Stay true: a few creative outlets for English students at FSU

Note: Even though the Spring 2023 semester ends in just a couple of weeks, these publications and student organizations will remain active and open to new members for the fall. Check with each group for the application to join process.

By Bella Bozied

From screenwriting to poetry and even publishing news articles, students in any major can find various organizations on Florida State University’s campus that allow— and invite them—to embrace their writing passions.

Those groups can be especially helpful when involved in any English major track though, as writing outside the classroom is vital to keeping a creative spirit alive.

A more recent organization to join FSU’s campus is the Poetry Club. Founded in 2019, this club is a recognized student organization with weekly meetings that allow members to have fun with the poetry medium. Meetings consist of members reading, writing, or working on collaborative projects with each other.

Recently, the club has been utilizing its Instagram page to build stronger relations with current and potential members. Social Media Coordinator Katie Kelsey is a creative writing major, with a minor in film studies, and has been a part of the organization for two years.

“I wanted to help out other students who were like me…and use social media as a platform to get the Poetry Club off its feet and also communicate with our members,” Kelsey says.

She aims to highlight the certain excitement that members feel when it’s time to meet by creating these interactive posts: Poet of the Week; highlights of members and their interests inside and outside of poetry; Poetry Prompts, which encourage anyone who sees the post with a midweek poetry pick up; poetry pop quizzes and Would You Rather questionnaire posts.

Kelsey describes the club as, “such a beautiful outlet for our different members,” and she hopes the Instagram content will help membership to blossom and become even closer.

The Poetry Club is not the only club that uses its social media to start conversations between members and a broader audience. The campus magazine Strike also focuses on a strong social media approach and presence.

FSU English-Editing, Writing, and Media alumnae Hannah Kealy and Ashlie Head co-founded the publication in 2016 on FSU’s campus with FSU marketing alumna Natalie Campion. Now with 13 national chapters, Strike revolves around fashion and culture pieces, allowing students to gain writing, editorial, and photography/videography experience.

Current Editor-in-Chief Tabitha Labrato began her journey with the club during her freshman year to gain writing experience for her English-EWM major. Serving in this position after working as a writer and editor in the past, Labrato says she strives to “give students the opportunity to create freely without boundaries.”

“There are so many incredible and creative people here and I love that Strike can create a community among all of them,” Labrato adds. “It goes beyond just writing.”

The staff is comprised of various positions, Labrato says, with the strongest connection being that all projects emphasize team collaboration and painting a unique perspective.

“We like to push boundaries and create things the people haven’t seen before in hopes of creating some really visually engaging and intriguing art for anyone to enjoy,” Labrato says. In addition to the general experience they gain, Strike assists members in getting a sneak peek of how the industry operates.

Another creative outlet for students is Her Campus. An online, women-started, women-run, national publication; FSU’s Elite branch highlights news, style, and entertainment on campus. Helene Webb, the current Editor-in-Chief, started as a writer in her first year at FSU in the fall of 2020. During the height of the pandemic, the organization was able to provide her with writing experience and a social environment to make friends.

“You can write about anything you want,” Webb says. “If your passion is hard-hitting news issues or you just want a place to rave about your favorite artists, you can do that with Her Campus.”

Similar to the diverse avenues of the previous clubs, Her Campus has various writing, editing, and social teams, which allow people to come together to work toward a common cause. As Webb explains, “there’s less distance between the author and the reader, because so much of our audience is FSU women, so you can really connect over what matters to you.”

She adds that the organization aims to strengthen its members’ communication, leadership, and project management skills through writing/posting schedules, industry workshops, and participating in campaigns.

Script2Screen has a similar community approach but a varying general focus. The screenwriters club on campus assists members through workshops, guest speakers, and allocated time to write.

“Passionate, dedicated, open-minded,” is how creator and club President Dylan Fishman describes the organization’s community. He founded the club in October of 2021, with support from friends Emily Hyde and Adam Boehm, to supply writers a space to come together and collaborate; the highlight, and overall goal, is being able to have fun.

“I only became a creative writing major because one year I had a teacher who let me write whatever I wanted,” Fishman says. “I feel like a lot of people didn’t have that and that’s what Script2Screen is.

“We’re trying to break the notion that writing has to be isolating.”

He uses this club as a space to overcome the intimidating feeling that writing can bring students and to provide members with various communities to share their pieces, especially ones that explore who they are and their voices as writers.

From the Poetry Club’s social media interactivity, the unique perspectives Strike members can obtain, the versatile writing opportunities with Her Campus, and the fun and creative nature of Script2Screen, there is something creative for all students to pursue.

These outlets can and should be used not just to add a sentence or two onto a resume but also to gain real-world experience: to enhance day-to-day life.

Bella Bozied is a double major in English-Editing, Writing, and Media as well as Information, Communication, and Technology.

Note: Bella is also a contributing writer for Her Campus.

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