Assignment 1

I arrived at WDC through the urging of my niece, Rebecca.  She was (is) a member here and loves to write as much as I do.  I tried it out and, encouraged by the feedback I got on what I posted, decided to stick around.

I’ve wanted to be an author since I first figured out that those funny markings on paper made the loveliest stories.  In making funny marks of my own, I became a writer.  Recently, about a year ago, I decided to make the blind leap to ‘author;’ I submitted to an online magazine.  They rejected my first piece I sent them, but accepted the second one I sent them.  Since then, they’ve published 3 of my pieces and the 4th is due out Jan 21st.  My goal is to be an author full-time.  In pursuit of this, I went back to school part-time; 1-2 classes a semester, concentrating on classes that either interest me, give me research opportunities for future writing or let me do a lot of writing for the class.  This semester I’m taking Historical Geology and Art History: Ancient to Medieval.  I get a kick out of seeing the faces of the kids when I walk in class and sit at a desk...although a 51 year old student isn't as unheard of as it used to be.

I like to write either poetry or stories that have a strong fantasy element in them.  I like to read just about anything, my favorites being series that detail their ‘own’ world, whether mundane: future, present or past, or magickal.  My writing strengths, I think, lie in painting a mental picture for my readers without leading them by the hand, and in twisted endings.  (Rod Serling-esque type endings.  I love to have a reader say that they didn’t see that coming!)  My main weakness lies in dialogue...making it sound realistic.  I have other weaknesses, including finishing the longer things that I write before I forget where I wanted to go with them.  My characters also have a nasty tendency to choose their own destinies, going their own ways rather than where I wanted them to go.

I look forward to increasing my Port and my skills through this class.  I also look forward to making new friends and sharing points of view.