“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.'”- Eleanor Roosevelt via Brainy Quote.

Self-interviewing is an excellent tool for evaluating yourself. You can do a self-interview in the form of a job interview. Doing so can help you mentally prepare for the job interview. Job interviewing is one thing, another is self-care.

Self-interviewing gives you a chance to assess yourself. It opens the doors and leaves you vulnerable. Remembering something from the past can spark a story idea or painting. It can show you how far you came, and how far you need to go. It reminds you of your downfalls, which lead to your accomplishments. If done right, you can achieve a positive outcome.

Last week, you got an inside look at my personal life. I hope you enjoyed it. It was tough, but I made it through. My sister, Leanna, left a comment. Could have been due to two of her children are in the article, kidding big sister. Love you. Truth. Her comment made my day. Yes, she made one on Facebook, but it’s the one on the article itself, that made my day. It showed me she read it, which, at times, I feel no one reads my articles. She proved me wrong.

The Interview: Writing

Photos by T.L. Hicks. The college created by T.L. Hicks using Canva.

“What, how, why, drew you to become a writer?” Submitted by Nicole Yingling, Alexandria Pallat, Melanie Blackman.

The reason I became a writer is my inability to work like I once did. I would work two or three jobs at a time. Due to an abusive first marriage, the pain from my injuries sustained grew, with it, my depression.

When the doctors told me, I could not work anymore. And I had to deal with the pain for the rest of my life. A black cloud formed over my head, hail fell from the cloud on my head.  I tried to continue working, but my body said, “STOP!” The depression deepened, forming itself into chronic depression. With it, a big heaping side order of social anxiety.

I was drowning in my depression. Then one day, in 2012, Almighty Odin visited me. The wise one reminded me of my youth, and to embrace what once was: writing.

In elementary school, I won a few awards in writing, and I judged a writing contest. Ever since I was a kid, I would rewrite stories inside my head. Anything I saw on television and in movies, I revised. You would think I would outgrow it. I did not. I found some interesting information. Those daydreams I had as a kid, and having to this day, is a mental problem called maladaptive daydreaming.

After Odin’s visit, I sat down with my husband, Bruce. I told him I felt it was time to return to college. Not traditional brick and mortar, but online. I found a Communications program with the University of Phoenix. Once I completed my Associate degree in 2014, I wanted more. But, the university did not have what I was searching for.

I searched high and low on the internet. I found two schools, Full Sail University, and Southern New Hampshire University. After dealing with the finances, I settled on Southern New Hampshire University. In December 2016, I completed my Bachelor program in Creative Writing and English. I focused my studies on fiction and screenwriting. Yet, I felt not done.

Now, I am continuing my education at Southern New Hampshire University. My Master’s degree is in the same program, Creative Writing and English. Now, my focus is on fiction writing. I will finish the program, come April 22, 2018.

Photo by T.L. Hicks

“Why do you write?” – Submitted by Alexandria Pallat

Truth, I do not know why I want to write. I feel…no… I know, I need to get these daydreams…these fantasies, out of my head and onto paper.

“What about writing gives you fulfillment?” – Submitted by Walter Freeman

The part of writing that gives me satisfaction is getting the stories out of my head and onto paper. To write them out the way I see them playing out. It is much harder than I thought it would ever be.

“What is your favorite genre/type to write about and why?” – Submitted by Lisa Mildon and Christopher Bartlett

I know, I have yet to show my stories to the world. Readers only know me through the articles I write for Coffee House Writers and Digital Fox Media. But, I am drawn to horror, science fiction, and fantasy.

I have written stories for school. The stories deal with vampires, gates leading to hell, and the downfall of the government.

Why are you writing articles?

I got interested in writing articles when I took a journalism class in college. Earlier in the year of 2016, I received an email from the college’s Odyssey writing team. Thanks to my social anxiety, I was too afraid to respond. I took the journalism class in the fall of the same year. Soon, I reached out to SNHU Odyssey and joined their team.

Things fell apart for me and SNHU Odyssey. Lucky me, I reunited with many former SNHU Odyssey writers at Coffee House Writers. A month later I joined Digital Fox Media.

It was not long after I became an editor for Coffee House Writers. And, I went from Rookie FanWriter to FanWriter for Digital Fox Media.

I tried my hand at writing for the Inquisitr. They did not like the articles I was writing. They told me this after they told me I could write anything I wanted. You see, my articles were not “Trendy” enough for them. So, I left. They trashed one article but kept the other.

I enjoy writing the articles. I learn something new about the world, and myself. Plus, working on a team with other writers and editors helps me with my social anxiety and depression.

Photo by T.L. Hicks

“What is your writing process? Do you follow an outline? Do you just go with the flow, or do you prefer working on a draft using notebook and paper?” – Submitted by Sylvia Stein.

When I started out, I wrote in a journal. Unfortunately, moving from different place to different place, the journal disappeared.

I free write everything.  When I did The National Novel Writing Month in 2017, I won. I got a discount code for Scrivener. Now, I am learning the program and using it for writing.

“If you weren’t a writer, what would you be doing instead?”- Submitted by Jessica Penhorwood.

If I were not a writer, I would defy my doctors. I would work in the same jobs I started out as a teenager, grocery store or fast-food. I would be in pain, but I would be working.

I would try for disability, which I have on many occasions. But the “government” side does not agree with my doctors. My social anxiety and depression go into overdrive, and I give up.

“Did you think this is where you would be when we were in grade school?” – Submitted by Miranda Nagle

Wow, the only question that came not from a writer, but an old schoolmate. I have known Mandy for many years.

No, I did not think this was where I would be when we were in grade school. In school, my dreams were ever-changing. I wanted to be a veterinarian to a music promoter. But, I ended up in grocery and retail, mixed in with fast-food.

Grade school through high school, I did not think about the future and what my life would be like as an adult. I was more worried about what rock band t-shirt I would wear, and how I would get the money for my next concert. Plus, paying my car payments and car insurance. I did not prepare. I went with the flow. Now, I am living in a low-income building, barely making ends meet, with nothing to fall back on. I guess it is a perfect time for reinventing myself.

Photo collage by T.L. Hicks using Canva.

What projects are you working on?

I am writing stories I need for school.

I am working on my Kassandra (Cassandra) novel.

I am working on a script based off one of my short stories I wrote for school.

I am re-writing my short stories to create, a collection of, short stories for a book.

I am working on making Mystical Night Media into a small time production company.

Conclusion

My name is Tracie. Am I going through a mid-life crisis? Maybe. Or, could this be a second chance at life? A life I should have, could have, had when I was younger. In high school, I should have taken the 8th-hour writing course. My writing career could have started sooner. Instead, I took part in the co-op program. But, it is our experiences that help create our stories. Maybe, I didn’t have enough life experience to write, and now…I do.