Oxford – SYP Conference 2017

Last weekend I travelled to Oxford Brookes University for the day to attend a conference about the publishing industry, held by the Society of Young Publishers (SYP). Publishing is where I hope to work following my studies, so it was a great opportunity to talk with like-minded people (who were either looking to work in publishing, like me, or already worked in publishing), gain some very good advice, and obviously an opportunity for some networking.

The conference was titled Publishing: A Brave New World? (because no-one can resist a literary reference!), and the whole day was based on the idea of innovation and disruption. The keynote at the start, given by Katie Espiner from Orion publishers, and the closing panel, both featured heavily on this theme, but there were also smaller panels throughout the day (with lots of choice about which to go to!) which discussed various issues within this larger scope.

It was a really great day, with some useful insights into the publishing industry that I’m sure will be invaluable for such a competitive area for careers. It was especially fun to be involved in discussions about the industry with other people who were also interested in its future (and I’m sure will one day be running and shaping it too).

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Third Year Feelings – The Start of First Term

I’ve been back at university for over a month now and, so far, third year has been a mixture of emotions and experiences already. Most prominently, this year started off with the usual excitement and apprehension, but also a feeling of fear and being overwhelmed. Speaking to my friends, I know I’m not alone in this, and it all stems from the thought of life after we graduate. (More specifically, having no idea what is going to happen, despite the various talks we’ve been given about our opportunities after uni – which right now only seemed to have increased this worry rather than cured it!) But, also alongside these concerns, for me is a great deal of excitement too; I’m really enjoying the work I’m doing, and I’m looking forward to the opportunities that I know I’ll discover throughout this final year.

Yet, as much as I am enjoying my work this year, there has been an awful lot of it! It may be that the workload is in fact more than last year, but it could also be that I just forgot how busy university can be – after all, we’ve just been thrown completely into the deep end this year! It really has full speed from the first week.

Second Year = Complete!

I’ve finished my second year of university! I can’t believe it! This has been a super crazy year, especially this last term which I feel like has gone super quickly (but at the same time when I look back, it seems like the term started so long ago…).

I feel like I’ve developed a lot this term, both personally and academically. I haven’t got my essay results back yet, but I think (hope) that my writing has improved a lot over the year. It was nice this year that I had a lot of freedom with my assessments, being able to choose what texts and topics of what I write about – I feel like this really helps me, to enjoy my writing (at least to start with, before I actually need to write it all) and therefore write better.

I’m also just a lot happier this year – living with my friends and feeling less stressed about work (despite this year actually counting towards my degree, and all my extra curricular stuff, including being in a show at the theatre and my placement at the Derby Book Festival!). But maybe I’m just forgetting all the bad stuff.

Perks of spending a lot of time at the theatre on campus in the run-up to a show…!

I’m so excited for the summer holidays now though – I’ve already started reading my own choice of books. (It’s the little things, ya know?). Now all we need is some more sun!

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How Do I Organise This Hectic Life?

University is super busy at the moment – with impending essays, a work placement once a week, training and matches for the lacrosse team four times a week, and a play to rehearse and perform at the end of term!

I sometimes feel like I’m going to drown under all the pressure and work, but I also know that (partly thanks to IB), with some good organisation, I am more than able to get through this storm in one piece – with finished work AND my sanity.

So, I thought I would share some of the tips that I have learnt from uni and school, about balancing a busy schedule and not going crazy from the stress.

1. A List is Key
I always make a weekly list of everything I have to do for university (like reading and seminar prep), with the date every task is due, and highlighting those that are most important. I’ve come to the realisation that sometimes you won’t be able to do everything, and knowing this really really helps to keep things in perspective; sometimes you just have to prioritise the things that definitely need to be done and leave the others for if you have time.

Also, on this list, I put the other things that I need to remember to do (like emails or learning lines, ah!), which have no urgent due date but I would probably forget to do otherwise. Although, this seems to be a list that I am constantly adding to as I remember everything I have said I would do, but still take forever to actually do… Oops).

You’ve Ruined a Perfectly Good Book?

I tend to get asked a lot “what do you study at university?”, and when I tell them “English” I tend to get one of two responses:
1) a polite “oh, that’s nice”.
2) mostly people I know better will ask “doesn’t that ruin the fun of reading?”.

And yes, of course, that was something I had thought about when I first decided to apply to universities, but I couldn’t imagine studying anything else!

And actually, I’ve found that this hasn’t happened to me yet. Of course, the extensive reading lists mean I don’t have much time to read my own books (so, sorry that this blog has been a bit neglected!). However, at the same time I am reading authors and book that I have wanted to read for ages, but never had the time or motivation to do so. For example, Jane Eyre, Zadie Smith and some plays other than Shakespeare.

Plus, I’m also learning to look at these books in a different way – being able to analyse themes, genres, etc. that normally I wouldn’t think twice about. And, yes of course, there are some books that I have to read in my course which I don’t find interesting, but you can’t win everything!

So university hasn’t “ruined” reading for me. Instead it has given me an opportunity to read more and look at things in a new light – both in and outside my studies. Plus, if nothing else, this degree has given me the ability to read books quickly!

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An Autumnal Birthday

October brings with it autumn, knitted jumpers (my favourite!), half term break and my birthday. My mum always says that by the time it gets to my birthday we are well and truly into Autumn. It’s easy to see: all the leaves are turning their gorgeous tones of gold, red and brown and falling off the trees; it gets darker a lot earlier and there’s a sharp coolness to the wind. This year has been no different. One big change did occur this weekend though; it was my birthday and I turned 18! I had a great weekend, relaxing, having fun and eating lots of cake and chocolate! (What else are birthdays for?) It’s strange to think that I am now a legal adult; I’ll have to be responsible and sensible from now on. (Haha!) Naturally I don’t feel any different from when I was 17, but it is quite scary to think how quickly this year is going – or, as I’m sure my parents have been feeling, my entire life! The rate this year has been going it won’t be too long until I’m taking my exams and (hopefully) going off to university. Aahh, that’s scary but so exciting too! I’m looking forward to see what my year as an 18 year old will throw at me…

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I would also like to make it clear that as it was my birthday, it was therefore also my twin sister’s birthday – she gets grumpy if I don’t say it’s her birthday too!

Books for breakfast?

The other day, as part of my IB Theory of Knowledge course (yes, it is as mind-boggling as it sounds!), I attended a lecture by Professor A.C. Grayling about the importance of the humanities subjects. I do History and English at higher level (sorry, more IB jargon), but would’t call myself a humanities enthusiast…

He brought up some very interesting and thought-provocking points. One that particularly made me sit up and think is that it is not typical to read books in the morning. Personally, I read as often as I can every evening before I go to bed – especially as it has been proven that reading before going to sleep makes the process of falling asleep much easier,  far better than being on a phone or a laptop. But I hardly ever read in the morning  (except for the occasional “I must finish this book” mornings).

But why is this the case? There seems to be a stigma attached to morning activities; they have to be productive – like cleaning or working or going to school. Yet, to me it seems like a great idea to read in the morning. It would be an opportunity to get your mind and imagination working straight away.

I’m interested to know what you all think. Do you read in the mornings? (Am I just the odd one out?) Do you wish you read more in the mornings or the evenings?