Think you, an aspiring novelist, are too creative to write for The Collegian? Think again. 

I entered Hillsdale proud of my writing abilities. I could crank out an easy A on a high school essay and had whole journals full of original stories. Imagine my surprise when the first few Collegian articles I submitted got torn to shreds. 

Was The Collegian the right place for someone like me, a creative writer? I seriously questioned it. I liked big words, long phrases, lots of commas. Perhaps journalism, with its seemingly arbitrary attribution rules, strict article structure, and fondness for concision, was not the place for me.

But The Collegian was the best thing to ever happen to my writing — and it can be for you, too. Learning the rules gave me the freedom to become a great writer.

If you’ve ever had an article edited, it’s rough. Opening up the Google Doc you slaved away at to see whole paragraphs crossed out is enough to make anyone’s stomach sink. Comments from editors can seem callous, even threatening — how dare they tell you how to write? It’s a constant exercise in humility and receptivity.

Not all editors are created equal, but the staff at The Collegian — and other reputable publications —  want to help writers grow into all that they can be. All writers have blind spots. The best editors are able to nurture and channel writers’ creativity so their original phrasing or unorthodox approach doesn’t come at the expense of a high-quality piece. 

This is a messy process: your grammar may need some serious help, or maybe you’re like me and lack innate concision. Both editor and writer constantly must struggle for clarity, accuracy, and — yes — beauty. 

But this struggle will strengthen your writing. Learning the rules means you will be able to break them artfully — not ineptly. Consistently writing pieces on a deadline is the best way to grow as a writer. Interviewing sources for pieces gives you the opportunity to speak with fascinating people you’d otherwise never meet. Who knows — they may provide inspiration for the main character of your next screenplay. 

Journalism forces you to get to the point, fast. That’s especially helpful in drafting short fiction. As any journalist knows, the reader is always looking for reasons to stop reading. That rule applies equally to compelling prose or poetry. 

And if you believe creativity is synonymous with the absence of constraints, you need a new definition of creativity. The greatest sonnet composers operated within a strict system of rhythm, meter, and line, and their works are paragons of creativity. Fortunately, Collegian articles don’t have to be in iambic pentameter. 

Learning to write in a journalistic “voice” doesn’t mean forfeiting your fiction. Many prominent journalists write in a variety of styles for different purposes. 

Don’t take it from me. On the walls of the Collegian office hang a dozen posters of different novelists and poets who started off in journalism: Ernest Hemingway, Jack London, John Milton, George Orwell, Jonathan Swift, and Mark Twain, to name a few. 

Journalism challenges a novelist’s favorite excuse: writer’s block. Try telling a Collegian editor you lack inspiration and won’t be able to deliver your piece. It won’t go well. Very quickly, you learn to put words on a page, even when you don’t “feel” inspired. John J. Miller says the Muse comes in the act of writing. He is correct.

This isn’t to say that The Collegian offers the only path to success as a creative writer. But it’s a damn good one. 

 

Caroline Kurt is a junior studying English.