After nearly two and a half years in this space I’ve decided to move virtual “homes” to a new site, elizabethgrantthomas.com More than just a blog, this site features samples of my writing (some pieces which you will recognize from these very pages), links to published work, and provides a venue for readers to stay up-to-date on my writing.  I will still maintain a blog component of the site with the same writing that you have come to expect here at Life in Pencil.

Please take a moment to stop by and say “hello!” when you have a chance.  If you’ve bookmarked this site, please consider updating your favorites.  And if you link to Life in Pencil and would like to continue pointing your readers to my writing, I would be grateful if you could update your site with my new URL.

The other day Anne and I were talking, both finding it a little sad that this journey we started on nearly three years ago is coming to a close.  But nothing really ends, does it?  It just takes on new life somewhere else.  And that’s what Life in Pencil has always been about.  We’re both still out there, blazing new trails in the shadows of the old ones.

Thank you for the time you’ve spent in this space.  It will be missed.

Posted by Anne

I don't think these need to move in opposite directions, do you?

I’ve been teaching a class for 7 weeks now, and I’d venture to say I’m learning as much as my students.  The theme of my class is “Famous Careers and Unexpected Paths”, and we’re examining the circuitous routes that have led people to success.  So far this term, we’ve studied JK Rowling, Oprah, Steve Jobs, and Sherman Alexie.  Two authors, one multimedia self-help magnate, and one genius computer CEO.  So, in tracking the careers of these illustrious individuals, what have I learned?

They’ve all failed.  Yep, despite their obvious success, each one at some point failed on the way.  Oprah was not renewed for one of her first news positions.  JK was broke, rejected, and depressed.  Sherman Alexie briefly struggled with alcoholism, failed in his attempt to become a doctor, and had to switch colleges.  Steve Jobs is a college dropout.  For all the light, these folks have experienced plenty of dark. 

Some of my students find this comforting.  They can fail.  Some of them are even eager to be independent at college, making their own mistakes for the first time.  And some just don’t like the idea.  Why on earth would we want to promote the idea of failure for crying out loud?  (My 18-year-old self would have fallen in this latter category.)

But my 30-year-old self?  I think what I find most interesting/affirming/comforting about these geniuses is not necessarily the “failure” part of their path, but the fact that they had to try many things before they hit the jackpot.  Remember the Macintosh “cube”?  Can you imagine Oprah as a “hard news” anchor?  Ever read any of JK Rowling’s early fiction for adults?  Nope.  These folks experimented before genius struck.  They kept moving.  Producing.  Trying. 

I have a good career.  A promising one.  And yet, sometimes, I just feel there’s something else I’m supposed to do before this life is up.  And I’m not sure what it is.  There will be twists.  There will be turns.  There will be failures.  But if I keep trying, failing, producing…perhaps I’ll have my own moment of pure joy and success.

A final reminder to email us your Life in Pencil Moment of the Week TODAY!  We haven’t received any submissions yet, and we’d love to hear from you.  We’ll post the compilation tomorrow, Friday, June 11.