My Endgame? Storytelling.
If you’ve ever ridden the subway in New York City, chances are you’ve come across this scene of fellow riders.
The thing that struck me the most (what strikes met most all the time actually) out of watching all those faces pass by me was, “What’s her story? Why is he like that? What were they like 6 months ago?” These pervasive thoughts are ones that fill my day as I observe and interact with countless individuals. This desire to figure out why and how a person is the way they are. It’s been the spark behind everything I do, it became the heart of my Columbia J-School application (Spoiler: Got in, didn't go.) And the more content I create, the more stories I want to tell, the more I want to discover the why and how of someone, anyone, and share that.
The past couple of years of working independently, I’ve wanted to do just that. First, it started with my independent podcast, then it turned into my #20qs20somethings series. (Shoutout to everyone I admire on Twitter who allowed me to interview them for my little passion project.) Recently, I’ve been fortunate enough to have opportunities to share perspectives of queer people with INTO and Pride, and even share my own story with the difficulties of making friends on the Nancy podcast. This might sound like I’m just listing cool things I’ve done (because it kind of is, I’m proud and excited of what I’ve been able to do.)
But throughout my process every time I meet with an individual to do an interview, we’ll talk before or after our interview and one of the more common questions I get is to the effect of “What’s your goal? What do you want to do? What’s your endgame?” To that question, I still shudder in not having a concrete answer. The real answer I want to give is “storyteller.” And I always have to follow up with, “But that’s not a real job title so probably a features/profile writer.” But there’s so much more than that. I always say I want to tell as many stories in as many formats. Like legend idol Lin-Manuel Miranda, he has his hands in so many places and projects, I only dream of doing the same. I’d love to tell stories in audio, photo, video, written format, all of the above. First and foremost is to tell a story, share a story, to compel you to care about a narrative that I decided to share with you.
So what was the point of writing this? It’s my way of putting out into the universe in a tangible way of the things I want to do. Maybe someone will see this and feels this strong passion for storytelling and maybe they won’t feel so alone. I know for so long so many people will ask me what I want to do with my life and I can’t give them a direct answer, because I want to do it all. I want to tell as many stories and do as much as I can with my imagination, talent, compassion, and this spark, this passion to get down to the root of it all.
So my endgame? Storytelling is as many ways as possible. I understand it’s one step at a time, but it truly does feel nice to write something and put it out on the internet so that I know it’s not just a thing that exists in my head anymore, it’s something that I know can be done, because there are have been those before me who have done the exact thing I want to be doing. Whether or not they call themselves storytellers, every person in every artistic or creative field is a storyteller at heart, it’s just not a commonly seen occupation that we can put down on a resume, or else you’ll get strangers cocking their heads at you.
Maybe I sound ridiculous for having the mentality of doing it all and just slapping one overarching title over that, but I think I can do that. I know I can do that because I’ve done that already — the trouble is getting paid to do that full time and turning that into a full career that I can be proud of and will fill my heart and soul. So many people have the privilege of doing that, and I just want to join them. So here’s to holding on to that tight hope that I’m able to be a full-time storyteller. To share my stories, if not the stories of countless others who have pages and pages of chapters to share with the world that contain the multitudes of people and experiences that made them who they are.
