Abbie Fine's Blog, page 2

4 Reasons to Join a Nonprofit Board

I wrote this piece for my job with Fairfax Library Foundation, and I'm sharing it here because I think board service is important! Fairfax Library Foundation is looking to expand our Board of Directors at the Foundation. Here are the four main reasons professionals should consider board service (and with the library in particular!):1. Maximize Your Impact in Your CommunityThe mission of Fairfax Library Foundation is to enhance Fairfax County Public Library. The county only contributes less th...

Writing Lessons from Directing Shakespeare

I love writing fiction, but I’ve only been telling stories this way for a few years. I’ve been telling stories as a theatre director for 15 years! I direct professional theatre productions once or twice a year, and I just finished directing Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. With this last project, more than ever before, I took away some lessons from directing that I’ll apply to my writing.In directing, I dissect and interpret an established work (in this case, the best of the best: The Ba...

I am Thankful for All Things Creative

It’s been a rough year. I don’t think many will argue about that. But even during this rough year—especially during this rough year—I am thankful for all things creative. I am thankful I can turn to creativity and the arts, and I’m thankful for my own good year of creativity.(And I don’t say “good” meaning any recognized, measurable unit of success. I mean that I enjoyed the creativity of others and experienced personal creativity growth… and I’m thankful for it.)1) I am thankful for storiesW...

True Story: Calling in a Plane Crash

This is some writing+storytelling practice—changing it up from fiction, this is a true story about being the first on the scene of a plane crash.“Gear down and welded.” I grinned, pleased with myself for finishing my husband’s pre-landing check list.Jason smiled back at me. “You got it, babe. I’m close enough to the runway now, so I’m raising the flaps.”“Right, got it.” My fingertips rested lightly on the yoke in the co-pilot’s seat, following along and learning my husband’s movements—he’s an...

Lessons Teaching Management - The #BlackLivesMatter Edition

“We didn't find a solution for the conflict of the #BlackLivesMatter movement, or the strong disagreements between political camps, or any other conflict between groups—not even close. But we did get to experience first-hand a small, small sense of what it feels like when the rules are not the same.”During my MBA program at George Mason University, I worked as a teaching assistant for an undergraduate management course. After graduation, I’ve continued serving as an Adjunct for Management 303...