I have always wanted to be a writer, and ideally within the realm of creative writing. However, being realistic, I have also recognized for a long time that one cannot simply graduate from college and become a full-time novelist—at least not if one wants to actually be able to pay rent and eat. This in mind, being a novelist has always been my “slightly unrealistic” career choice that I am determined to pursue, but is also secondary to something slightly more… likely to have a salary.

But what was this “real” career going to be? As much as I want to be a writer, with my busy life I find it hard to sit down and write consistently without solid motivation. Asking myself what best motivates me, and figuring that out to be a looming deadline and the idea of being accountable to others, I put two and two together and settled on magazine or newspaper journalism. For the past two or three years, when asked what I wanted to do after school, I would answer, “Well, I want to be a writer but I’ll probably go into journalism.” It sounded perfect to me, since I would still get writing published frequently, would write because I would have deadlines and topics assigned to me, and could explore other interests such as popular culture and current events.

The past couple of months, however, I’ve started to question this “perfect” career path more and more. Being a journalist still appeals to me; it’s easy to imagine the places I could possibly go and the people I could meet. It sounds like a job that would lead me to be much more engaged with the world more than, say… being a writer, sitting alone in a room with a laptop. And being engaged, through having a variety of experiences, meeting new people, and making a difference, is very important to me.

At the same time, I’ve started to realize that image of the Journalist is less that of a supreme writer—though this is important—and more that of a Researcher, researching the latest scoop and following a story through to its end. The journalist is out there to relay the “truth” or, at least, their opinion, to the public—not just to write. As my passion for literature continues to develop, I’m starting to wonder which I would like more—being a journalist and involved with the world? Or concentrating on something literary, my true passion? (Of course, the ideal job for me is a combination of these two: book critic.)

It is because of this re-thinking that I have recently turned to publishing as another plausible career path. Although it is a business that does not necessarily involve writing, I would be constantly emerged in the world of literature and books. This is not to say I would never try journalism; I’m still very young and am open to a variety of possible careers and internships. I have also started to consider continuing studies and eventually becoming an English professor, which is a profession I used to always believe I would not like. I’m not sure if I would be a good teacher or not, but the idea of being so knowledgeable about a field and then sharing my passion with others appeals to me. It’s too early to truly decide what I want to do, especially since it is now apparent that my ideas are changing constantly.

Of course, no matter what I ended up doing, I will always work on my creative writing on the side.