within your soul. Free yourself from negativity and no challenge that you come across will ever feel insurmountable again!

motiv2fit.com @davelyn__ @Motiv2fit

Marilu Villegas | Photographer

Marilu Villegas

Put God first in all of your projects, never give up your goal, your never ending dream. But give up your fear, your “can’t”s, and the excuses. Do not place limits on your mind and never stop seeking knowledge. Be diligent that nothing and no one will put out your fire or your vision of the things you want to accomplish. Keep persevering and set your sights on the goal, clinging to and embracing with all your strength what you want to achieve.

@mariluvillegass

Alondra Islas | HairArtist

I would tell them , to never give up or loose hope. You will always be your own worse critics but at the end of the day you are capable of doing a lot more than what you think you are! Nothing is too much of a challenge as long as you are determined!

@_amazingalondra

Alex | Marathon runner | Student & Barista

When facing something I feel is insurmountable, I always take a step back and detach from the situation at hand. I look at every possible outcome and possibility, then immediately take action. Is there something I can do NOW to get me further to a positive outcome? If so, then I begin planning and taking the steps needed to tackle the challenge. Don’t talk about it, be about it; anything is possible when you take control by actively working for what you want. On the other hand, if there is nothing immediate to be done, I may be frustrated, but there is no reason to waste precious energy worrying about situations out of my control. Bottom line? Detach, plan, and take action.

@alexgonzalezxo

Nicole DeVoss | Speech Language Pathologist with a specialization in social learning

Amy Theriot Photograpghy

We all go through periods of our lives where we feel we are facing challenges that are insurmountable. My advice is to take a step back and not let yourself be defined by the problem. Obstacles in life exists, so we can either resist them or accept the reality that they are in front of us. I love using the analogy of ocean waves when thinking of challenging times in my life. I can either try to fight off the wave (which would be futile) or accept the wave and let it wash past me. Once I have that perspective, it helps me realize that challenges are part of life. Don’t think “why is this happening to me?” but instead flip the script and think “what can I learn from this?

thecommunicationclubhouse.com @thecommunicationclubhouse

Stephanie | Photographer | artist and model

It is something I have to tell myself a lot as well because having anxiety and running your own business that isn’t always where you want it to be, you just have to tell yourself when you think you are going through hell, keep going cause who stops at hell. Things may not be how you want it at the moment but you just have to keep pushing through it and work through your problems, don’t just quit because it got hard.

RusticBPhotography.com @rusticbphotography @rusticbphotography

Sara Price | Sales Consultant | Photographer

When faced with a difficult challenge the best advice I can give is to trust your gut! Its amazing to receiving constant support and advice from everyone but at the end of the day your the one in control. You know your own limits and strengths, never be afraid to lean on them. Continue to have faith in your decisions and remember it’s not the end of the world!

@sara__price

Nnedimma | Singer | songwriter & Medical Student

@steezmedia

The best advice I can give is to believe in yourself and have faith. Work indefatigably to fulfill your goals and always be intentional with your actions. Even in the face of adversity, you can succeed.

fanlink.to/HoldOnMebyNnedimma @godivah_ fanlink.to/LoveAgainNnedimma

Brenda Armendariz | Personal Trainer

Erase the words “ I can’t “ From your vocabulary. And replace it with “ How can I “ Words are powerful, and if you train your mind believe in yourself anything is possible!

@Bfit_tx

The post #LadyBoss: redefining what a boss looks like appeared first on Voyage Dallas Magazine | Dallas City Guide.

source http://voyagedallas.com/2019/09/05/girlboss-redefining-boss-looks-like-2/

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713propertybuyer · 5 years

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Reasons for University or college Transfer Article Example

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zipgrowth · 5 years

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Can Mentorships Get More Girls Into STEM Subjects?

As Saneeya Khan looks around at her workplace, she doesn’t see many people who look like her. Khan works as a UX designer, and says her industry is male-dominated—a fact that hasn’t changed much since she switched over from graphic design for the new challenges and opportunities that UX presented.

“I think the number one reason that women fall out of STEM is because they get in the workplace and find that it’s a very masculine-dominated field, and that there’s a lot of office politics to deal with,” says Khan, who adds that despite the number of women working in technical careers, very few of them hold senior-level positions within their respective industries. “Most of the tech leads in my office are men, and we have one head female software developer. That’s about it.”

All that might change, if she has anything to say about it. As a teen, Khan taught herself Photoshop and is now focused on helping girls follow her lead and create successful STEM pathways for themselves as a mentor for ListoAmerica, part of the Clubhouse Network, which provides after school mentoring opportunities in underserved communities. She teaches digital design, shows students how to use different software programs and helps them conceptualize their ideas.

Right now, Khan is mentoring a high school senior who loves drawing comics, but who needs help translating her art—and the storylines and character development that go along with—into the digital space. “She does most of her stuff on paper, and I’ve been teaching her to use more digital tools like tablets,” says Khan, who spends Wednesday evenings at ListoAmerica, working with her mentee. “She has a lot of ideas floating around in her head, and I’m helping her focus them.”

Sharing Wisdom and Support

In the business world, mentors are trusted confidantes who share wisdom, support, and knowledge over an extended period. Working with a “mentee,” they’ve likely already been through the ringer, so to speak, and can offer tips and advice that help their protégés avoid making the same mistakes they did.

The same concept applies in education, and especially in the STEM sector, where EdSurge found mentors working with girls of all ages. Whether they’re helping mentees pick a career path, hone their design skills, or figure out how a rocket can safely land on Mars, these mentors bring their individual skill sets and experience to the table in the quest to get (and keep) more girls interested in technical fields.

Because girls “don't know what they don't know,” so to speak, mentorships can open them up to new opportunities they may not have had access to. They can also help keep more of them interested in technical education and the related career opportunities. That’s especially important in an era where Microsoft says just 60 percent of girls understand the relevancy of STEM subjects to their own personal and professional pursuits, with a lack of mentors and role models being one of the main culprits.

Flagship Clubhouse staff member and mentor Dominique Williams (left) helps a group of teen girls use a vinyl cutter. (Source: Clubhouse Network)

“Research shows that life experience and human relationships give us a sense of what’s possible,” says David Shapiro, the CEO of MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, “and help us navigate to those possibilities.”

By leading through example and sending early signals that success is possible. STEM mentors can help young girls understand that—even if they’re not being encouraged by their parents, friends or teachers to explore engineering and science—someone who is like them is already out there doing it successfully.

“When you can give mentees a vision or example of what they want to be in engaging and captivating terms,” Shapiro explains, “it creates a pretty powerful opportunity to get more girls interested in STEM.”

Something She Wished She’d Had

According to the National Science Board, women make up half of the total U.S. college-educated workforce, but only 29 percent of the science and engineering workforce.

There’s a chance that number could get even smaller over the next decade, according to Girls Who Code, which estimates that just 22 percent of computer scientists will be women in 2027, down from 37 percent in 1995.

When Chloé Greppi was transitioning from undergraduate student to research technician to graduate school, she wishes she’d been able to talk to and brainstorm with someone who had already “been there and done that” in the field of scientific research, she explains.

“I basically did what I felt like I needed to do, and without any advice or direction,” says Greppi, who is in her fifth year of a Ph.D. program in biology. “It would have been valuable to have women currently working in STEM to talk to about how they got to where they are now, what factored into their decision-making, and what experiences to seek out or avoid.”

Where a lack of mentors may have challenged this researcher, it wound up creating opportunities for other young girls who share a passion for science. “While working as a research technician, I had a random thought about doing some science outreach,” Greppi recalls. In 2012, after hearing about Science Club for Girls, which runs programs for girls in both K-5 and middle school, she became a mentor for the group.

“We’re a team of a few ‘mentor scientists’ who are mostly graduate or post-doctoral students,” says Greppi, who adds that she was shocked at how much third-grade girls wanted to get their hands dirty. “They were curious, engaged, and excited to be there.” They were also making connections between STEM and everyday life—a point that the Microsoft report highlighted as a major stumbling block for girls in STEM.

Twice a year, Greppi helps to develop a curriculum that “helps bring home all of the complicated topics and helps youngsters relate them to their everyday life.” Recently, Greppi was working one-on-one with a fourth-grader, who may well become an aeronautical engineer one day, figure out the best way to create a soft landing for a rocket.

“She was struggling with the idea that there’s no atmosphere, so you may need jets to propel the rocket in the air for a softer landing,” says Greppi, whose mentee used an egg, cotton balls, straws, and toothpicks to develop a model. Then a lightbulb went on above the youngster’s head. “All on her own,” Greppi says, “she came up with her version of a soft landing enabled by a parachute. It was pretty ingenious.”

A mentor from Northeastern university (left) helps a teen girl use a heat press to make a custom t-shirt. (Source: Clubhouse Network)

The Reluctant Mentor

When Susan Hunt retired from high school counseling three years ago, she was instantly courted by a parent to help mentor students interested in STEAM via the Gold Crown Foundation’s enrichment programs. “I didn’t miss my job, but I did miss working with kids,” Hunt explains, “so I said yes.”

As it happens, Hunt had no experience teaching STEAM, nor did she have much of an interest in it. “I’m not artistic, mathematical or engineering-oriented,” she admits, “but I love kids and my passion is making sure they have the information they need to pursue opportunities after high school, be it college, internships, apprenticeships or something else.”

That passion was enough to get Hunt started as a mentor for Gold Crown Foundation, which works with youngsters as young as 10 in an area that’s underserved by other entities. She works with boys and girls who were selected to participate in the group’s C2C Pathways program. A year-long program for approximately 20 teens, ages 16 to 21, the program includes workforce development training, job shadowing and a summer internship.

Right now, Hunt is working one-on-one with a C2C Pathways graduate who did very well in the program and the related internship, but whose academic progress hasn’t been as positive. Interested in pursuing a STEAM education and career, she’s working with Hunt on a plan of action that could find her attending a lesser-known college close to home and then transferring to a larger university once she gets her grades up.

“This is just where you start, and not where you will finish,” Hunt assured the girl, knowing that her support could go a long way in helping her mentee successfully navigate the STEAM path. “I’m helping her understand that if she spends one year at a college near home, working on her academics, then the doors could open up for her down the road. Still, she’s suffering some disappointment right now as the reality hits her.”

Hunt says she’s seen other girls managing similar disappointments, and says that many of them just don’t get the support they need at home. That’s where mentors can make a difference by bringing a fresh, adult perspective to the situation. “When you’re focused on keeping a roof over your family’s head and food on the table, it can be difficult to also serve as your child’s academic and career advisor,” says Hunt. “Mentoring helps to fill some of those gaps.”

Khan, the UX designer, sees mentoring as a good way to get more girls involved with STEM at both the educational and career levels, and says it can be really beneficial for those mentees to see that “those who came before them” are thriving in their own careers.

At this point, however, she’s not sure just how much impact she’s having on the girls that she works with. “I can’t say for sure if what I'm doing is making a difference because these girls are still so young,” she says. “It would be interesting to follow up with them in 10 years to see how it worked out.”

Can Mentorships Get More Girls Into STEM Subjects? published first on https://medium.com/@GetNewDLBusiness

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