LAUNCH

I have been quietly trying to build up my credentials for a few months now, setting the stage for an alternative to mass e-mails come August as well as a solid career leap and an outlet for all of my opinions that do not fit into the school newspaper. I feel that now, for a number of reasons, it is finally time to propel my blog into the public eye.

Perhaps most importantly, I will now be a member of the Free Spirit Network. A certain series of events really propelled me to this launch:

A newspaper article that I wrote for the teen section of the Charleston Gazette one year ago recently won First Place in the Personality Profile category of the Newspaper Association of America's Youth Content awards. That is a fun fact, but even more fun is the ensuing story: the original article was (apparently) reprinted in Saturday morning's Charleston paper. Since I don't subscribe, I was doubly surprised to receive an e-mail with a subject beginning "FSN: Emily Barksdale" (very exciting, as it is the first of its kind that I have received) from a Furman alumnus - not such a common occurrence in West Virginia - who was not only congratulating me on my achievement but making further relative connections.

What a small world! And it must have all been thanks to an Internet search pulling up my bio on the Free Spirit Network. How's THAT for networking?

Well, that's really all that I had to say. Feel free to comment, peruse past entries, subscribe, comment, tell your friends, comment - you know the drill.