For the uninitiated, hello there! I’m Michelle Zheng, and I was The Daily Cal‘s Fall 2017 Sex on Tuesday (SOT) columnist. SOT was actually my first foray into the wild world of published content.
While I used to write a lot when I was younger, in high school my mental health struggles reached a crescendo and my self-esteem plummeted to uncharted depths. As a dramatic, angsty teenager, my life had basically turned into an emotional Euthanasia Roller Coaster. Originally, writing had been my way of seeking out approval, as I was frequently complimented on my works as a kid. As I got older, however, I inevitably got less and less attention. Consequently, I believed everything I wrote was purposeless and disappointing, and I gave up on my creative endeavors until my senior year at Cal.
When Christopher Cox, my good friend and arguably one of the most iconic Sex on Tuesday columnists, referred me to the position, it was the first time in years that creative ideas started coming to me again.
I knew Sex on Tuesday would never be a place where I would receive overwhelming validation from others. But, for the first time in my life, I was excited about that. My mental health trajectory was on the up, thanks to therapy and medication, and I knew SOT would force me to finally try writing for myself.
Under the guidance of my wonderful editor moms Suhauna Hussain and Sarah Heo, I spewed out 11 columns over the semester.
Even though my run is over as Sex on Tuesday columnist, I still have more ideas. I can’t wait to write them.
MICHELLE ZHENG 