skysenshi.com

Finally, my much-awaited self reinvention has begun to unfold. I had been waiting three years for this (since I used to reinvent myself every two years). This time, the change is two-pronged: (1) becoming a serious writer and (2) going back to the video game industry.

Why is it that I never considered applying for a serious writing job when I was much younger? I had better grasp of grammar and style back then. Now my writing reads like a technical book or a research journal. *Sigh*

I was already thinking of getting into publishing when my sister, who’s a Beauty & Fashion columnist at the Philippine Online Chronicles (POC) foisted me onto the e-zine because she had so many topics to cover. Truth be told, I had dreamed of writing for POC but I had wanted to contribute to the LGBT section of it. (Haha! I have straight friends who write in gay lingo over there.) Of course, I was intimidated by the roster of columnists in that section because some of them actually are Palanca Awardees.

But I got into the Beauty & Fashion section — despite my wanting only things that are natural and organic — because I noticed that my blog, which started out as a repository of geek thoughts (see earlier archives), suddenly was awash with food and beauty topics last year. At least, if I were to be a columnist for the Beauty section, I can stash all my kikay thoughts over there instead of letting them take over this blog and dominate my geekery. With this arrangement, I get the geek back and I don’t have to give up wanting to feel like a girl. (Don’t worry, I will still try to maintain the balance by consciously alternating geek and kikay posts on this blog.)

Anyhoo, my first article went up last Sunday:

Click image to view the full article.

I must admit, I wasn’t that interested in styling. That’s my sister’s job. She laments the fact that I am a jeans and sneakers girl. (Hey, I worked for the gaming industry a few years back so don’t knock it! Haha!) I saw my first assignment as a challenge, however. I ended up finding MY kind of stylist: Carson Kressley, an accomplished multidisciplinarian who just happens to be flamboyantly gay. (I love it when people mix and match professional fields that are seemingly unrelated. In his case, he’s into Finance and Fine Arts. Both disciplines manifest themselves in his fashion sensibilities. Read more about Carson Kressley here.)

I definitely enjoyed writing this article and I look forward to writing more for The Philippine Online Chronicles. My second article will be published sometime this week. Do watch out for it.

On leaving the academe.
My Mom asked me why I don’t try out for the international school that’s sitting a few blocks away from our house. They already contacted me before but at that time, I thought that I’d be spending the rest of 2011 with my previous institution. Things went into motion and suddenly, two paths cracked open and I found myself faced with two options: to go back to the gaming industry or go back to the web, which had been calling me incessantly since late last year.

Financially speaking, the web offers so much. Academically speaking, however, I know that I should be in the game industry. My dissertation falls under Game Studies.

My Mom then asked if I wanted to remain an educator. I told her that I can’t go back until I’ve replenished my knowledge. The thing about this vocation (and I consider it a vocation because you’re in it for the “love of” and not for the money) is that when it’s the only thing you do, you end up transferring so much knowledge without gaining anything back. An educator also needs to be a practitioner, so that s/he doesn’t stagnate. S/he owes it to her/his students.

And that’s why I need to go back: Theory cannot be forged without practice, and practice becomes unwieldy without theory. So now I’m looking forward to Phase 2 of my transition. I do hope my readers remain with me even when I start posting about gaming (outside of The Otaku Fridge) again.