writing is caring – Hayu Hamemayu

Last month, I was contacted by Sarah Brown, a student from University of Minnesota who asked me if I’d be interested in sharing my experience about writing in Sweden, especially writing for The Newbie Guide to Sweden. It was for her class project and as someone who was once a journalism student as well, I understand how it feels to be able to contact a source for an interview, so I said yes. She sent me her article the other day and I think it’s a good work with a nice balance of primary and secondary sources. No wonder she got 100% for this work.

By the way, there’s actually a funny story behind this “encounter”. I’ve been watching Fargo TV series lately, and one of the settings for the story is in Duluth, where University of Minnesota is located. So when I first read her email signature:

“University of Minnesota Duluth| 2023
College of Liberal Arts”

I felt like it was an amusing coincidence or maybe a sign that I should visit the place one day 😀

Anyway, I decided to share her work here for archival purposes, after having her consent of course. Sarah Brown has the full right of the article so any question and acknowledgment regarding the article should be addressed to the author. Happy reading! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 🙂

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Zaki asked me the other day, what things I am still passionate about lately. I gave him three answers, and among those, the first and most definite one was writing. Later I realised that writing is actually the only thing I consistently do since I was still in the elementary school. Though I must admit, I never had any chance to work on it properly.

Part of it was because it seemed like being a writer was less prestigious than being a doctor, or a teacher, or an astronaut, or an architect, or any other profession in this world. And it was just so hard to keep your passion when everyone around you didn’t take it really seriously. In my case, I found it was hard for me not to be tempted with the idea of being “somebody”. And the general definition of “somebody” in Indonesia is anything but freelance, including writing. Most people will consider it as merely a hobby.

I got some people who supported my passion, in different ways, though. My dad used to take me to his school library so I spent most of my childhood drowning into books and that’s how book became one of my obsessions (there’s a story about it here). My mom gave me a diary so I had something to write on. And there was a teacher in my junior high school who once asked me to join a writing competition. I didn’t join the competition at the end (because I wasn’t sure what to write and bit lazy, to be honest) but he was one of the few people who made me feel that I can write. Somehow. Someday. Continue reading “Better When I’m Writing” →