My journey at The Etownian started my sophomore year. As a transfer student, I was eager to meet new people and find my place at Elizabethtown College. I had no prior journalism experience and hardly any writing experience, but after attending a club fair where I was introduced to people working at The Etownian, I knew I wanted to be a part of it.
I started writing feature articles the next week. My first assignment was about Etown’s poet laureate and once I submitted my first article, I knew I had found my place. I got excited for Tuesdays when assignments got sent out and I was sent somewhere around college to attend an event and write about it.
From my sophomore to junior year, I wrote 11 feature articles, ranging from Q&A’s and on-campus events to April Fools’ Day editions. I also got to write about the women’s club soccer team—another organization I’m a part of—which became my favorite piece. Plus, since articles in The Etownian are published works, I was able to use them as part of a portfolio I submitted to help me get a copywriting internship my junior year.
I learned best interviewing practices, how to format an article, what structures work best for news pieces and how to write articles quickly, so I didn’t miss my deadline. Because of how much I was enjoying the work, I decided to take COM211: Multimedia Journalism to grow my skills and understanding of the art of journalism. Seeing my work published felt like such a huge accomplishment and I have dozens of copies of The Etownian I will keep forever.
As an English professional writing major, writing has always been my passion, but during my junior year, I also found a passion for editing. I took a step back from writing to take a step forward into the role of copy chief, where I stayed for the past two years.
The copy chief is responsible for reviewing and editing all the articles for grammar, punctuation, accuracy, tone and AP style before they get published. Think of a copy chief as the “guy in the chair” you see in superhero movies who helps the hero from behind the scenes.
While tricky to get the hang of the rules of AP style in the beginning, I soon found I had a knack for editing and reading over the stories with an analytical eye. Leaving comments, suggested edits and revision notes each week became my new normal. I loved being able to sit at my computer for hours just reading and editing.
Reading every article is definitely a time-consuming process, but that doesn’t make it any less rewarding. Reading the articles each week has become my favorite part of being involved in The Etownian. Our writers are so talented and our team always comes up with great stories to tell about what is happening on and around our campus.
While I am not pursuing journalism after college, my writing and editing skills working for The Etownian have grown so much and will be a huge help to me as a copywriter when I graduate.
The Etownian also introduced me to an amazing team of writers and creators who I know will do great things in the coming years. I have enjoyed every second of working here and am so grateful for this experience. Blue Jays always!
