Quo Vadis?

Where am I going? I don't know. Where am I heading? I ain't certain. All that I know is I am on my way!
-Lee Marvin, Paint your Wagon (1969)

Unlike most people my age, I have a fair idea about where I would like to be in a decade's time. If you'd asked me 'Quo Vadis?' a year ago, I would have given you a completely different answer.

I love drama, and for a few years, wanted to devote myself to the craft of acting. I'd always had a nagging thought, just a whisper, at the back of my mind though. Why don't I try writing?

I've written stories since I was a small child. I'd create whole worlds and the characters that'd populate them. I'd give the townsfolk dilemmas to deal with and situations to sort out. I'd never considered writing as a career though, but as that whisper of a voice became stronger, I contemplated what I really wanted to do.

Now, almost a year later, my path is clearer, maybe not as set in stone in regards to how to get where I want to.

I've fallen in love with writing. I spend every spare minute scribbling down my thoughts (coherent or otherwise) into notebooks, jotters, bus tickets - you name it! I write stories, and publish them online, where people regularly read and review my work. Gone are the days of dreading those English essays. Now I moan that they aren't long enough!

After years of having nagging doubts, my future seems more certain. I know what needs doing; OI know what subjects I need to pass; I know what courses I want to do, and I know I'm making the right choice.

The course that I'd most like to do is Stirling University's BA (Hons) in Journalism Studies. I will combine this with an Undergraduate course in creative writing. This will take four years, so in five years time, I will hopefully have a degree! It isn't just writing that has me hooked. It's writing about certain subject matters that really enthrals me.

My dream job would be to work for a prestigious scientific publication, like National Geographic or New Scientist; National geographic is a magazine that takes an in-depth look at the world. It reviews geological and geographical problems such as global warming and pollution, as well as archaeology botany and exobiology. It covers everything from Politics and technology to animals and insects. I love geography, and I'm naturally very curious about the world around me, so travel writing is one option.

New Scientist, however, deals only with scientific issues. It deals with ideas small and large, form the latest news on NASA's new shuttle designs, to some of the wackier theorems proposed by some of the scientists on the fringes. I like science. I love Astronomy, and I've been known to go to Star Trek scientific writing's another possibility!

Another avenue I've considered is investigative Journalism. I'm very nosy and inquisitive, and I love to snoop around, so this may be the job for me!

I've also considered combining my biggest hobby with my work. I love Science Fiction, and the majority of online writing I have is based on Science Fiction television shows, so I'd like to work for a company like Titan or Visual Imagination. Titan publishes both books and specialised Science fiction magazines, so the potential for using different writing skill and techniques is there.

I'm also a big fan of music, so I'd possibly like to write for a Scottish or Irish music magazine. I have a good depth of musical knowledge, and I am currently sitting Advanced Higher, so I'd have a fair idea of what to write about. I have a broad appreciation for music of many style and forms, so I would also like to write for a mainstream music magazine.

Ten years from now, I see myself working for a newspaper or magazine as either a reporter or editor. I'd like to have written a novel, and possibly be working on my second one. I'd also like to publish a book of short stories.

Writing a novel is one of my biggest ambitions. I'd love to have written my first novel within a few years. Currently the longest story I've written is about fourteen thousand words, and is just over the halfway mark, so I know I have the ability in me. I'd like to write a mystery or a fantasy, as I believe this may be where my strength in creative writing lies.

I write a lot of short stories, so I may try to get them published as collection.

Overall, I feel confident about the future. I am feeling a little trepidation about my exams this year, but that's only natural. I cannot wait until I go to University but I am feeling slightly apprehensive about leaving school!