Hey, guys! I'm so sorry I was unable to be at our first brunch meeting. I'm in a show right now called Titus Andronicus that has a mobile "set" out on lake lag and it's been very time consuming, though definitely rewarding. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone in September and hearing about everyone's summer plans! I remember going around the circle at Arts Intensive last summer when I was a student in the program and being a bit awed by the range of places and projects people were getting involved in.

Basic info: I'm from North Carolina and I'll be a junior in the fall but I still don't really know what I'm majoring in, which is nice and daunting. I'm currently being seduced by Science, Technology, and Society, but who knows, who knows. If anyone wants to hash out department information, I think I have all the info for English, philosophy, history, earthsys, symsys, humbio, PD, and now STS. Eventually I'll strike gold, it's a probability thing.

Hmm, let's see. I love writing short stories and this quarter I've been trying to transition some short pieces I have into screenplays. I'm a videographer/do-any-job-really for a student-run organization called The Red Couch Project, which captures student and bay artists' performances with really nice equipment in an intimate, audience-friendly environment and being around cameras for so long has given me a film bug that I've been entertaining for a few months now.

I read "Good Old Neon" by DFW for the first time a couple weeks ago. Whew. You guys should read it, it's really beautiful. In fact, all of Wallace's short fiction is just worth it. Also, I don't know if any of you guys have ever seen the film "Waking Life," but I'm hoping that we can watch part/all of it as creative fuel for a writing exercise that I've been itching to do.

Like I said, I was in this program last year and it definitely framed this school year for me in such interesting ways, so I'm pretty excited to be a part of it again. I'll see you cats in September!

-Mags

PS- hope this is alright to say on here but you all should come to wine and cheese at kairos (every other wed night) before the year is over and come find me to say hello!

Alison Ge, by Alison Ge

I'm currently studying abroad, so I haven't had the chance to meet all of you yet.

I'm a junior majoring in Economics and International Relations. I've spent the last two quarters abroad, winter quarter in Paris and currently in Beijing. Though I've had amazing experiences abroad, being abroad has made me realize that Stanford is pretty much the best place in the world, and I can't wait to be back!

Where I'm from is a very interesting question, and I generally provide the simplified answer of "Ohio." My story's a tad more complex, though. I was born in China but moved to Israel and then the United States at a young age. I moved around quite a bit as a child, and Stanford's basically the first school I've gone to for more than two years. 

 At Stanford, I'm involved with the Aerial Fabrics program, Kids with Dreams, JusticeCorps, and Figure Skating Club.  

I loved reading novels of all kinds when I was younger, and, in a way, lived more in those novels than I did in my own life. I'd always aspired to captivate others with my stories but, as life progressed, I found myself writing to please teachers, win contests, and apply to places under very specific guidelines. Hoping to change that trend!

Alec Arceneaux by Selamile Dlamini

Alec Arceneaux

Alec speaks about his name and history with spark and passion – he is Cajun and his first name, Alec, was the first name his parents thought of that was the same in English and French.

As a child, Alec spoke French but has forgotten it over the years. He is an English major, and decided on this field because he read and wrote throughout his life. He would like to pursue journalism in the future. Currently, Alec writes for the Stanford Review and Stanford Arts Review, and is inspired by writing in The Atlantic. Alec is fascinated by the world, and wishes to create his own study abroad experience in West Africa. Additionally, he would like to intern at a South African newspaper.

Alec is a multi-talented young man – in addition to his writing, he is a passionate and gifted musician who has played at the Jazz Festival in Panama (incidentally, that was the only time he’s left the country). He plays vibraphone and percussion instruments and his father was on campus last week to see him play a solo in a concert at the Bing Concert Hall.

Maybe, if we’re really lucky, Alec will play one of his percussion instruments for us =)

William Toaspern, by Ashlee Reynolds

Will is currently a American Studies major and an Econ minor, living in Oak Creek Apartments. He's from Denver and having lived near the mountains all his life, he really likes hiking and other outdoor activities. He's involved in a bunch of activities on campus, including the club soccer team, and Theta Delta Chi, as well as the Stanford Outdoor Outreach (which he'll be president of next year!).

When asked about his future plans, he laughs like most Stanford students do. He does know however that he might pursue the policy route and he wouldn't mind working for the government or with a non-profit. Of his parents, his Mom seems to be the one with career interests most similar to him - she's involved in tax policy. His dad, though is the one with the cool job (in my opinion) - he works for the National Potato Board!

Will is going to be a senior next year, and he's really excited about this class because he's always written, but never had the chance to take a class like this at Stanford. He says he's ready to be forced to finish a story, and this class will do that for him.

Be excited to know Will :)

Marisa Messina, profiled by An Luong

Marisa Messina is a freshman from McLean, Virginia with a passion for many things. Among her interests are horseback riding and running. Since the age of 2, Marisa has ridden horses, not just recreationally but in fact competitively on a national scale. In fact, she spent her 4th and 5th grades training in Florida with Olympians! Upon coming to Stanford though, she wanted to explore different avenues and has taken a hiatus from the sport. In high school, she also ran track and field and actually came within 7 seconds of breaking her school's record in the 3200 meter race! 

In the spirit of trying new things here at Stanford, she currently serves as treasurer of the Stanford Alumni Mentoring Program's Student Leadership Team and is on the executive boards of the Pre-Law and Pre-Business organizations. Furthermore, she has been involved in psychology research throughout the year and also worked extensively with SPLASH. However, outside of these school activities, she told me that some of her favorite memories have been outside of academics. From spending a month working on an organic farm to volunteering in Thailand and voyaging through Italy and to begging on a metro in Paris (as an experiment), her life has been very exciting. Her favorite foods include chocolate, which she enjoys in all forms, including as a coating for cicadas (she can give you more details). If you have the chance, take a moment to get to know Marisa better. She's got some amazing stories!

Selamile Dlamini, profiled by Alec Arceneaux

Selamile is interested in names, though her own is unsatisfying. "It just means 'I have a brother,'" she says, laughing. "Everybody expects it to be something profound or beautiful, but nope."

Her last name is the same as the current king of Swaziland, her home. It also happens to be the most common name in Swaziland, but that's not quite as interesting.

Her school was a United World College, one of about a dozen around the world. It focuses on bringing together people from around the world, and she cites the experience as fundamental in her growth.

She's always written, since she was a child, mostly short fictions. Though she's in the program for Management Sciences and Engineering, she wanted to try out Stanford's writing program.

Over the summer she's teaching in Education Program for Gifted Youth on Stanford campus, helping to TA a journalism class, though she's never studied the field. "It's important for everyone to have a little bit of teaching experience," she believes.

Niuniu Teo

Niuniu Teo is a freshman from Los Altos, CA. She is an avid piano player who has performed in Carnegie Hall. While she is not currently pursuing music at Stanford, she tries to sneak in at least an hour of practice a day. Her musical interests extend beyond piano: she listens to over 200 songs a day and plans on joining the band next year. Niuniu dreams of one day writing for publication in New York. She enjoys the humanist aspect of journalism, and hopes to focus on spotlight stories rather than “hard news.”

In her spare time, she enjoys writing songs and hanging out with her friends. Although she can’t pinpoint a favorite band, some of her favorite musicians include Devendra Banhart, Regina Spektor, and The Beatles. Niuniu can quote every line from Pirates of the Caribbean.

Ashlee Reynolds by Will Toaspern

Ashlee Reynolds says that her hometown is Black River, Jamaica, a seaside village of around 4500 people but she has lived in towns all along the Southwest coast. Then, she spent her high school years at an international boarding school in New Mexico. She is a warm weather, beach person and even the discussion of a backpacking trip she took with her school into the mountains evoked a shudder. At Stanford, she is currently living in Suites with a major in Mechanical Engineering and a French minor. She's leaning, however, towards a Computer Science degree and the "instant gratification" those classes provide. Her overarching career focus is product management and she says that either path will prepare her sufficiently. Unfortunately, her schedule is too busy for more Creative Writing classes and she's excited that this Arts Intensive will allow her to continue doing the type of work she loved in English 90.

Last thing. I can state with confidence that Ashlee has performed in a bigger steel drum band than you. (40 Drums!!!)

Profile of James Nie by Niuniu Teo

James Nie is a sophomore from Augusta Georgia, but he grew up in Washing D.C.. He identifies with both places, as well as California.

He's a Biology major, and is considering becoming a surgeon. He's interested in becoming a neurosurgeon, but is uncertain about the "lifestyle"--namely, working 120 hour weeks.

He's always enjoyed writing--his favorite books are The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz, and Atonement by Ian McEwan.

In his free time, he likes to stay active, play basketball, and hang out with friends. He used to be involved in the sparring tae kwon do at Stanford, but found that he didn't have enough time after awhile.

Welcome to Fiction Writing Arts Intensive!

Weclcome!  So great to meet many of you today, and looking forward to our Arts Intensive class.  This is going to be an intense, creatively challenging and hopefully rewarding time.  Can't wait to see what novels you choose to read over the summer, and can't wait to see your work as we reconvene in September and work intensively on writing a complete short story!