School

I start my class this week. The one I was awarded a scholarship for.

And I am SOOOOO excited.


I had to write a "class intro" letter and turn it in here pretty soon. I am sitting on it right now. For a couple of reasons.

One....the obvious. Proof it a few (thousand) times so that I can make sure I sound WAY more inteligent than I really am. Because it is, in fact, a writing class. I gotta make sure I come off sounding all writer-like. And not some poser. puh-lease.

and

Two....it's important to me. And while I may or may not come off sounding all writer-like-worthy-of-this-scholarship...the essence of the class topic, itself, is meaningful. The class is called "Discover Your Specialty & Launch Your Platform." The "specialty" is a topic that I wouldn't necessarily choose, but seems to have chosen me. The subject matter keeps me up at night. It makes me want to be a better person. It makes me want to speak up, to become an expert, to help out.

To make a difference.

Here's my intro letter:

My name is Robin **** and I’m from **,**. I’m coming to this class as a former student of WPSS (Writing and Publishing the Short Stuff.) It was this class that helped me get back on my feet and on the road to writing for publications again. It was also during this class that I started taking an honest look at what my passions are and wondering about how to build a writing platform on this.
Several years ago, I worked as a writer, reporter and columnist for a Midwestern newspaper. I took a few years off from writing for publication in order to take care of some major issues at home. About a year ago, I pulled up the proverbial bootstraps, took the WPSS class and began to pursue writing for publication again. Since that class, I have had a couple of articles published in newspapers, three in regional parenting publications and a handful of articles published on the web. This is a far cry from where I was years ago as a newspaper writer—but I am appreciating each step as a step in the right direction.
I suppose you could say that I have been thinking about a “platform” since the first week of the WPSS class when all participants were asked the question, “If you had to choose one topic, and one topic only, to write about for one year, what would that topic be?” I knew then, in my heart, that the topic I would choose to research, write about and become an expert on isn’t fun, and isn’t one that I would necessarily choose. But the topic, you could say, has chosen me. It keeps me up at night and drives me to be a better person during the day. My platform: Domestic violence awareness and prevention.
I have since been spending time reading and educating myself on the issue of domestic violence, and just how widespread this really is. I have become a volunteer with GROW Ministries (Godly Restoration and Outreach to Women) as their domestic violence liaison. I have also begun to assist in the start up of a domestic violence ministry in my home church. I haven’t done any official platform-building as far as writing or public speaking on this topic, but believe this should be my next step.
I am extremely thankful for the opportunity to take this class. I understand that I am the first scholarship recipient for Discover Your Specialty & Launch Your Platform, and I intend to use this chance to really learn the ins and outs from the class instruction and from fellow classmates. Like all of the steps I have taken during and since the WPSS class, I believe wholeheartedly that this, too, is a step in the right direction for me both personally and professionally.

What do you think?