From Hobby to Business

Ocean Vuong is a Vietnamese-American poet, novelist, and essayist who has gained numerous awards and accolades for his work. He is likewise a recipient of numerous offers that have supported his innovative endeavors and enabled him to pursue his ardour for writing. In this newsletter, we will explore how Ocean Vuong used presents to convert his hobby right into a commercial enterprise. Ocean Vuong attended Brooklyn College, wherein he studied English literature and innovative writing. He additionally labored as an instruct, a canine walker, and a florist to assist himself and his circle of relatives. He published his first poems in literary journals and magazines, and received effective feedback and popularity from the literary network. He additionally carried out for and won numerous offers and fellowships that helped him similarly his schooling and career as a writer. Some of the grants he acquired include:

• The Elizabeth George Foundation Grant (2014), which provides funding for emerging writers to finish a assignment.

• The Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship (2014), which awards $25,800 to five younger poets annually.

• The Whiting Award (2016), which offers $50,000 to ten rising writers of terrific talent and promise.

• The MacArthur Fellowship (2019), also referred to as the “genius provide”, which presents $800,000 to individuals who have proven top notch originality and determination in their creative interests and a marked capability for self-course.

These grants not handiest furnished Ocean Vuong with monetary aid, however additionally with validation, visibility, and possibility. He stated, "The offers gave me the liberty to write down without annoying approximately paying the bills or appealing the marketplace. They also gave me the self assurance to take dangers and test with my craft. They additionally gave me the exposure to attain a much wider target audience and connect with other writers and mentors. They also gave me the opportunity to travel, research, and learn from different cultures and perspectives."1

Ocean Vuong is now a professor of creative writing on the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he teaches and mentors the following generation of writers. He is also running on his second novel, with a purpose to be a sequel to On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. He stated, "I sense very lucky and thankful a good way to do what I love and percentage it with others. I hope that my work can inspire and empower other writers, especially those who come from marginalized and underrepresented backgrounds, to tell their stories and pursue their dreams."2

Ocean Vuong is an instance of a writer who used grants to show his hobby right into a business, and his ardour right into a profession. He is also an concept and a function version for other writers, in particular people who face comparable challenges and obstacles as he did. He said, "I hope that my tale can show that whatever is viable, that absolutely everyone may be a creator, that all people can make a distinction. I hope that my story can encourage other writers to apply for grants, and to use them to pursue their passion and vision."3

Sources:

1: Ocean Vuong: On Becoming a MacArthur Fellow | The New Yorker 2: Ocean Vuong: A Life in Books | The Paris Review 3: Ocean Vuong: Writing with Fire | PEN America