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Printer-Friendly ModeCampus writers to receive day of recognition
October 5, 2009 —
This month the University plans to recognize student writing that reaches beyond the realm of term papers and essay tests.
SVSU will join other universities across the country to celebrate Tuesday, Oct. 20, as a National Day on Writing. A bill presently sits with the House of Representatives that would grant official national recognition for the day.
Students will have the opportunity to post their original work to SVSU’s personal nook of the online National Gallery of Writing. Submission categories are numerous, ranging from stories to poetry to artwork, recipes, videos and more.
“It’s a way of making people think about writing and how it’s woven into the fabric of their everyday life in ways that it never has been before,” said Diane Boehm, director of the University Writing Program.
People are going to write for their whole lives, formally or informally, Boehm said, referencing the research of Stanford scholar Andrea Lunsford.
From texting to tweeting to using Facebook, the digital revolution is making writers out of everyone, Boehm explained.
Today, college students spend ample time doing writing that isn’t academic.
“Students are writing for real audiences,” Boehm said. “They know who will read their Facebook pages or who will read their Tweets.”
The University Writing Committee plans to give students another real audience to present their original work for at a coffee house-style open mic night on Oct. 20. Participants are eligible to win $75 cash prizes in five categories: original jokes, poetry, songs, short stories and YouTube videos.
“It’s sort of a reminder that everything you present that’s original required original writing,” said Tami Sivy, an assistant professor of chemistry and the member of the writing committee who organized the event.
The floodgates for creativity remain wide open, as the competition has few guidelines beyond a roughly 250-word limit for short stories and two-minute maximum duration for YouTube videos.
Before the mic opens up, at 4 pm. in the Roberta Allen Reading Room an accomplished writer who studies occupational therapy at SVSU will share tips based on her own original work.
In her now not-so-secret double life, Moira Maus authored two bestselling mystery novels under the pen name M.G. Kincaid. The undergraduate will host a workshop titled “Help! What Do I Do Now? All the Stuff I Wish I’d Known Before Finishing My First Novel.”
All week, from Oct. 19 to 23, students may contribute to “Why Writing Matters” posters hung around campus by jotting down their insights.
The National Day on Writing is meant to recognize good writers on campus whom Boehm says are not commended for their work in enough ways.
“And we have a lot of [good writers] on campus,” she said.