The Defense That Almost Wasn't - Two Years Later

Two years ago today, I passed the oral defense of my doctoral dissertation with minor revisions needed. It was the end of one of the biggest accomplishments of my life to date and the start of a new chapter for me professionally. However, I almost didn't make it there that day.

After a 45 minute drive, I found a packed parking garage at the train station and a very long line waiting for spots to open in the overflow lot. They were also understaffed. I watched from the line of cars as my scheduled train came and went and then another. There was another train coming in just a few minutes - the last one I could catch and still possibly make it to the city on time. When I finally got the chance to park, I grabbed my bags, and ran to the closest stairway up to the elevated platform. It is the equivalent of three stories. And I tripped on the way, lodging a rock into my thumb that stayed in place for the following six months. The train conductor saw I was completely winded and gave me a few stops before checking my ticket.

The rest, I guess, is history.

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Young Playwrights Map: Update

Image created by Jodomondo
Accessed on Wikimedia Commons

The summer has provided me with much needed time for updating the Young Playwrights Map, which had been neglected for too long as I wound down school-year responsibilities at the theatre and at the high school. However, I have not yet updated the old listings as my social media and internet news alerts have brought to my attention a number of previously unknown opportunities within the United States, Canada, and the UK. These have been added throughout the month of June and the Map has suddenly grown from an off-shoot of my dissertation research into an international resource of 117 opportunities for young writers ages 18 and younger.

I enjoy adding programs both new and established and there have been a share of both this past month. It still surprises me that programs with histories of multiple years are only now becoming visible to me. I would think the almighty Google would pick up those hits automatically, but nevertheless, I am grateful to find them now.

What I am uncertain about at the moment is how useful the Map is for young writers. To date, the Young Playwrights Map has 3,206 views since it was first shared in May 2015. That's roughly 1,000 views per year. Google analytics help me see where views originate, but I don't know how the information is being used, or if it is useful at all. Programs are excited when I contact them to be added (although I did have one program refuse to give information and the head of an organization offer to share information only if I was a member). Playwrights are thrilled with the idea of finding new places to share their work. Some of the playwrights with whom I've worked in the New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival have plays produced at other festivals, but I do not believe they connected with those organizations because of the Map. Information about how the Map is used is something I am working on. If you have any suggestions, please do share them.

I also would like to conduct another overview of the field similar to what I did in Mapping the Field of Young Playwrights Programs, which was published in ArtsPraxis in October 2016. However, that may need to wait until the start of 2019 while I wrap up some other projects. In the meantime, I look forward to continuing to update the map and reaching two milestones: 100 programs in the United States and 120 listings overall. With any luck, those will come before the summer is out!

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Wrapping up 2017

With 2017 winding down, so has my journey to the Ph.D. I realized when logging in that I hadn't followed up the post about heading off to my dissertation defense. I received a unanimous "pass" and have been working for the last few weeks on revisions and reformatting of the thesis for final submission and publication. That process was completed tonight.

So 2018 will begin with all requirements for the doctorate complete and graduation just over the horizon. I can't wait to get started on the next projects and to continue improving myself in the year ahead. To that end, I am sharing a quote attributed to Benjamin Franklin, which I read for the first time tonight (hat tip to The Art of Manliness Twitter feed):

"Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man." - B. Franklin

Happy New Year, everyone!

Power up!

This morning I wished our Amazon Alexa a "good morning" to which she replied that today is Shigeru Miyamoto's birthday. The creator of Donkey Kong, The Legend of Zelda, and Mario Brothers achieves level 65 today. In celebration, Alexa wished me a day full of power ups. And today, a power up is exactly what I plan to achieve.

Its defense day.