Living With Imposter Syndrome–Guest Post Live on Fictionvale!
The first mercy of impostor syndrome, in my experience at least, is that it isn’t constant. Instead it attacks at intervals, at moments of either my deepest despair or highest success. Of course success attracts this psychological beastie’s attention: in the grips of impostor syndrome, my jerky brain is happy to dismiss any achievement as a fluke or a fraud. I’ve either tricked people into thinking I can write, or they’ve reviewed my manuscript favorably from pity for someone so pathetically...
Read MoreOne Year Later
I started this blog on February 9, 2013. Reading back over my first few posts, it’s tempting to think about how far I’ve come since then. Clever, hardworking college graduate seeks job…finds one? When I started Story Addict, I had just moved to Washington, D.C. for one last semester before graduation. Like most new graduates, I was concerned about making the shift to a young professional. To be honest, I still am. And I’m still feeling out the specifics. Over the...
Read MoreFor Everyone Misspelling My Name: Thank You!
Yet another misspelling–on an address label, of all things–has sparked this…let’s not call it a rant. Let it be, rather, inspiration. All my life, my name has been misspelled, mispronounced, and just generally misunderstood. Mispronunciations I can understand. In a quick conversation, the balance of probability suggests you were just introduced to Theresa, rather than a more uncommon variety. Given the sheer number of people who read Teh-rez in the French...
Read MoreWe didn’t choose the Folklife, the Folklife chose us–and other updates
So I’ll start with the sad news, because the past two weeks have been tough: I got to visit Las Vegas for the first time, but under some of the worst possible circumstances. My uncle living there passed away and I went to attend the funeral and visit with my cousins (and also some immediate family members–we welcomed the chance to offer face-to-face support after certain recent events, which I might add are completely unrelated to this funeral. Troubles never come one at a...
Read MoreDancing Memorials
Yesterday my blog post was about getting a dose of perspective. It came before events that offered yet another sort of perspective…and pushed me to work on this post, which has sat in my drafts for over a month now. There’s a story I’m not certain I will ever be able to write. The title is “Dancing Memorials”. For a time I thought of it as science fiction, because everything I write is science fiction or fantasy, but then I stopped thinking of it as a story that...
Read MoreThree doses of perspective
In order to make up for internship days missed while in Ghana, I worked 4 days last week instead of the usual two (class being canceled). Not only did I have plenty to catch up on, this was the week I also got to visit some consultations with my supervisor and join the other office interns for a personal sharing workshop–the kind of thing you only can get at an internship in the creative arts! Three statistics stood out this week and offered a healthy dose of perspective to my young,...
Read MoreList: What’s surprised me most about Ghana
When I was younger, and I wasn’t sure what to write but I knew I wanted to write something, I would make lists–to keep my thoughts in order, to generate some brainstorming, to summarize or highlight my ideas. I have a jumble of ideas and memories from Ghana, so one way to sort them out–and give a preliminary taste of my trip–is to give you a list. A list of the things that most surprised me on my first trip abroad: *The Handshake. One of my classmates had spent the...
Read MoreSpring Break
I’ve returned home to Wisconsin for one last visit with my family and to get ready for the trip to Ghana! My mother and I spent yesterday running errands and picking up supplies. The above isn’t everything we’ve got, but it’s a good start. I’m especially pleased with the knee-length, flowing & cool, olive-colored skirt. It’s modest for any events and speakers we’ll be visiting in more conservative communities, but also rather pretty and it feels...
Read MoreIs Malaria really that bad?
Today I visited Capitol Travel Medicine of Arlington, Virginia to get my immunizations ready for the trip to Ghana. I’m giving the full name because you can consider this post a wholehearted endorsement; they were very pleasant and extremely helpful. Yellow Fever shots aren’t the most painful thing in the world–mine ended with small welt and a lingering medicinal sting, the kind that reassuringly reminds you that you’ve just had a weakened but potentially deadly virus...
Read MoreHello World
This blog happens to be started in the midst of a crisis of identity for me. I’ve just recently graduated college and am finishing one last semester in Washington, D.C. before…what? I’m making the shift from student to young professional. I think that young professional’s career will lie in the nonprofit sector, but anything more specific than that I’m still feeling out. In my time I’ve been a volunteer income tax preparer, a cashier, a library page, a...
Read MoreAbout Therese
Therese Arkenberg's first short story was accepted for publication on January 2, 2008, and her second acceptance came a few hours later. Since then they haven't always been in such a rush, yet her work appears in places like Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Analog, Daily Science Fiction, and the anthology Sword & Sorceress XXIV. Aqua Vitae, her science fiction novella, was released by WolfSinger Publications in December 2011.
She works as a freelance editor and writer in Wisconsin, where she returned after a brief but unforgettable time in Washington, D.C. When she isn't reading, writing, or editing (it's true!) she serves on the board of the Plowshare Center of Waukesha, which works for social, economic, and environmental justice.