Final exam

My goal in life is, I'll admit, a very new one as far as lifetime goals are concerned. I want to be a professional writer; I just feel that it's what I was meant to be. However, I don't want to write for anyone else about things I do not care about. I suppose I could if I had to in order to make a living, but what kind of life would that be? I want to write my own books, plays, short stories, poetry and anything else that I'm suddenly inspired to write and whenever the mood strikes me. I want to be that weird person who carries my own tape player and recorder around to document ideas that come into my head. I figure it's much more practical than pen and paper; I can't be expected to write as fast as I think.

The study of English is slowly improving the writer that I am and smoothing out the finer details of my grammar and technique. I suppose a downside to being an English major lies in the assumptions made by others. Nowadays, my friends all see me as the go-to person for paper grading, writing assistance, MLA & APA format, etc. The older we get the more papers I read. My friends' nagging is actually good for me because I force myself to memorize this information so that I can help others and inevitably myself.

Being an English major has also begun to force me out of my major problem in life; procrastination. I am a terrible procrastinator and it is the worst when I have papers to write. Procrastination is the main reason why I have none of my ideas typed up. It is pretty sad to be a writer without a drive. I sit and read in between my breaks whatever Agatha Christie novel I have and just think about how amazing she was. Agatha Christie wrote 80 detective novels alone along with her romances and plays. When I read one of her books I am just awed by the amount of time and effort that must have gone into each of her works and just think 'this is what I want. I want to be this.' I feel like I'm slowly reaching that stage in my life. Now, when I get ideas at school, I sit down and pull out my notebook (usually the one that doubles as my English notebook) and write out my stories or ideas. I still don't own a tape player and recorder, but I'm getting there.

I find that my study of English is a lot like my study of Latin: I am annoyed a lot easier now. When I hear people mispronouncing Latin words I can just feel this urge to grit my teeth. The same can pretty much be said about terrible grammar, spelling, and misplaced punctuation. I am also aggravated by the improper use of the word "there/their/they're". I really do not understand what the confusion is but I digress. I know that my reading and writing interests have the potential to take me very far in my chosen field, but I know that most of it is up to me.

Many years ago, I wrote two lines to a poem. Those two lines would remain two lines for several years. I remember the night I was inspired to finish that poem: I was in a car waiting for my mother when I suddenly remembered those two lines and then proceeded to finish the entirety of the poem while I sat there. It took me roughly ten minutes to finish it, another five or so for my mother to return, and then another hour before I returned home to get it onto paper. The feeling I had when I looked at my finished work was one of pride and fulfillment. I want to be able to feel that for the rest of my life.