Yep, I'm Definitely in a Masters Program.

Hello! Lauren here. If I didn't mention it earlier, last week was reading week for me. Since undergraduates had midterms to study for and take, and graduate students don't have midterms, it was a week of wonderful relaxation for me! I still managed to be pretty productive, since we've got papers to write that are coming up, but for the most part last week was a lot of sitting around in my pajamas, watching tv, or having coffee with friends. It was great after six weeks of school to finally have some free time to socialize with these people I've met, while not thinking "maybe I should be reading now..." It was a welcome break from all the reading, but this past week we've jumped back into it and are marching full speed ahead towards Christmas break!

I've got three papers to write to turn in by mid-January. They give us the break to write these papers, and it's a good thing too because there's no way I would be able to write anything with how much reading we're having to do. All three papers require intense research. The one for research methods is 3,000 words long (about ten pages) and the other two for my core course and for the Victorian Child are 5,000 words each. I've been told 5,000 words will look something like 20ish pages. Needless to say, your prayers are appreciated. I want to have all these papers done by Christmas so that a.) I can enjoy Christmas with my husband, b.) I won't have to worry about them while we're in America, and c.) I won't put them off until the last minute in January. That means from now until December 23rd, I have roughly a month to write 13,000 words or 50 something pages. Don't be surprised if the rest of this month's blog posts are solely written by Aaron... :)

Right before we embraced the freedom of reading week, our class was able to experience an incredibly special privilege. We were the recipients of a private seminar led by best-selling author, knight, and now Trinity professor, Sir Terry Pratchett. Sadly, I've never read any of Sir Pratchett's books, and I've heard it's probably because he's a bigger deal in the UK than in the US, so I feel as though some of the magnitude of this experience was lost on me. Regardless, he still gave one of the most wonderful talks I've ever heard on the subjects of English and writing.  He was so funny, and I couldn't stop writing down all the hilarious things that he said. Here's some tidbits of his talk:

"You just need to grab life by the foreskin."

On making it in the writing business: "You have to work hard to have a bookshelf [in your house] with books high enough to need a library ladder, and I have a library ladder."

"Fantasy has room for absolutely everything. As a fantasy writer, you get the same paint box as every other author, you just have more colors. You have the gold and the silver and the glitter."

"Fantasy is not a genre, it is the original fiction."

"The idea is the engine that's pulling the brain."

He was so inspiring, especially when he discussed his work ethic. He just sat down and said "I will write 400 words a day, and then I can write two books by the end of one year" and he did! And he made millions doing it! When he was asked for tips on how to be a writer, he would always respond "No! You just write a book, that's what I did." Continuing this subject of work ethic, he said "I've worked hard as a writer. On the day my grandfather died, I still filled my quota. But if you have to go to the dentist, you just have to go to the dentist. I started as a journalist, and there you have to fill your quota. They're not going to publish the paper with holes in it--you can't just say you're not in the mood."

The entire lecture, the way he spoke, his ease of discussing his methods, the nonchalance with which he treated the act of just sitting down and beginning to write really impressed myself and my classmates with a sense of "we could do that! I could pick up a pen and start writing now!" It's interesting now, how I find myself with about 32 days to write out 13,000 words--13,000 divided by 32 is 406.25--and I must adopt the work ethic that has worked so well for this best selling author. I must write about 400 words a day to finish by my deadline with my sanity intact, and if he could do it, I can do it too, as his lecture made me believe.

And who knows? Maybe someday, when I don't have essays to write, I can write my own stories, and then I can have a bookcase with books high enough to need a library ladder.

Mika, myself, Sir Terry Pratchett, and Mrs. Bee.

The blurry face in the back right is one of my professors. The face peeking over Mika's shoulder on the left is another one!

 My class, including professors and some PhD students, with someone famous!