Life Update!

Hey, everybody! You may or may not have noticed that it’s been pretty quiet over here on ldchristianson.com lately. Weekly blogs seem to be a thing of the past, as do Tuesday posting days. If I’ve learned one thing in my college years, it’s roll with the changes. Since those changes are relevant to my blogging and writing – and since I know many of my readers personally – I thought I’d share a bit of a life update post.

I’m in my senior year of college. I only have 7 classes left, and I’m taking some through the summer so I can graduate in December. December 12^th is my last day of school. It’s all I can do not to break out the advent calendar already. Lately, I think a daily piece of chocolate might be my only hope of getting through this with my sanity intact. I had the worst senioritis among my high school friends and it looks like I’m going to continue my reign in that department.

With graduation approaching, I’ve been working out my career plans. I’m excited to say I’ve made my decision. With the help of my dad, a few remaining elective credits, and some books and YouTube videos, I’m preparing to become a software developer. I’m learning a computer programming language called C# and I’ve already created several simple applications to perform calculations or interact with text.

I’m really enjoying programming as it gives me an opportunity to apply the logical and analytical side of my mind and personality. I’ve gotten more introverted as I’ve gotten older and dealing with emotions (mine or others’) has never been my strong suit. It’s nice to get into coding mode where there are objective results to shoot for, but still plenty of problem solving and creative thinking required.

Ok. What does this mean for writing? I still love to write. Nothing will change that! I will still be pursuing it as one of my main hobbies. I’m planning to release a second McAllen book, but I don’t have a clear idea of when that will happen. I’ve discovered that, as much as I like to read mysteries, they aren’t my favorite genre to write. As much as I love the Brownwood Grove series, it may need to be a two-hit-wonder. I’m also working on a sci-fi book that involves detectives but focuses on political intrigue as opposed to a whodunnit. Again, no ETA on that, but it’s a regular weekend project currently.

I will still keep my eyes open for freelance article opportunities, and I have some more queries and an article in the works at The Old Schoolhouse. I’m also working on a few things I’m not ready to disclose details about yet. All of this is done at the hobby level, but writing is definitely still an important part of my life.

I find that I’m enjoying it more when I don’t feel pressured to make it into a career. I can truly write for me without having to worry about what will make good blog or social media content or whether I match up with the opinions swirling around writing and reading groups. I’ve realized I don’t check all the boxes required to be a professional writer in this day and age, and I don’t see a need to change that. I find writing more fulfilling when I can approach it with the freedom of a hobby.

I’m excited to see how my approach to writing and blogging continues to change now that it occupies a different part of my schedule. I look forward to branching out into all my random interests now that I have no reason to focus on book-related topics. I’m also excited to continue working toward my next stage of life as I learn what I need for my software development career. Throughout school, I always struggled to reconcile the creative and logical sides of myself, but I’ve now realized they never needed to be at odds.