Gema Mora, a senior at USF, is far from your average college girl: she is a writer, a dancer, a baton twirler and amateur music promoter. Her Campus is one of her latest endeavors, which she will surely tackle as skillfully as she can twirl a baton.
“Okay. I guess we should cover the basics: major, minor, interests, hometown, etc., and anything unique and quirky about you that you’d like the Internet to know!”
“Well, I was born and raised in Miami, and am 21 years old. I transferred to USF from Miami Dade College. I’m entering my senior year now, and my major is mass communications with a minor in creative writing. I love writing. My focus is mainly on teen fiction and I’m trying to publish a novel.”
“Who’s your favorite writer?”
“At the moment, my favorite writer is Francesca Lia Block. Her writing is beautiful and poetic. I change favorite authors like I change my underwear, though. Something somewhat unique about me is that I have seemingly unrelated hobbies. I like to twirl baton (I’m not the best, though!), I like to edit videos and I like to dance.”
“Twirl baton? That’s definitely unique. I bet it’s fun.”
“Twirling is fun! The popped veins and bruises are even more fun to explain.”
“Huh? I always envisioned something girly and effortless… Popped veins definitely give it more of an edge!”
“The beauty of twirling is that it’s supposed to seem effortless, but when you’re a beginner, it’s a self-inflicted beating. Think Fight Club in sparkly outfits.”
“Maybe that’s why no one talks about it. How did you get into it?”
“I started at the end of my freshman year of high school. All my close friends decided to join the marching band. I couldn’t play an instrument, so I tried out for the majorette squad. Didn’t make it, though. I practiced by myself for an entire year. When the next try outs came around, I was the best one at the newbie level.”
“That’s impressive. So, what are your plans after college?”
“I’d like to continue school to get my doctorate in some form of writing; poetry or fiction. If it’s possible to specialize in teen fiction, I’ll go for that. I’d like to become a professor and teach creative writing. I could go on about the subject for hours. My students would either love me or hate me.”
“Have you always been passionate about writing?”
“In Miami Dade College I got my AA in Biology. I love science. At the time, people discouraged me from trying to make a living off of writing so I went for science, thinking I could go into research to supplement my writing career. However, I wasn’t doing well academically (DARN YOU, CALCULUS AND ORGANIC CHEM!) and I decided that it wasn’t worth wasting all this time and money on something that I wasn’t passionate about. I love science, though. But writing is my thing.”
“Was it difficult to ignore the people that tried to discourage you?”
“Well, the more I follow this writing path, the more I see that it really is possible. You just have to be mindful of the business side of it. I could make a living off something else, but I’d become a bitter old women extremely fast.”
“Okay. Music: who’s your favorite artist?”
“Oooh, that’s a tough one. I’m currently obsessed with Lana Del Rey. I find her lyrical composition very interesting. My nerdy side is planning on breaking it down for poetic structure and such. I also like listening to movie scores.”
“Are you a girly girl or more of a tomboy-ish type? Sporty, videogame-addicted, etc.”
“I feel like I fall in an awkward middle. I don’t feel right in bright colors (pink, green, yellow). I tend to wear black and converse, but I don’t like jeans. I prefer skirts and shorts. And I love bold, dark eyeliner. I love makeup. I love doing my hair. I don’t like sports. I don’t like video games. I’ve been going to a lot of hardcore shows, though, because I’ve been working on my friend’s musical career (promoting and such), so now I know I can hold my own in a crowd that could break into a mosh pit at any second, which feels like a sport.”