Kristen Stewart Is Living Life "Unafraid" and "Not Closed Off"

USMagazine, Wednesday, January 2, 2013, 5:10pm (PST)

Kristen Stewart is feeling stronger than ever going into 2013.

In a sexy new photo shoot with V Magazine, the 22-year-old On the Road actress opens up about how she's changed over the past year.

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"I have realized that you can close yourself off to life if you put walls up, but it's a difficult thing," Stewart, who was caught cheating on Robert Pattinson in July with her married Snow White and the Huntsman director, tells the magazine. "You can't see over, people can't see in, and you also can't see out. So I've gotten quite comfortable with just being unafraid. I keep saying the same thing: it's not about being fearless but really just embracing the fears and using them."

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And she plans on using that new confidence in her career post-Twilight.

"I am not closed off to anything right now," she says. "That is what I was saying about not having any more walls up. I don't want to deprive myself of any bit of life."

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The next project on Stewart's list is the comedy Focus. Ben Affleck recently pulled out of the project as her costar/love interest, but Stewart sounds optimistic about starring in the film. "The script is really fun," she says, "and I love the writers and directors, Glenn Ficarra and John Requa."

Stewart even said she'd love to be a part of an ensemble cast with other actresses. Citing Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence, On the Road costar Amy Adams and pal Dakota Fanning, she explains, "There are so many cool girls out there!"

This article originally appeared on Usmagazine.com: Kristen Stewart Is Living Life "Unafraid" and "Not Closed Off"