Your major is easy.

No, my major is not easy.

Well, you can't make money in that or get hired.

These are some of the words I hear on an almost everyday basis. I cannot really understand why people think Creative Writing is so easy when in reality, it is not. And all the claims are not accurate either. Pursuing and getting a degree in any subject is difficult, it's college. In my eyes, everyone is different and everyone is good at something easy when in reality, it is not. And all the claims are not accurate either. Pursuing and getting a degree in any subject is difficult, it's college. In my eyes, everyone is different and everyone is good at something else that someone might not be good at.

It is not nice to make fun of someone else's major, regardless of the reason. Besides, all majors have to take some of the same required courses as anybody else in a different major. The person could have a great passion or love what they do. You might ask: why am I a Creative Writing major and why do I love it? You might ask what is my life as a Creative Writing major like? I would say that there is a secret life of being a Creative Writing major that people do not know about. Well, I have a lot of reasons and I have my own story of what got me into writing and why I love it, as well as what led me to major in it. It's a major that is misunderstood.

Writing has and will always be a vital tool that is used in everyday life. For myself, it is a great passion of mine and I started writing from a young age. I always liked to read and write, it was what I was great at. Teachers gave me compliments about my writing at a young age thinking I would become a great writer. They were not wrong. Learning math was an extreme struggle of mine starting from a young age; I could just not understand it, it would take me hours and hours to understand little topics and ideas. I was always bad at politics and could not understand it either. Words can be powerful and I think that writing is very powerful and can make a difference in the world. When I write at times I get into a zone, and when I get into this zone, it is difficult for me to be removed from this zone. I write and write many words as fast as lightning and the words race onto the page. The constant loud clicking of the keys on my laptop gives me joy and relief. Sometimes, I type so fast on my keyboard that I believe I might break a key. I have a hunger that is never satisfactory. I am always trying to improve and feel that I came from an abundance of hardship and turmoil. Where would the world be without writing? It would not be where it is at today.

You might ask why do I write and where do I find this passion? Nonetheless, I write because I want to continue my family’s tradition and values. Writing is in my blood. At a young age, I read a lot of different books and I found great enjoyment from it. It goes back to myself wanting to be successful and doing anything I want to do if I put my mind to it. I do not want to be a failure and I refuse to be one. There is a 10,000-hour rule that states that if you work hard on anything in life for 10,000 hours, you will be great at it. If you want to be successful in life and make it, just put in the 10,000 hours of work. Easier said than done, but it is what is needed. The answer is not quitting, it is working hard and putting in the time and work to become successful. In anything that you do in life, if you put in the 10,000 hours, you will become great at it. With time, you will improve. I refuse to quit when it gets tough and I have been tested greatly in my life. When I am writing I truly feel that I have my own voice and that I can express myself freely and better than talking generally. At a young age, I read a lot of different books and I found great enjoyment from it. I was delighted to be transferred to different worlds and read nonfiction. I enjoy reading fiction, but not writing it as much.

My mother read hundreds upon hundreds of novels when she was young. She even won a contest for best short story in high school. My mother although dropped out of college after one year and never pursued her dreams of being a writer. She was good at it and had a passion for it, but never was able to do anything with it. She had a huge stack of hundreds of books that sat on the bookshelf in my house. Outside forces destroyed her own dreams. Writing has always been a hobby of mine and it has been an outlet for me. I do not speak very well in person, I get nervous and frightful. When I write, my emotions fly on the page easily and I put my all into it. Writing to me is very powerful and the use of language is both important and symbolic. Writing back to a long time ago is shown as important and our founding fathers gave us this gift. The ability to write mostly whatever one would like and not be accused or harassed for it by the government is remarkable. The amendment, Freedom of speech saved us. Writing to me is a vital skill that everyone needs. So, I write because I want to do what my mother did not. I want to live out my dream and my mother's dream. I want to make my family proud. I want to prove people wrong. I want to be the one in my family to write novels and be published. Simply, I love what I do and I know that I am destined for this life. I know it is difficult to make a successful career out of writing, but I do not choose to listen to what others tell me. I know deep within myself that I have the skills necessary and the fundamentals and drive to become a great author or journalist and make it in society. I can feel a hunger and a passion unlike anything else. If anybody is great at something, they can make a career and money out of it. It is not the major; it is the person. I would try time and time again to make everything right. I want to make my family proud and spark people with my brilliant ideas or stories.

In my eyes, money is the root of evil. Not in every situation, of course, we all need money to survive and thrive. But, I am just saying I am not going to major in something I hate and that I am bad at just because I will be making money. For one, I would be getting bad grades, so that does not help me out much. Second, I would not want to be working an everyday job that I hate with every fiber of my being. Living my life like that would be difficult and I would regret it for the rest of my life. I hear everyday stories of people going for a major they did not like in college to make money and it did not work out for them. They are sad and regret their own decision. People can major in something for the money and get bad grades in it and that will look bad on a resume. I am not ashamed or embarrassed by my major; I am quite the opposite.

Creative Writing, people think is an easy major. When truly, It is for people who are strong. Over the course of my almost four eyes of college and throughout my lifetime, I have read hundreds of novels. I can recount countless nights of pulling all-nighters when being in this major. I have had to take tough criticism from others and change my work around. Sometimes I have had to change my work so much that it changed the whole story and idea from the start. In the major, you have to be able to take tough criticism and be willing to change details and ideas. In reality, it is not and I can abide by this because I am in the major. I love to get feedback on my stories and change them and make the corrections. The work for classes can be so challenging at times, crafting a 10 to 15-page paper all the time. I have had to read a novel a week and do a presentation on it for the end of the course. So, in reality, a person majoring in Creative Writing does similar aspects as other majors. Constantly typing paper after paper a week is not easy.

Having to answer prompts as well as doing weekly responses to readings. Creating papers on an everyday basis, typing a thesis that has to be 75 pages minimum now in my senior year. On top of this, I have to check my work for spelling and grammar mistakes and even go to academic support to double check my work to make sure it is good. Not just this, I have to type up responses, respond to other people's work in a page or two. Read everybody's work of course and be ready to participate and give my thoughts to the class on it. I write personal stories on my life that embody and made me who I am today. I think that is important and cool. In no measure, is this all easy. I spent hours and hours thinking of stories into my head to make into a hit. I think of hundreds of ideas at a time. All I want to do is write forever and ever. I do think about teaching, which I will think about later down the line. Honestly speaking, though, I love what I do. To anybody else who is majoring in Creative Writing, do not be ashamed and do not think you are a nobody who is going to fail in life and not get a job. It is just not the truth. You have the power to prove people wrong. Although, I am still unsure 100% what I will do after getting my degree in Creative Writing. I could pursue a master's degree in it at another school or go to graduate school or chase another degree. I hope to stay in New Jersey for a bit and possibly move to California or New York City to find a home as a writer and pursue my dreams of being a great author.

What I do know is that my dream will become reality.