TMI

Too Much Information about me

My name is JL Wright (they/them) and I am scholar working on my dissertation in Cultural Studies at the University of Arkansas. I currently have a bachelor’s and master’s in interdisciplinary studies with focuses on anthropology, rhetoric and writing, gender studies, theater, and film studies. I have worked as a rhetoric and composition professor at the University of Arkansas for 5 years.  I am currently qualified to teach anthropology and rhetoric and writing, soon I plan to add cultural studies to that list. Ultimately, i would like to work in the gender studies area. Along with my scholarship, I am a professional writer and playwright, videographer, and game designer.

I am a three year AmeriCorps VISTA alumni who served with 4-H, the VA Hospital, and the Girl Scouts. This garnered me a lot of experience and certifications in volunteer management, youth programming, public healthcare programming and facilitation, senior services, and afterschool programming. I a registered CDSMP facilitator (Chronic Disease Self Management Program) and a mandated reporter. I also helped design the walking program for the Little Rock School District’s Love Your School program. I am an Aflatoun facilitator and along with UALR Children International we started one of the first Aflatoun programs in the U.S. 

I have also been a professional chef, a former computer hardware and network technician, martial arts instructor, and artist who works with CGI, scroll saws, needlepoint, various other arts and crafts, and makeup. I can sew and use a surger, and I can build an electric bike from scratch.  This has nothing to do with my scholarship, I just like bragging about how awesome I am. I am also a self-proclaimed hottie. 

And yes, that is a Mr. T cabbage patch doll made by my aunt.

G.U.I.T.A.R.

Group of United Idiots That Are Roleplayers. 

We started a gender-fluid, equality-driven gaming group, inclusive of all sexualities, races, ethnicities, religions, nationalities, and hidden or visible challenges.

In 2020 during the pandemic we began GUITAR as a way of connecting with other people outside of our quarantined homes through virtual tabletop gaming (VTT). I began GUITAR as a means of providing a safe gaming environment for non-binary, trans, and lgb players. Challenges and disability became another focus, along with race and ethnicity. Before we knew it, we were running an all-inclusive gaming group. We began with a single game with five other people. There are now over 120 members. 

GUITAR has also grown into an creative collective. A lot of us are creatives in our daily lives, and when we all bring something to the table we can produce incredible content. We currently make maps in-house, design character tokens, re-code the interactive character sheets, create macros and API scripts, write our own stories, and we even have a house band.