Her Story
About cindy
I've been a writer for about 30 years, and it's been a wonderful, eye-opening journey that has opened up a lot of opportunities for me. I started out writing for a senior publication and then for Antique Tractor Magazine. Now I do a column for Farm World, and I have a blog called Traveling Adventures of a Farm Girl that I've had since 2012. I always wanted to write and was always interested in poetry, fiction, and travel, but I wasn't sure I'd be able to make a living at it, so I worked in the environmental field for most of my career, doing writing just as kind of a side thing. After retiring from the State of Illinois, I started doing writing on more of a consistent basis. My latest book, True Farm Girl Adventures, just came off the press this past week. It's a compilation of blogs and activities that I've done over the years, so it's kind of a love letter to the people, places, and things that I've had the joy to be part of. It's a mixture of a memoir and travelogue, profiling different people in different places.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with cindy
01What do you attribute your success to?
I really attribute my success to other people opening doors, because you always have to have a chance, and somebody's got to give you a chance to start. So, just people giving me opportunities along the way. And to be honest with you, it's persistence, because when you hear the word no, it's easy to just say, oh, okay, I'm done. But you keep following up, and eventually somebody will tell you yes and give you an opportunity.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Just to do what you love, because if you're doing something you love, it's not work.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
The advice I have is kind of twofold. One is, don't discount anyone, because everyone has a story, and it's amazing sometimes, people that you don't expect what stories they have. And the other is to kind of look at niche markets, because sometimes, you know, USA Today, the big places are taken, but there's room in a lot of the trade publications. Like, I write about old iron and machinery, and there's not a lot of women in that field, and it's more open. So, if you find something that you love doing, and then look at some of the smaller publications, and you can also work at your local publications as well.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Opportunities are just like going to the Midwest Travel Network Conference, going to different conferences and meeting different people, which gives you a chance to collaborate and partner. Some of the challenges are partly just the everyday things, you know, facing traffic and double booking, trying to do it all in a short amount of time. It's probably just time, because there's so many things I want to do. I have to be careful not to overbook, and then my daughter will say, Mom, it's supposed to be your retirement. But I am, I'm doing what I love, so it's not work anymore. It's just joy.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values are making sure that you feel ethically good about what you're doing, and the other thing is putting family first. Because your family will be here long after your career is gone, and you need to have strong family ties, you know, whether you're talking family as a good friend, or whether you're talking family as mother, father, children, you know, whoever your family may be. I'm not saying at the expense of yourself, but you always have to keep that, I think, in the forefront for your personal emotional health.
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