What Hogwarts house are you in?
When I first get to know people, this is often the question that I find myself wondering time and time again, until I finally manage to ask this new acquaintance to answer for themselves--I wouldn't say that I judge people on their answer, but it certainly does affect the way I think of them.
Oh, I'm definitely a Gryffindor! They're the coolest.
Ravenclaw, I'm such a nerd.
Slytherin of course, couldn't you tell?
I don't know, but definitely not Hufflepuff. I hate Hufflepuffs.
If someone answers with the last example, I tend to run for the hills: "I'm sorry but my mom said I have to leave right now immediately." How can anyone hate the sweet, loyal, hard workers of the wizarding world never ceases to amaze me!
Anyways, what I'm getting at here is this: often, people find it difficult to describe themselves. I find it difficult to describe myself. Asking people what Hogwarts house they're in not only gives us a common link in our love for Harry Potter, but it also tells me a lot about them.
So, which Hogwarts house am I in? I generally consider myself to be a Hufflepuff, with strong Slytherin tendencies. I'm kind of the den mother of my group of friends, always wanting to help out and give people advice. I also have a strong moral compass, and don't like seeing anyone wronged! The Slytherin comes in with my intense ambition and goal-oriented nature. There was a time when I would have been aghast at the thought of being sorted into the snake house, but now I love it.
What else is there to know about me? I'm a sixteen-year-old girl, and I've been writing since the single-digits, so I've vastly improved in the many years I've been practicing, to say the least. (That "eye on the prize" nature? Veeeeery Slytherin.) Not only do I write, but I'm also involved in violin, speech & debate, musical theater, and various other extracurriculars. (Being a jack of all trades? Veeeeery Hufflepuff.) I'm very passionate about issues I care about, and do consider myself to be an intersectional feminist--that will probably seep into my writings here time and time again. (Caring a lot about a changing world? Veeeeeery Hogwarts!)
Let's talk about my writing a little bit more, if you don't mind. Like I said, I've been doing this a while. Ever since I could first hold a book, I was infatuated with them, and of course I wanted to learn how to write my own eventually. I've been writing for about a decade now, and honestly I'm surprised I'm still so passionate about it--not that I'm complaining! My tastes have changed and evolved over the years, but I do quite love speculative fiction, mostly of the YA variety (though I'll read anything you put in front of me that seems vaguely interesting).
In recent years, two goals have become very clear in all my writing: 1) Combat cliches. More and more in fiction for young people, I'm noticing that we keep the same tropes going. It's boring, and honestly, we deserve better than that! (Am I sensing a little Slytherin need to prove people wrong here?) And then 2) Promote diversity. We live in an ever-evolving world filled with people of different races, creeds, sexualities, genders, ages, cultures, experiences and even more qualifying factors. The fact that only a small portion of our world is represented in most mainstream fiction is mind-boggling and silly. More and more, I am working to fill my writing with people who modern literature doesn't do a very good job of representing, and I'm working to make these characters realistic and respectful. (Is this some more Hufflepuff-ness shining through?)
I'll definitely be addressing these and many more topics on this blog, as well as hopefully sharing writing samples and more interesting content! If you took the time to read through this whole damn post, thank you so much! I cannot tell you how much it means to me. If you'd like, comment with your Hogwarts house and what it means about your personality! I'd love to hear about it.
Best wishes,
Kekai
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