Slaying Angels: Notes on Writing

Abstract

This essay presents dually an analysis of Virginia Woolf's speech "Professions for Women," given to the London chapter of National Society for Women’s Service in 1931, and an introspective take on the crescendo that is the author's struggling passion for writing. The essay takes symbolic magnifying glasses to issues of perfectionism, femininity, and writing, against the backdrop of one of Woolf's most iconic pieces of writing. In the process, the secrets to the writing process are revealed, along with the author's epiphany about what it means to be a woman writer, what it means to chose the path of a writer, and what it means to navigate this choice amongst a storm of personal insecurity.