How
I Became a Writer
By Megan Bowen
By Megan Bowen
I have never been one of those people
who knew exactly what they wanted since the day they could put a sentence
together. When I was 6 I was going to be the very first girl president of the United States.
A lawyer, a hair stylist and an interior decorator all made the “what I want to
be” list when I was in Jr. High and High School. Somehow, a writer and
journalist is what I became.
Writing is something that came
naturally to me, so I didn’t always see it as a career path. In elementary
school I would fold solid white printing paper in half and create books,
complete with misspelled plots and harsh illustrations. But it wasn’t until I
was half way through college that I realized there was nothing else I would
rather be doing. Luckily for me I started out in the communications field in
school, so I didn’t have the hassle of switching majors and adding years onto
my “expected graduation date.” My college experiences truly made me the person
I am today, and that young freshman who didn’t think attending classes was
important got a nice slap in the face by reality—and for that I am truly
grateful.
My writing/journalism experience
started almost immediately in school. I was on the editorial staff of Utah State
University’s newspaper,
being editor and a hard core news reporter (or so I thought). I loved
researching and putting words together that created something more than just an
FYI on what was going on in the world. Newspapers weren’t my future though; I
knew that after spending a year in the print journalist atmosphere. I wasn’t
overly curious, I wasn’t willing to invade privacy or call someone until they
finally decided to pick up their phone. I learned the harder way I wasn’t hard
core enough.
After print journalism, I took classes
in Radio and other forms of multi-media. Aside from the long list of technical
difficulties, I enjoyed broadcasting. I still don’t consider myself a creative
person, but putting packages together for television and radio did require a
bit of my right brain. Magazine writing also required my right brain, and I
almost didn’t make it through that course. I don’t see myself as a “creative
writer” (silly I know) but painting a picture in my reader’s minds is not an
attainable thing for me, and Magazine Writing reminded me of that every day.
Despite my best efforts, I never would have published anything I wrote for that
course.
When it came to broadcasting I knew I
wanted to be behind the camera. I am an introvert who doesn’t need and/or want
to be the center of attention. I once thought about being in front of the
camera, until I met everyone else who wanted to be in front of the camera.
Quickly realizing my personality was polar opposite of theirs, I turned to side
of producing. Be the boss of the on-air talent? I could do that.
Over the summer my “dream job” was
offered to me after an internship at the ABC4/CW30 station. Despite being a 22
year old college student with no producing experience, I was hired to be the
morning producer for The Daily Dish. My first chance at a 40-hour-a-week job
complete with weekends off has proved to be interesting. This small TV show has
made its way into my life, and my sleep schedule, and I can honestly say I am
enjoying this new passage into adulthood.
I’m still not sure how this life
happened for me, but I can hardly complain. I think I have always been a
writer; I just didn’t realize my love for writing could support me and give me
a future. I am still not a completely organized person with a 5 year plan, but
these next 5 years are looking pretty good to me.
