July 24, 2003 @ 1:15 p.m.
Maybe my nerdtastic past will actually come in handy.

Q. What's the main problem with being an overachiever during high school?

A. Apart from most of your alleged peer group (they were no peers of mine) assuming you're a fuckless wonder, it sets a bad precedent. Once you get out into the fancifully-named Real World (or Uni, which is slightly closer to the Real World than high school, but not a lot), you suddenly realise that you're never going to get that amount of accolades again. You're never going to have someone rave over a piece of your work just because it's legible. You're not going to win awards for what essentially amounts to turning up for class and doing the work.

I'm taking another fiction writing subject this semester. One of the side projects of the class is a student anthology, which is entirely edited and produced by the class. I'm applying to be one of the editors, because I'm a whore for thankless tasks. This has necessitated creating a CV detailing my writing and editing experience (not too shabby for someone possessing my tender years and intense laziness), as well as any other relevant achievements. This is where all my high school accolades come in. I won an absolute shitload of awards during high school. I won story writing competitions. I had some stuff published. I won a partial scholarship to Monash, which was one of my main reasons for coming here (along with the English department, and the fact that it wasn't University of Melbourne).

I was a good little nose-to-the-grindstone worker bee, in other words. Which made my secret after-hours life as an underage porn writer and editor all the more amusing. To me, anyway.

The problem comes with looking at the finished CV. All the really decent stuff, the meat if you will, happened between 1998 and 2000. There's a few things in 2001, the year I started my undergrad degree, but after that it drops off significantly. I just haven't done much in the last two years or so. Well, okay, I've been slogging through my degree, I started an online journal that about three people read but hey, they seem to like it. I slutted my way around Melbourne, eventually finding true love (it was behind the couch all along!). I've been doing all that living stuff that people seem to think is important. But it's not really something you can put on your curriculum vitae. Well, not in this instance anyway.

"So, what are your qualifications?"

"Well, I've been known to let people carve stuff into my body with screwdrivers."

Perhaps not.

But anyway. I handed in the CV today. I feel very nervous and also excited, because I'm a big nerd. We find out who's got the gig next week during the lecture. Wish me luck.

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