LuisMiguelDorador Andaln

While the struggling economy in the United States has kept many people from pursuing what they really want to do in life in order to pay the bills, Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón is lucky to have a job that fills both qualifications for him. He works for a publisher in Richmond, VA, as a graphic designer. The job of a graphic designer entails challenging work on the visual side of publications. His daily routines typically include laying out pages, editing other completed page layouts, and working on the front and back covers of the publications.

Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón currently lives with his dog and cat. As a writer at heart, he finds himself constantly revising his multiple manuscripts, working on the right story to send out in the hope of publishing his first book. He is using the valuable experience gained at his current job to help in all aspects of the books. Working for a publishing company puts him at a great advantage when he revises his work, because he’s familiar with many different authors and their various writing styles. This has improved his own overall writing ability, his story transitions, his character creation and more.

The one thing that will not be a problem with a future book is the cover. He has learned so many tricks of the trade about how to make books catch the eye that he’s sure he can create a dynamic book jacket.

An intelligent child, Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón got into his parents’ book collection early. He especially adored the fantasy and science fiction genres, and it did not take him long to catch the story-writing bug. Beginning in middle school and continuing ever since, he has been writing stories of varying lengths.
There was no question what Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón wanted to do with his life when he was going through the process of selecting a college. He picked a university with a strong background in liberal arts and eventually graduated in 2008 with a bachelor’s of art degree in graphic layout and design. This was a practical move, as he knew that writing would come on his own time. Post-graduation, it was smarter to have qualification in a field that required concrete, marketable skills, setting him up for a job after leaving school.

Unfortunately for Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón, he graduated right at the beginning of the economic downturn. This meant that many professional organizations were being cautious with their expenses, and either cutting staff or sticking with current employees. Even when organizations were beginning to hire, there were so many people with work experience out of jobs that new college graduates had little chance of success.

Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón took this all in stride and moved away from his small hometown, where he knew it would be difficult to find success. Over the next two years, he worked in a couple of fields that always require new staff. First, he worked as a waiter and bartender at a restaurant. Occasionally, he did work on a temporary basis for a local construction company that needed help hanging sheetrock. On nights and weekends, he often helped his neighbors by mowing their lawns.

His patience and dedication to building up a resume with work experience paid off. In 2010, a publishing company in Richmond, VA, was hiring a new layout editor who would be in charge of graphic design and layout responsibilities. The job was a dream come true, providing work in the field of his choice, and the chance to specialize in his favorite genres of fantasy and science fiction.

Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón recognizes that his passion for reading molded the man he is today. He believes that he fell in love with reading because he had so many options thanks to his parents’ collection of books. Without those books available to him to read over and over, he might not have fallen in love with reading and writing, making him a different person today. He also realized that not all kids have the same opportunities to read as he did, which he why he began donating to Room to Read.

Room to Read is an organization dedicated to youth literacy and education all around the world. The organization and its volunteers have worked in multiple developing countries across the continents of Africa and Asia to bring the joy of reading to the impoverished children there. They also have worked tirelessly to help bridge the gap in gender equality that usually exists in these countries, making it possible for girls to read a wide selection of material.

In the past decade, Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón has seen the funds he has donated to Room to Read make the lives of many people better. In that span of a decade, Room to Read has established more than 15,000 new libraries worldwide, built more than 1,600 schools, distributed more than 13 million books to those who cannot afford them themselves, published more than 850 new books, educated more than 21,000 girls who may not have had the opportunity to learn without the organization’s help, and benefited more than 7.8 million children all across the world.

Outside of work, Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón nurtures many passions. Over the years, he has taken up hobbies that have kept him grounded and focused on ways to enjoy his life. One of those hobbies, of course, has been writing. Though he finds he usually writes for himself, he does have a number of pieces in various stages of completion that he has been working on for a few years.

While he has never been particularly athletic, he did take up rock climbing a few years back. He has found it to be a great way to exercise, especially since a gym with a rock climbing wall is located right around the corner from him. He has found that rock climbing can be either a personal experience or a social one, and both situations present their own unique challenges.

Even though he said he has never been coordinated enough to use roller skates or ride a bicycle, he also discovered that he thoroughly enjoys skiing. He says that despite having little to no balance, he enjoys skiing and has been pretty good at it so far.

He has also seen his love of movies, video games and cartoons grow in the past few years. While movies have always been accepted as an art form, video games and cartoons have lagged behind. He says the writing in some cartoons and video games has taken the mediums to the next level, and believes that some of them can be seen as legitimate works of art. When it comes down to it, he thinks that the medium should not be what dictates whether or not something is art. It all depends on the passion of the people who create it and the story that goes into it. Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón has said before that his dream job would be one that allows him to play video games and watch movies and cartoons all day and all night.

Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón has one important goal that lies ahead of him: getting a book published. Though he knows that he writes primarily to please himself and that getting a book published can be very hard work, he hopes that his experience working for a publishing company can help him branch out as a writer. The task really comes down to finding the perfect book to market, and he currently has about a dozen that he can choose from. Seeing his name on the cover of a book has been a lifelong dream of his for many years now, and he hopes to see that come true eventually.

Luis Miguel Dorador Andalón also hopes for more opportunities to pursue his many passions in the future. One passion he has not had a lot of opportunity to chase is skiing, mostly because of how costly both the trips and equipment can be. Eventually, though, he hopes to be able to afford his own gear from the best lines in the business so he can take to the slopes and find out just how good he really is. He hopes to check out some of the best ski resorts all across the country, including those in New England as well as in the challenging Colorado Rockies.

Short-term goals always include improving his graphic design skills, as well as his writing, on a day-to-day basis. With a commitment to remain in graphic design, he is always working to learn new techniques and methods, and gain more experience.