![]() ![]() Meanwhile, her ‘80s-era computer “smiles and winks” at her… but she can’t seem to get the work done. ![]() She joins a softball league and then gets caught up in some issues at the Health Center after she quits, because she doesn’t want the last eight years of her life working there to go to waste. earn money not only through her writing, but also by giving public readings of her work), but she’s weary of supplementing her earnings to such an extent that she sells away all of her time.Įven though Parker has a lot of clarity around her priorities - writing first, all else second - she still struggles to motivate herself, as I imagine most freelancers do. She knows she should diversify her income (i.e. What I love is that Parker brings up such a common conundrum for creative freelancers. She’s helping me compile a mailing list to try and get readings to supplement my income and we’ve worked out a budget and looked at where we can cut back and cut out and off to make it, so that the pressure of earning money isn’t so great that I have to spend all my time hustling gigs and still not get the writing done.” I’ve talked this over and over with Marty and she is being absolutely wonderful and supportive. I am going to come home to my machine and do what I’ve always wanted. “I informed the women at the Health Center that I am leaving effective January 1st. (You know how much I love feminists taking ownership of their careers!) On Pat Parker's Decision to Quit Her JobĪs Parker tells Lorde, “I’ve never had the opportunity to write full time and that has me jumping up and down,” and she announces her decision excitedly in a letter dated November 13, 1985: Julie Enszer, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, recently edited Lorde and Parker’s collection of letters into a book called Sister Love: The Letters of Audre Lorde and Pat Parker, 1974 - 1989. Writers, feminists, and multi-passionate women will find so much value in the book - especially when it comes to Pat Parker’s decision to leave her job at the Oakland Feminist Women’s Health Center and pursue writing full-time. Pat Parker's letters from the 1980s show that she was worried about money, her career path, and even time management, just like all of us. They were confessing them privately, in letters to each other that spanned their 15-year friendship. Of course, they weren’t broadcasting their budgeting issues and fear of failure. It’s a delicate balance for us all, and that includes role models like feminist poets and activists Pat Parker and Audre Lorde. You’re not the only one wondering how to earn an income while writing, advancing feminist causes, and taking on side gigs. ![]()
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