Meet the Editor: Melissa Wickes

As a little girl, my dream-careers ranged from actress, to pop star, to artist, to ballerina, to author, to teacher. Despite being the child of a stock-broker/math teacher and accountant, I never saw myself filling those specific shoes. I did attempt to become my dad’s—the college basketball star—prodigy by joining my high school basketball team, though. I didn’t spend too much time off the bench and broke my finger.

After joining nearly every extracurricular my town had to offer, ranging from CYO volleyball to ceramics at summer camp, I found the one place I consistently returned to was a pen and paper. (And also the stage, but that’s another story.) Whenever there was a notepad anywhere in my house, the pages were filled up with my stories and poems about my favorite breakfast cereal or the boy I had had a crush on. Going into the college application process essentially blind, I had no idea what school would be the right fit for me, but I did know I wanted to write.
 

Here’s a picture of me and my older brother Daniel. He’s now an engineer, and a bit taller. But he still has the same haircut.

Similar to my exploration of gymnastics, softball, and math olympiads as a child, I chose to explore various majors and courses before settling down with English. I tested the waters of Spanish, business, and even politics philosophy and law (yes, that is one major) along with a handful of science and math courses that left me with a hindered GPA and severe chest pains. Eventually, my instincts and heart brought me back to the pen and paper I frequented as a pre-teen attending Creative Writing summer classes, and I finally felt secure with my decision.

Being a rising junior recently declared as an English major at Binghamton University meant much more to me than familiarizing myself with Turn It In (an online tool for submitting papers) and reading a lot of poetry. I finally felt that I was where I was meant to be, prompting me to pursue other interests that I had developed a liking to over the years. I became assistant musical director of my a cappella group, The Binghamton Vibrations, and started writing for multiple online publications. Despite my long stays on the bench in high school, I even joined intramural basketball (you’re welcome, Dad).
 

I wish I was still as fashionable as I was here, in preschool. Unfortunately, it’s difficult for my mom to pick out my outfits when she’s in Long Island and I’m in Binghamton.

As far as the future, I have learned that I am not the most predictable girl (besides being a Long Island girl in a sorority at a SUNY school in upstate New York). I need to explore my interests before I know if they are right for me. I need to test the waters before I dive in. I need to sample my smoked Gouda before I buy the whole wheel. Hopefully, NYMetroParents will be the perfect place to dip my toes in the field of publishing before I dive head-first and will give me the experience and knowledge I need to move forward. For now, I know my future will be filled with writing, hard work, belting “Defying Gravity” in the car with my friends, and lots and lots of pizza. 

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