The F word.

I am a feminist. Now I know that many people who read this, whether you know me personally or not, whether you've stumbled across this blog by accident, whether you typed in a random series of keywords which somehow lead you here, or whatever, will have already formed some kind of opinion of me based on that one sentence: I am a feminist.

This intrigues and scares me. What will your opinion be of me? What tasty morsels of personality will that word - feminist - have triggered in your mind? It is a tragic but true fact that many people these days - men, women, children, transsexuals etc - will perhaps blanche, nay, flinch a little, at the word FEMINIST. The negative connotations this word evokes automatically encourage people to distance themselves from it.

'Oh, I wouldn't call myself a feminist. I believe women should have equal rights and men are no better or worse, but really, I'm not one of those, like, crazy feminists.'

Ahem.

No one can say it better, so please drink in the words of the brilliant and inimitable Caitlin Moran:

"a) Do you have a vagina? and b) Do you want to be in charge of it? If you said 'yes' to both, then congratulations! You're a feminist."

While ensuring I didn't make a knob of myself by misusing the word 'inimitable', I typed the word 'feminism' into my nifty computer dictionary thingy and was presented with this definition:

'the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men'.

By this definition (and let's face it, the nifty computer dictionary thingy is a pretty credible source), anyone who supports the idea of feminism is a feminist, and not just women.

So I say to you all, men, women, children, transsexuals etc, do you believe women are men's equals? Yes? Bang. You're a feminist. Brava! Do not be frightened! Being a feminist does not make you any of the following: crazy, angry, strident, vocal, stupid, radical, anarchic, hysterical. It doesn't mean you cannot be any of these things and more (and these people are often quite fun to be around), but it does mean you are automatically a million times LESS LIKELY to be any of the following: a Neanderthal, a  sexist pig, a misogynistic throwback to the freakishly recent Mad Men-esque* era of sexual politics.

Being a feminist also does not mean you have to agree with everything Caitlin Moran, Germaine Greer, Mary Wollstonecraft and Emmeline Pankhurst have said and written. These ladies and their contemporaries are mouthpieces for the generations, but as part of the institute of free speech and the ability to string a coherent thought together, you are entitled to form your own opinions! Yay for free will! There is no 'one type' of feminism. You do not have to align your beliefs on fashion, abortion, lesbianism, body image, religion, lifestyle etc in order to present one set of ideas with all the other feminists. That is the beauty of individuality.

I'm sure people will read this and resist the urge (or perhaps give into it) to roll their eyes. Go right ahead, I can't stop you (there enters our cheeky friend, Free Will, once more). Maybe those people will think I am wasting my time and energy by typing this ("But Emily, women can vote and work and drive and be the boss of people and everything. We're all equal already, dammit"), but the more I read and think about this, the more I notice the sexism and inequality that plagues the female race STILL, in today's day and age.

You only have to look at advertising (particularly photographs), listen to various popular music (see a crapload of hip-hop and rap), look at some of the zingers the potential future leader of Australia Tony Abbott has come up with, or let comedians defend each other on the use of 'harmless' rape jokes. It's our responsibility, not just as feminists but as human beings to start pushing for more respect. I'd like my grandchildren to view us as a generation of happy and respectful citizens and for that to happen, there needs to be a higher standard of esteem for our fellow homosapiens.

And now I need to go to work. Maybe I will continue this another day, maybe not.


*I enjoy Mad Men and it's satirical nature as much as the next person. So don't be hatin'.

Spring :)

So it's spring! YEOW! Pretty excited by the sunshine that has started peeking out. I'm still taking my Vitamin D tablets, but hopefully I can come off them if the weather keeps up and just stand out in the sun instead!

My library hermit activities have continued and I think I may have a serious addiction to books. At least I'm not spending heaps, but seriously. I borrowed 9 books in two days last week and am going back again today. I've been trawling the internet for recommended YA authors and have let myself discover a lot of American authors I hadn't seen before like Elizabeth Scott, Courtney Summers, Stephanie Perkins, Gayle Forman and Sarah Dessen. It's nice to see the different topics people incorporate into fiction, and it is helping with my own writing because I am seeing what authors can get away with in the YA genre. Up until this year I had tended to stick with Australian YA authors (not a conscious decision, just how my reading habits ended up evolving) like Melina Marchetta, Maureen McCarthy, Jaclyn Moriarty and Markus Zusak. Maybe I should change one of my initials to M, as it seems to be the go to letter for successful Australian authors :D

I went to the Melina Marchetta/Morris Gleitzman seminar that was part of the Melbourne Writers Festival and came away awed and inspired. I have seen Ms Marchetta talk before, and enjoyed it just as much this time. I was completely enamoured by Morris Gleitzman. I've read many of his books (what young Australian bookworm hasn't?) but am now resolved to read all of them. What a genius of a man. I also went to see Vikki Wakefield talk at the State Library about Friday Brown. I am pretty darn excited to read this book. I enjoyed All I Ever Wanted, but from the sound of it, Friday Brown is going to mess us up even more. Can't wait to get my hands on a copy.

In the meantime, I am just working, watching Breaking Bad, new Doctor Who and Shameless. I am trying to organise myself to start my next assignment early but procrastination is far more appealing at the moment, so we'll see. Still have not heard back from either literary agent I submitted my manuscript to, but I've decided no news is good news, as it's not a rejection yet :)

I'm going to go for a walk in the sun to the library now. I am going to try and remember these kind of perfect, cruisy days when I am freaking out about working full-time (one day, distant future).

Ciao for now xo

Whelp...

It's been so long since my last blog post. I think I'm averaging about one a month. But hey, at least I've continued with it...somewhat...

I got a job! Yay, finally! Through a lovely set of friends of mine, I am now an accounts assistant for a small business fairly close to my house. It's not really like any type of job I've had before, but the people are lovely and are really good at teaching me. It's just nice to be establishing a little bit of routine.

I finished my manuscript and sent it to a literary agent, as you may or may not already know, and have now finished my latest assignment, so I plan to slowly send it out to more agents in the hope that I will get a response. Even if it is to say 'no thanks', I'd just like them to say why not. I know they are busy people and the last thing I want to do is come across as an amateur. So here's hoping I can look a bit spesh!

I have become a bit of a library hermit. I know this doesn't make sense, but I've never really used libraries for leisure before. Just study. I don't know why I used to break my bank so regularly, buying stacks of books I couldn't afford and then not even reading them. Until I get a bit more earnings behind me (yay for new job!) I will just stick to the library as I work through my LONG AND EXPANDING list of stuff to read.

Also, my show is nearly over! Three more performances, then an apparent break. I auditioned for a very funny play, but wasn't successful. Ah well, next time. In the meantime, I am just enjoying doing a show with a big bunch of friends.

And tea. I like it, and I bought lots of it. Mmmm camomile.

xxx

Masters

To study, or not to study? I found out about this brilliant sounding Masters of Creative Writing, Editing and Publishing at Melbourne Uni on the weekend and got uber excited about applying. Only thing is, I'M ALREADY DOING A MASTERS AND WHHHHYYYYY WOULD ANYONE WANT TO ADD MORE WORK TO THEIR LIFE? My current Masters is pretty much a librarianship and is quite boring at times. Working in editing and publishing sounds a lot more fun. But it would be a two year full time course, on campus. Whereas my current course is two years part time and off campus. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. Sigh. Well, there is one thing I could do, and that is stop thinking about it. Yay!! So here's more stuff that's happening in my life that is fun. I'm earning a bit of money (always good) and I've been on a massive Jane Austen bender over the last few weeks. I'm looking forward to someone doing Pride and Prejudice (provided I get cast as a Bennett sister), so all you amateur theatre companies in Melbourne - get on it! I've also been reading the Peter and the Starcatchers series which is quite cute and enjoyable. It doesn't hold a candle to the original, but it isn't trying to, and that endears it further to me. I have finished Offspring, getting through True Blood s05 and about to start Breaking Bad s05. Lots to fill up my time. Should I study? Probably. But what??? SIGH.

If you want something done, ask a busy person.

Tis been quite a while since my last entry and in that time I have continued to write up a storm. I start my Masters again in about 9 days after a good 8 months of time off. I am looking forward to getting back into it because it will hopefully feel like I am DOING something with my life, but am also quite concerned about its tendency to chew up all my free time. So I am writing crazily, trying to get a second full manuscript complete. That way I will have two full first drafts languishing in my drawer, waiting for my next opportunity to edit them. I have also been squashing all the episodes of Offspring and The Borgias into my viewing schedule and am nearly finished, again, just in time for Masters. And I've been back to work! Am working at two jobs that I used to have, before Borders even, and am liking them just fine :) It's good to have a little bit more of a routine, though it does chop out a lot of writing time. I have been to the rheumatologist after about 7 weeks on cortisone (in which I have gained a lot of weight...not happy) and she is now slowly weaning me off it to see if my joints can take it. Cross all appendages for me please! I have made a decent dent in my bookcase, trying to get through a sizeable amount of books I own but haven't read, and have made some nice discoveries in the process. Currently reading the latest Dexter novel and it is suitable witty and gruesome. About to start on the Fables graphic novels, courtesy of my best mate. Also doing a variety show with a bunch of awesome peeps, and trying to fit as much decent sleep into my schedule as life permits. Adios until next time folks!!

One down...

So yesterday I actually finished a first draft of my novel. One small keystroke for me, one giant manuscript for my burgeoning career. I've organised my bookcase so I have all the books I haven't read grouped together, and I think I will tackle 'Floundering' by Romy Ash next. I'm excited about this because a) Romy Ash is Australian, b) 'Floundering is a debut novel and c) everyone is loving the crap out of it, so I'm guessing it's going to be great. I also just recently finished 'How I Live Now' by Meg Rosoff which blew my mind to pieces and I am so ashamed I didn't read it sooner. Now to read everything else she has written. Amazing book. In the meantime I have been watching 'Game of Thrones' and whittling my resumé and cover letter into streamlined and (hopefully) more efficient versions of their former selves. There is a truly amazing looking job I have my eye on, so fingers crossed for me please! Last weekend I went to see 'The Way', a film by Emilio Estevez with some friends from my church. The film was a great little outing, all about a walk across northern Spain called the Camino de Santiago. It has now been added to my list of stuff to do on my worldwide travels. I'm planning a trip to Japan in April with my Dad to see the cherry blossoms in Kyoto, and this is helping with my cabin fever and the itch to get back overseas. Until next time! xx

Chello!

Who has two thumbs and 46,000 words on their first draft? Me! *points to self with two thumbs* Over the last few weeks I have managed to stick (95% of the time) to the 2000 word limit a day I have set myself. Some days it is easy, some days it feels like pulling teeth with no anesthetic, but I DO IT ANYWAY. CHYEAH. I have also been back to the rheumatologist and although we still don't quite know what's up with my arthritis, the cortisone is working as an excellent painkiller and I have been given the green light to find work...soooooo if anyone out in the blogosphere wants to give me a job, hit me up :) Looking for a job is one of the most soul-crushingly depressing processes, so I am hoping it ain't too painful this time, but I need money. Working in a library has been a dream of mine for a while now, and it's the kind of place that could allow me to keep writing on the side... One day. One day.

Also, first rehearsal for a new show last night - the first in a year for me, and it was so much fun. Helped with the cabin fever too! Oh and I have new bookshelves. It looks like there is a library in the corner of my bedroom. It's amazing. Oh and a new phone! Well, a lovely second hand one that used to belong to the lovely Sean, but its heaps of fun to play with. In the meantime I have been watching Community and going to a couple of events for the Emerging Writer's Festival.

Yes. Life is good :)