Julia Skinner, the Intern

At a JMU Rugby game

         So here are the basics: I’m a twenty-one year old senior at James Madison, and I like experiencing new things. During college I’ve played rugby, joined a sorority, explored Europe, and sampled everything from Shakespearean plays to self-defense. 

I grew up in Hawaii, a redhead with a constant sunburn. I danced hula competitively for eleven years – in spite of my naturally clumsy nature – and developed an appreciation for culture and music. Spending so much time performing made stage fright an impossibility, plus I got play dress-up well into my teen years. My parents signed me up for a variety of things, from ballet (which I was kicked out of), to Tae Kwon Do, to various choirs and musical instruments (I was first chair French horn in band, but I was also the only French horn). Hula, however, was the only one that stuck.

When I got older and left Hawaii, it became more difficult to keep up with hula, and I began to look for other things to do. And this is where my restlessness kicked in. I did track, rugby, and kickboxing, tried my hand at crochet, piano, kayaking, and even started waitressing because I loved the idea of eventually being a bartender (and what college student couldn’t use some extra money to help pay the bills). Most things didn’t stick, but my passion for novelty continued. Anything unknown tempts me; I am in love with un-experienced adventure.

In Barcelona

         I started writing in the fifth grade around the time that the Lord of the Rings films came out. I was so blown away by the story that I immediately read the books and decided I wanted to create something as brilliant as Tolkien’s work. My early stories usually branched off from Tolkien’s and may have involved his male characters falling in love with a heroine who may or may not have resembled me, but eventually I created my own stories and ideas. Although I admit, I still have a bit of a crush on Orlando Bloom.

My writing has developed over the years, but my love for the unexplored and novel has long affected my work. I tend towards brevity, resulting in short stories based on an idea that engages me but never quite leads to a novel. I go after the moment, the sudden adventure, the potential within a single event or experience, and then quickly am distracted by the next. My works are numerous, but they have yet to come together into a single piece.

So, now that you know who I am, I’ll let you in on what exactly I am doing here.

In this column I hope to find other students who have a special inspiration that gets them going. Creativity can be found to all aspects of life; it has certainly driven me, and I hope to discover how it drives other people. To borrow from the show’s title, I hope to discover “The Spark” that drives others in their ambitions.

Stay tuned, so to speak. My first web conversation – with Mary Baldwin's Rachel Ratkowski – will be posted with next week’s show.