This year I decided to branch into a new area: writing nonfiction essays about personal experiences from my life. So far my focus has been primarily on trying to capture some of the wonderful experiences I've had as a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language to students from all over the world.
I've written nonfiction before, for my book The Irish--American Experience, but those pieces were about historical or social issues and not anything personally about my own life. This is an interesting new area for me as most of my writing experience thus far has been that of writing fiction and poetry, which, like the impersonal essays, always offer a buffer for the writer. About two years ago I almost thought I was done with writing but now I see I just needed to try something new. (I have been writing, or coming up with characters and stories anyway, since I was four years old after all--I had to do something to keep it interesting!) It's very hard to find the time to write between a full time teaching job and earning my master's degree but I make the time--editing essays on my phone during my commute to work! So far I've completely finished two of my new essays; one of which will appear shortly in a compilation of writing by migrant women (I'm an immigrant to Ireland), and one which I've just submitted to an online literary publication I particularly like. Fingers crossed! I'll post more as things develop on this new adventure. (And I hope to see you along with me for the ride.)
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The Writer
Author BioAva Collopy is a teacher, writer, and world traveler. She has been to 10 countries and counting. She has lived in the U.S. and Ireland. She has published several books, hosted The Book Show podcast on Diversity TV (UK and Ireland, which she has now created Ruminate from (encompassing the book, here, and a planned series of videos, here). And she has nonfiction and fiction published in...
Nonfiction: 2020: Year of Covid-19 (Stories of Lockdown), Inspired Migrant Women in Ireland, Edible Red, Down in the Dirt, and The Relic the Effort the Yelp. Fiction: White Liquor Steemit, Beautiful Losers, White Liquor, Down in the Dirt, Brilliant Flash Fiction (contest shortlist, as A.C.), Sunlight in the Sanctuary, Treading Water, and Adrift. Poetry: Blue Collar Review, Down in the Dirt, CC&D, Poetry Pacific, Re/ Verse, Verse Virtual, Ascent Aspirations, and others. She has teaching materials and pacing guides on: Teacherpayteachers.com and Classful.com. Her books are listed, with cover and description on this website's other pages: Nonfiction Fiction Poetry Besides her one year as an adoptive mother she is a happily lifelong non-mom, a fact she proudly promotes to remind everyone that these are choices each individual must make for themselves. Ava Collopy Books
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