So I've finally received a new job! Bye bye retail...Hello career world!
I was so nervous and excited once I got confirmation that the manager I met with wanted to hire me. I spent hours scouring the internet for tips and tricks to getting/adjusting to a new job, what to say or don't say, wear or don't wear, and so on. I asked multiple friends, colleagues and coworkers advice on starting a new job. I want to succeed and do the best I can.
My first week was purely training, and I think at this point I'm settling in well. Everyone I've encountered thus far in the company has been really nice, everyone seems to get along well. It appears to be a great work environment, with just the right balance of fun and work. They also did their own 'Harlem Shake' video during my first week there...which you can watch here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSWbgoPy53Y
I'm currently in my third week at Positive Promotions, which is a company that creates products for marketing/promotional/recognition purposes. Customers can have imprints of images and/or text on any product to help in the display of whatever company or organization they're representing.
I am the new proofreader! So hooray for my English degree being put to work! Now, it's not publishing or media, so I'm not proofing/editing manuscripts or news stories, but it's a start. It's a step in the right direction. I'm looking forward to succeeding and establishing myself here, and gaining as much experience and knowledge as I can. I really like my new job so far, and there is room for growth, which is always a good thing. Maybe in a few years I can try and get into the type of proofreading I want to do (assuming the publishing industry still exists. oh please please do). And hopefully by the time I'm in my 30's, I'll be an editor.
I'm thinking of also promoting myself as a proofreader more. Gain some freelance experience. Maybe get a website going, or at the very least advertise on Craigslist or Facebook. Back in January/February I proofread/lightly edited a novel that a former coworker wrote and I'm constantly proofreading my boyfriend's papers and other assignments while he's still in school. When I was still in school, I often helped other classmates and proofread their work. When I had my internship at Epiphany Magazine, my editor told me I have a natural eye for proofreading. On my own will, I've also read a few different books regarding proofreading and editing to help refresh and enhance my skills. I read a lot in general, so I'm confident in my abilities to proof/edit.
But, we shall see....in the meantime, I'm both really happy and relieved that I have a job where I can utilize my degree. It really does pay off to just keep plugging away, just keep sending resumes out and trying to make contacts. It takes time, a lot of time, but if you don't give up, something will come your way. Someone will give you a chance. Eventually.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Author Spotlight: John Green
So I've read two of John Green's novels, and I highly recommend both of them! If you're a big YouTube user and really into video blogs, you may know him from that. He was/is a "vlogger" before he became a NY Times Best Selling Author. His first novel, Looking for Alaska (2005) was inspired by his time at a boarding school in Alabama.
Looking for Alaska is about this boy who seeks a "great perhaps". The boy (our narrator), Miles Halter (nicknamed Pudge), is an outcast and lacks a social life at home in Florida. So he goes to attend a boarding school in Alabama. He wants a fresh start, and he gets it, along with some much needed close friends. Miles is fascinated by last words, he's read a lot of biographies of famous or historical figures, and memorized nearly all of their last words. He falls for this girl Alaska, who in her own strange and mysterious ways teaches him a lot about life.
When I read the back cover, I assumed that this would be about a boy who falls for a girl who then goes missing and then try to find her. But that was not the case. Something much more intense happens. With gripping emotions and pensive thoughts, you get sucked in and really question life or feel relieved that someone else has thought or asked the same questions as you have at one time or another. Looking for Alaska makes readers look for a lot.
John Green's second novel, which I read before Looking for Alaska, was great! I mean, I laughed, I cried. It seriously should be made into a movie. (I really hope someone makes a film adaptation!) The Fault in Our Stars (2012) is told from the perspective of a young woman, and Green hit the nail on the head. I can say as a 20-something woman I felt really connected to Hazel.
Hazel, the narrator, is a 16 year old cancer patient who is forced to attend a support group. At support group, she meets Augustus, who is a 17 year old patient in remission (he's also an amputee). Hazel is afraid to fall in love with Augustus, even though there's no denying their connection. She needs an oxygen tank, and knows how sick/weak she is, and she doesn't want to start something she can't finish. However, Augustus won't give up on her, he's too attracted to her. Their bond over a book, turns into friendship, which develops into a true love. We watch as they both go through good and bad, laughs and tears, and it will have you laughing and tearing too.
One of the things I loved most, is that Green didn't sugarcoat the characters' illnesses. He really showed how cancer can effect someone. The characters, like real people, have good days and bad days. Everything is not as pretty as it sometimes is made out to be. I feel that sometimes cancer is downplayed because it is so common (unfortunately) or that in movies or other mainstream media, the characters look happy all the time or if they have lost their hair it's glorified. Cancer, depending on which type and depending on the person, can be simple or not have many effects. Or it can be brutally painful or grotesque.
Both novels were great, I finished each of them within two days. Green does a great job of developing characters that feel like real people, and the story lines take you down their paths. You share the emotions of the characters. Not many writers can create characters that connect with readers the way Green does.
Looking for Alaska is about this boy who seeks a "great perhaps". The boy (our narrator), Miles Halter (nicknamed Pudge), is an outcast and lacks a social life at home in Florida. So he goes to attend a boarding school in Alabama. He wants a fresh start, and he gets it, along with some much needed close friends. Miles is fascinated by last words, he's read a lot of biographies of famous or historical figures, and memorized nearly all of their last words. He falls for this girl Alaska, who in her own strange and mysterious ways teaches him a lot about life.
When I read the back cover, I assumed that this would be about a boy who falls for a girl who then goes missing and then try to find her. But that was not the case. Something much more intense happens. With gripping emotions and pensive thoughts, you get sucked in and really question life or feel relieved that someone else has thought or asked the same questions as you have at one time or another. Looking for Alaska makes readers look for a lot.
John Green's second novel, which I read before Looking for Alaska, was great! I mean, I laughed, I cried. It seriously should be made into a movie. (I really hope someone makes a film adaptation!) The Fault in Our Stars (2012) is told from the perspective of a young woman, and Green hit the nail on the head. I can say as a 20-something woman I felt really connected to Hazel.
Hazel, the narrator, is a 16 year old cancer patient who is forced to attend a support group. At support group, she meets Augustus, who is a 17 year old patient in remission (he's also an amputee). Hazel is afraid to fall in love with Augustus, even though there's no denying their connection. She needs an oxygen tank, and knows how sick/weak she is, and she doesn't want to start something she can't finish. However, Augustus won't give up on her, he's too attracted to her. Their bond over a book, turns into friendship, which develops into a true love. We watch as they both go through good and bad, laughs and tears, and it will have you laughing and tearing too.
One of the things I loved most, is that Green didn't sugarcoat the characters' illnesses. He really showed how cancer can effect someone. The characters, like real people, have good days and bad days. Everything is not as pretty as it sometimes is made out to be. I feel that sometimes cancer is downplayed because it is so common (unfortunately) or that in movies or other mainstream media, the characters look happy all the time or if they have lost their hair it's glorified. Cancer, depending on which type and depending on the person, can be simple or not have many effects. Or it can be brutally painful or grotesque.
Both novels were great, I finished each of them within two days. Green does a great job of developing characters that feel like real people, and the story lines take you down their paths. You share the emotions of the characters. Not many writers can create characters that connect with readers the way Green does.
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