I can go on about the self-improvement and section variety, but if there’s one reason you should join the Journal staff, it’s the sense of community.
I am begging you to write for the opinions section.
Was that too forward? Let me start over. Hi, my name’s Sean, I use she/they pronouns, I’m the Journal’s opinions editor and I am kindly requesting that you consider sharing your voice in our publication. We’re always looking for new writers, and I’d especially love to hear from more writers in the opinions section.
As we approach the midpoint for the spring 2022 semester, I’m reminded that some of my friends at the Journal will graduate soon. Our editor-in-chief, Cas Waigand, and our news editor, Alexandria Darmody, are both leaving in a few months. It’ll be truly sad to see them go; they’re just as good of journalists as they are friends, and I don’t know what I’ll do without them. They’re absolutely irreplaceable.
Anyways, here are a few reasons you should replace my friends and work for the Journal.
You might’ve noticed that the last year of opinions pages has leaned heavily into entertainment. Caleb Sprous, bless his soul, is our only consistent political writer. We also have quite a few gaming articles from Jordan Parker and I. Now, I love stories about games – otherwise, I wouldn’t write them – but I also want to add more variety in future issues.
If you’re getting sick of the gaming-dominated opinions section, you can fix that by writing stories on other topics. Within reason, we’ll accept almost any topic you can think of, from current events to random trivial topics. (If you aren’t sick of gaming stories, though, please turn to page six.)
Having more writers would also place less pressure on our current staff. Caleb and Jordan, I appreciate both of you so much for writing opinions stories almost every other week. However, I know life can unexpectedly complicate your schedules. With a few more consistent writers, these two can breathe easily if they’re too busy to write one week.
Are you interested in writing, but you’ve never done it outside of class papers? I have great news for you: we don’t have prerequisites. The Journal accepts writing from any Webster students, regardless of their previous experience. Our editing staff will help bring out your strengths as a writer.
Even if you don’t think journalism fits your writing style, it can be a great experience to improve your craft. Yes, there are vast differences between every writing medium, but you can still practice with different forms of writing and learn unique skills from each one. Virtually every career involves writing to some extent, so even if your only professional writing medium is workplace emails, you’ll learn something valuable here.
I understand how scary it can be to have your work edited and cut down, so I want to assure you that the editing process isn’t antagonistic. Our goal is to improve your writing through constructive criticism, not to tear you down. We’re willing to talk through our suggestions, and if it’s not a stylistic or spelling error, we’ll listen to convincing reasons why your version was correct.
If you’re a strong writer and editor, or you’re interested in journalism, consider joining us as a section editor. Do you despise my opinions section and think you can edit it better? Come take my position when I graduate in a couple years. You do it then, if you’re so smart.
I can go on about the self-improvement and section variety, but if there’s one reason you should join the Journal staff, it’s the sense of community.
I really do mean it when I say Cas and Alex are irreplaceable friends, and so are Kaelin Triggs, Abby Frye, Kate McCracken and everyone else that makes production nights every other Tuesday the highlight of my week. By joining our staff, you gain access to a strong support system, a work-in-progress quotebook and the chaotic Wednesday Wackies. We could always use some more besties, or as we call them, “evil worsties.”
Whether you’re interested in improving your writing or finding a community on campus, the Journal would love to have you. That’s just my opinion, though. What’s yours?
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