Here is Saxifrage's interview with Valkyrie Benson,a first-year with intended English and Psychology majors:
Sax: What year/major are you?
V: I am a first-year, and I'm planning to declare my majors (soon!) in English (writing) and Psychology, as well as a minor in Hispanic Studies.
Sax: What initially got you interested in writing?
V: Cliché as it might sound, I think I've always been interested in writing. I learned to read early, and even before that my parents read to me, so I have always been an avid bookworm, and I think at some point it just clicked: "Hey, I could do that!" There are still stapled-together "books" lying around my house somewhere that I wrote and illustrated; I particularly remember one I dictated to my mom in preschool, something like "Mommy and Daddy and Kyrie Go on a Roller-coaster." I also remember my first poem, written in first grade:
A bear in red underwear
Might go flying through the air
But that would be very rare.
More than anything, I think I've just always loved words, and I love playing with the infinite ways I can use them.
Sax: Where do you find inspiration for your work?
V: Gosh, you have to ask the hard questions, don't you? All around me, I think. I remember telling someone once that I like writing nature poetry, and living in Washington, I have written a lot of poems about the rain! For stories, I really like playing with already-existing ideas and people's expectations about them. Right now I'm really into taking characters from mythologies and fairy tales and exploring them more deeply. However, I think my favorite inspiration is those just-popped-into-my-head-for-Sax: What artists have most influenced you?
Sax: How would you describe your style?
Sax: What three words would you use to describe your self?
Sax: How did you get involved with Saxifrage?
Sax: What words of wisdom would you give to beginning artists?
V: Definitely the old "follow your dream" is true -- keep doing what you love; you never know where it will take you! Also, be open to inspiration -- don't be afraid of the weird ideas; sometimes they're the best. For writers, especially, I would say to love words -- play word games, read poetry, eavesdrop on conversations -- and let the way they reverberate in your head lead you to create your own reverberations.
Sax: What are your post-PLU plans?
V: Well, it's a long way in the future, so don't be surprised if they change! I would like to take a year off after graduating to travel and teach abroad, then go to grad school and get my Master's degree and PhD in English/Creative writing so I can teach them at the college level.
Sax: What is your idea of the worst possible summer vacation?
V: See, all these tough questions! I guess for me, a terrible summer vacation would be one where I was trapped inside all summer. I come from a family that really likes to camp, so a summer without a shower-less week by a lake or a hike up a mountainside would really be bad. I like to explore and see new places as well as have those quiet moments many miles away from a freeway (and yes, sometimes even far away from flush toilet) to sit and ponder a placid lake or a tumultuous river or some yellow-throated wildflower. So, I guess the worst vacation would be being cooped up in my house all summer, and the best would be a long camping trip, although the best could very easily turn into the worst if it was still mosquito season. Yeah, I guess that would really be the worst -- I swear I've seen mosquitoes the size of hummingbirds!
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