Though it’s hard to wrap my head around it, graduation inches closer everyday. Before this year—before this month, even—I thought it would be such a relief to finally be done, to not have to worry about homework, projects, essays and other college responsibilities anymore. But as the countdown on my phone ticks away—30 days to go as I write this article, and even less when it will be published—I can’t help but feel a little sad about everything I’m leaving behind. And when I think about everything at Elizabethtown College that I have to walk away from, the Etownian sits near the top of my list.
What sets the Etownian apart from some of the other clubs and groups I’m in on campus is really simple, yet so significant—time. My first semester here at the College, I heard from my First Year Seminar Peer Mentor that the Etownian was in need of help, and I immediately knew that was my sign to reach out. I wasn’t as sure in my writing abilities at the time, so I emailed the Editor and asked for information on a copy editing position, and, before I knew it, my time with the Etownian was beginning.
The first year working on the Etownian was quite a different experience than it is now. For one, it was pre-COVID era, so we still printed out every single article—rough and final drafts—and I would go through with my little purple pen and copy edit by hand. To all our section editors—if you think my edits are a lot now, imagine when you’d have to go in and manually enter every one of my pen markings. Yeah, not fun for any of us. And yet, I can’t help but feel happiness when I think about sitting in Steinman, taking the articles off the ledge at the back of the newsroom and sitting at a high table to edit.
Things got easier—surprisingly—in the COVID era aka my sophomore year. We moved onto Google Drive, I became Copy Chief and with the newfound power to just suggest corrections, my quality of editing skyrocketed. In this new position, I had more responsibility, but with that came more pride in the work I helped produce. I know I’m not a face of the Etownian by any means—I only started writing this year—but for four years, I’ve been in the background, editing and approving every single article we’ve published. And boy, have I loved it.
This year, I moved into a writing position at the Etownian. I overheard one of my friends talking about how there weren’t horoscopes in the first few issues, as our previous horoscope writer had graduated, so I sent an email to the Campus Life Editor saying that it’s something we should consider bringing back—and that if they couldn’t find anyone, I wouldn’t mind writing them. I’d never really considered writing for the Etownian before, but I’m into astrology and, as anyone who’s ever seen me can vouch, am no stranger to a witchy vibe. So, I got into the flow of writing every week as well, and it only increased my love of this paper.
Writing for the Etownian gave me a new perspective on the whole process, but, for me, it still all comes down to the copy editing. Never did I think I’d be so in tune with AP Style, and Oxford commas haunt me in my sleep. Also, a sidebar—I love the Oxford comma, and deleting it every week brings me such pain that it’s one of the positives of graduating.
This is all to say that I truly loved being a part of the Etownian, and I’m so grateful to have been involved in it my entire college career. My Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays won’t feel the same without sitting down, reading these articles, staying in touch with campus happenings and feeling like I’m a part of something that consistently puts out quality content. I’m really going to miss the Etownian, and I hope the next Copy Chief loves it just as much as I did.
And with that, Copy Chief out.
