Persian Tea and a Blog Tour

   Sipping Persian Tea at Mill Mountain in Salem is a wonderful way to relax the mind. In this case it relaxed me enough to remember that my friend, Janeson Keeley, challenged me to continue the Virtual Blog Tour. Janeson and I have been following each other around on the interwebs for a few years now. We officially met during an intermission at a play put on by Showtimers Theater last June. Her and Dan Smith pal around the Roanoke Valley so it was a pleasure to see these two friends together in what I consider a rare spot to run into people, kind of like finding that magical unicorn, considering their stomping grounds are usually in the woods or one of the many mountaintops surrounding the Roanoke Valley. Check the links in today's blog to discover more to add to your growing reading list!

The Four Questions

1. What am I working on?

      Currently, I am working on an outline for two e-books which will serve as guides for parents and students. The first e-book I am working on is about Math Anxiety and coping mechanisms. It will also include a chapter about a little known executive functioning disorder called Dyscalculia. The second e-book I plan on writing is a resource for students, parents, and teachers about science fairs. I have extensive experience in running science fairs behind the scenes as well as judging projects. I will reveal a few secrets on what award-winning projects tend to do that separates them from the crowd. 

      Until those are released, I am working on rebooting several blogs that are attached to community or business pages. In less than a month, I will be freed from the shackles of college student life and entering the real world. Since I am an introvert by nature, as real as my brain will allow me to go. 

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?

  

       I consider the work that I do to fall in the category of creative nonfiction. Some of the blog posts are based on personal experiences while others are highly technical. It depends on several factors: my audience, the topic, and how far I want that message to reach. Some messages I want read by other people with a similar technical background. This is the case with my Meteorology and Oceanography blog. For my education blog, Learning Connections,  I tend to mix personal stories and experience with relevant information for parents and students. For this blog, I keep my tone a bit on the light-hearted side as a break from the serious adult. 

       As I am writing this, I realize that when I write there is a cup of coffee or tea at hand. Therefore, I am pulling the personal blog, Exponential Ramblings, offline as it no longer serves a purpose and continuing to cull down Entrepreneurial Spirit by placing the green posts (ones that have no time limit or expiration) on my profile on LinkedIn. Exponential Ramblings will be turned into a memoir or poetry book at some point in the future. 

       I feel that by limiting how far my voice is spread through blogs that I may be able to devote more time and attention to shaping my voice while I learn how to convey high scientific language to a format that is accessible to the general public. Science literacy and accessibility is a top priority for me. 

3. Why do I write what I do?

       

      I think I explained this question above. But allow me to be more specific and simplistic...

My greatest pet peeve is happy ignorance. I think we perform a disservice to humanity when we ignore and allow injustice to occur. The only way to combat ignorance is through communication and increased access to education. 

4. How does my writing process work?

       It's sporadic at the moment. I lay the blame squarely on Roanoke College. Truly. What happened to read this section, attend lecture, you will see it on the midterm and final exams? Everything we turn in is graded. I am not sure if the busy work actually helps one learn something or if it is to make sure we don't get blindingly obliterated by alcoholic beverages on a nightly basis. The jury is out on that. 

      Before Roanoke College there was Virginia Western Community College. Most of my classes were online and I had far more free time than I expected. My GPA in my liberal arts classes was a 3.9. My math classes dropped that to a 3.2. I love online classes. I am a self-starter. I don't need poking and prodding and would often have all the coursework done except for major papers by midterm. 

      What I learned is that I have the same tenacity when it comes to writing. My perfect process is having blocks of time devoted to writing daily as well as publishing at least one blog post per day. Here is an example of what my perfect writing day looks like:

6 AM: Wake up, make coffee and breakfast, scour research articles in science and education

8 AM: Write, write, write

Noon: LUNCH!

1 PM: Write, write, write

3 PM: Walk the dog, go to the beach, paint... do something that is not writing!

4 PM: Check science articles that posted during the day

5 PM: Dinner!

6 PM: Spend time with family and loved ones or attend networking events 

9 PM: Plan for the next day. 

Keep in mind that this is what I look forward to when I can on a typical Saturday. It may even look like my Saturday coming up as I prepare for end of term.