A Fantastic World; An interview with Erica McLewee

A Fantastic World; An interview with Erica McLewee

By Blake Moore, ENGL 336.001

For some people, choosing a focus of study can be a long process. For 20-year-old Erica McLewee, it wasn't hard at all. Hailing from the Bel-Air area of Harvard County, Maryland, this FSU junior is certain about her choice. Three years into her college education, this Professional Writing Major seems to be enjoying her current career path. When asked about how she felt about her Major, she simply said; “I love writing. It has formed who I am.” The English program was the first choice for Erica coming into the college world, and has continued since.

Erica, being a big fan of many science fiction and fantasy works, began her English track in high school, and spoke of different ideas that she had developed during the time. Very specifically, an idea to “modernize the story of Jekyll and Hyde,” as she put it. One of her current interests is a novellic re-imagining of the Wizard of OZ, titled Wicked. Eventually, her interests led to a starting fascination into the growing Steampunk subculture, a celebration of Neo-Victorian futurist ideals and aesthetic designs that has become largely popular in the last few years. A bit more reading about this can be found here: http://www.steampunk.com/what-is-steampunk/

Aside from writing, Erica also enjoys a variety of other activities. One thing that she states she looks forward to is singing with her high school A Capella choir during alumni gatherings, which was something that she said to have enjoyed significantly throughout her time in high school. While with the choir, she also had been involved briefly as a member of the color-guard at her high school, which is something, in which she said that ; “I thought it was all really cool, the marching band at my school.” Another thing Erica spoke of being involved with was a local bowling league, which was something that she was a part of for several years.

If one thing can be made apparent by this interview, it's this; Erica McLewee is a creative young professional that knows what she wants to do, and is right on the track of doing it. And if things all go to plan for her, we just may see a new Dr. Jekyll on bookshelves in the future.