About a week ago, at exactly 5:00pm on a Friday, my phone screen lit up with a notification that distracted me from the task at hand: deep cleaning some particularly soiled kennels at the doggy daycare. The notification was an email from one of the seven graduate programs I applied to, and it contained a […]

“Poetry is the most obscure art; that [obscurity] should be freeing” – JM  Before she performed an excellent reading of her poetry at Penn State Harrisburg, I had the chance to enjoy a cup of coffee with poet Jessica Murray. Jessica Murray is the author of the poetry collection Breakfast in Fur, and her poems, essays, and poetry […]

When I was in 11th grade, I participated in National Novel Writing Month for the first time. Casually abbreviated in conversation as NaNoWriMo among its fanbase (usually prompting a “nana-WHAT?” from the uninitiated listener), the month-long virtual event held every November prompts writers to draft a full-length novel in just 30 days, clocking at least […]

I remember my first experience with nonfiction. When I was in elementary school, I decided to pick up a biography (of some random famous person) and just read it during our free time in class. After reading it, the overall voice just seemed so boring to me, and ever since I dreaded nonfiction, fearing that […]

We sure have been told, or technically, trained by every single aspect of our daily manner that we must learn to predict things that are unpredictable, and only in this way can we be prepared all the time for our next challenge. I personally do not oppose this at all, and in fact, I admit […]

How would you feel if you just woke up randomly, and realized you were here? A long, ongoing hallway into darkness? What would you think? How would you feel? What would you do? Perhaps nothing to do except march forward? Or turn back? Would you be afraid to look behind yourself, out of fear that […]

So many books, so little time. *sigh* It’s a never-ending problem for me. I have an infinitely long list of  “To Be Read” books, but also what feels to be an infinitely long list of school assignments. And I know I’m not the only one in this predicament *cough* *cough* you, too *cough*. So, here’s […]

Brought to you by PSH’s English Professors   Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clark “It’s a world you will get lost in, a juicy, spell-binding tale of gentlemen magicians in Georgian London. You might actually believe in magic by the end.”                                            -Professor Emily MacLeod Get ready for a thrill with Susanna Clark’s […]

Perhaps you’ve heard the well-meant advice that new writers need to power through the difficult process of editing, polish up those drafts that have been languishing for who knows how long, and get them published. “Well begun is half done,” so says Mary Poppins. Of course, all of that is sound advice. But you also […]

As the night deepened, a solitary beam of light broke through the darkness of the house, revealing the dim outline of a closed bedroom door. Behind it, a child huddled under the covers, eyes wide open and listening intently to the silky smooth sounds of R&B music. The faint glow of the phone screen cast […]