by
Mallory Abreu
My actuarial dad and scientist mom knew they had a
budding writer on their hands when, at two-and-a-half years old and tottering
from the weight of my jumbo-sized, sixty-page Lion King book, I came into their room in the middle of the night.
I climbed into bed with them, sitting down to reverse the role of parent and
child. I wanted to read them a bedtime story.
I opened the cover and broke in immediately, speaking
with fluency, flipping through page after page. My parents were amazed—could I
already read? As it turned out, I had done something almost as incredible in my
opinion—I had memorized every single page in that sixty-page book. Now an adult
who is completely incapable of memorizing so much as a street address, I’m
baffled at my toddler-self’s skills. I knew when to turn the pages, when to
pause between sentences and, most importantly, when to use different character
voices. Every time I messed up, I’d start the whole book over. It took a little
under three hours for me to “read” my parents The Lion King that night. Obviously, they loved every minute of it.
A lot of kids don’t really know their direction in life before
age three, but I’d wager that I knew pretty early on what I was going to do
with my life. Although what type of writer I want to be has changed as I’ve
grown, I’ve always been self-assured and deeply passionate, and expressed my
thoughts through whatever type of writing complemented them best. A lover of
epic fantasy novels and environmental journalism alike, I’ve invested a large
portion of my life with my nose in pages of words. Now a student at Tufts
University, I study both English and architecture, allowing me to explore my
interests in both the power of the written word as well as the geography and
sustainability of our world.
My interests are boundless, but if I had to describe
them in one word, it would be construction.
The construction of sentences and eco-buildings alike fascinate me. When I’m
not bent over the pages of a book, I’m bent over design plans or standing with
my neck craned up, ready to spot unsteady timber in the frame of an in-progress
roof. I love how construction of all kinds informs the way each of us perceives
life and ourselves. Construction is organic and fluid, forever changing as
buildings and words are re-contextualized and adapted to our malleable world.
Interning at PSG has allowed me to construct many
things. I’ve written articles for
the PSG blog, learned to organize data efficiently, built relationships
with co-workers and developed a sense of myself as a team member in the
publishing industry. Working in educational publishing has allowed me to extend
my love for knowledge and writing alike into one cohesive field. Looking
forward as a prospective environmental journalist, I recognize that this form
of journalism is in a lot of ways a type of educational writing. What I’ve
learned through my time in the educational publishing industry will be
indispensible, and I’m more sure than ever now that I will devote my life to
writing—myself learning as I teach others about the people and places of our world.
Little-Known
Facts about Mallory
Besides the written word, Mallory loves nothing more
than music of all kinds. Her favorites cover everything from Led Zeppelin to Jewel
to Billy Joel to traditional Irish folk music. At the same time, one of her
favorite things to do is go to the symphony. If Mallory could have any job in
the world—other than a writer, of course—she would be a conductor. Although a
skilled pianist and music teacher, Mallory learns best playing music by ear—she
would find great difficulty in sight-reading entire orchestral scores! Still,
she hopes to one day establish herself as a music teacher once she’s gotten
some of the adventure out of her system and has settled down.
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