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| Rachel Grant (Source: www.rachel-grant.net) |
Archaeology tends be a popular topic in various fictional arenas, from movies and television shows to novels and short stories. With this in mind it should come to no surprise that as novelists draw upon archaeological subject matter archaeologists sometimes transition to writing fiction themselves. That was very much the case for best selling author, Rachel Grant.
Growing up Grant aspired not to become an archaeologist but a novelist. She wrote her first novel in sixth grade, and she was an avid reader of various works of fiction, including books written by Elizabeth Peters (archaeologist turned fiction writer herself). When she went to college she initially majored in English, but by her own admission she let the confidence of her youth overcome her as she felt like she could learn nothing further from her English instructors. She switched her major to anthropology, focusing on archaeology. She did this because she believed that she could make a great career out of archaeology, and her experiences would provide her plenty of resource material to draw upon if and when she returned to writing.
She was not wrong on either account! She traveled the world in her ten years as a professional archaeologist, but shortly after the birth of her first child the appeal of archaeology began to dissolve. Citing growing health concerns (as archaeological field work is quite hard on the body) she investigated her options, turning back to her first love: fiction writing. With her husband’s emotional and financial support she dove head first into it and never regretted the transition.
Grant draws upon her extensive archaeological experience for much of the subject matter of her books. She also employs her anthropological research skills to identify and better understand the cultural and historical elements she uses in her work. She does this to provide authenticity to her work. She feels that by adding these realistic elements to her work she provides educational material wrapped up in a good story to and for her readers, and her readers appreciate her efforts as they demand more and more of this. Grants’ archaeological and fiction writing endeavors demonstrate how anthropology, and in this case, archaeology, can go hand in hand together, providing a fulfilling career that fulfills herself and provides wildly great entertainment for her fans.
References
Grant, R. (2017, March 27). An Interview with Rachel Grant – and a giveaway! (Caz, Interviewer)
Grant, R. (2019, October 23). Fly on the Wall: Peek into a Conversation Between Rachel Grant and Jayne Ann Krentz. (D. Soluri, Interviewer)
Rachel-Grant.net. (2022). Author Bio. Retrieved from Rachel Grant: Thrills. Romance. Archaeology.: https://rachel-grant.net/bio/
7 comments:
I think Rachel Grant did a great job with her career path. Far too often it seems that are directed to one career path and expected to do that forever, however if you have more than one interest purse them all, if applicable. Grant not only got to live out her career as an archaeologist but also got to purse her first love of fiction writing and got to incorporate what she did in archaeology into her writing. It seems like she got to live the best of both worlds.
Khalil Foster
I could see how an anthropologist can transition to writing books, they already have to take extensive field notes based on their observations. So it would probably be easy for a anthroplogist to start writing books ecause they have alot of experience.
Rachel Grant should be a example for us student with her career path and being successful at both Career's . She show us not to settle for one thing in life always want more and follow your true passion.
After reading this post, I can really resonate with Rachel Grant, since I was a kid, it has been my dream to become a Paleontologist while at the same time, I have been told by my former English teachers that I should make fiction writing a side project due to how good I was. When it comes to many science fiction properties, there are always fantasy creatures in them and holding knowledge of prehistoric creatures could prove fruitful for making unique fictional creatures even if it would be just a small collaboration.
It is fascinating how Grant conjoined two different careers. Authentic representation of cultures in fiction writing is necessary. It helps reduce prejudices at earlier ages through education. -Tala Caples
Grant is a great example of always going for and pursuing all the opportunities life has to offer for career wise it is okay to do two things or more. She's a best selling author and an archeologist and I just love how when feeling uninspired she found something that would inspire her yet didn't let go of her love for English.
-Keira Robinson
Your detailed account of her journey, from aspiring novelist in her youth to pursuing a career in archaeology and eventually returning to fiction writing, highlights the importance of perseverance and adaptability in achieving one’s dreams.
-Ahmesha Johnson
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