I recently had a meeting with the Editorial Assistant of Aesthetica Magazine in York to discuss an internship at their magazine and I was luckily offered an eight week internship. As a university student I have enough free time to do an internship therefore I felt now is the perfect time to apply. The whole process was fairly straightforward as I simply emailed them asking if they did internships at their publication and then sent them an academic CV that included information relevant to publishing and the arts in general. As this is an art and culture publication I felt that having an interest in taxidermy, writing and photography would make me an ideal candidate as I am interested in a few different art forms. I will be posting weekly reviews of the internship so you can find out what kind of activities you may be doing on a publication internship.
Category: News
Academic Curriculum Vitae
I recently decided to create an academic CV as I have been planning to apply for magazine internships however I had no idea where to start. Firstly I had to decide what information would be relevant for the type of internships I was applying for. As I was wanting to intern at a literary/arts publication so I decided to only include my achievements that would fall into this field. I included my personal details (such as name, email address and phone number) then bullet pointed my achievements from York St John University and King George V College as these are my two most recent places of education. In the bullet points I mentioned my scholarships, events I’ve hosted, conferences I’ve spoken at, society involvement and awards I’ve been given.
Additionally to these education achievements I also included a section for my personal achievements, as this shows that I have the initiative to made opportunities for myself in literary and artistic fields. In this personal section I mentioned my published work with website links to the work, my involvement in non-university poetry societies and this blog with a website link. Finally I had my references which are my current Creative Writing lecturer Fraser Mann and the Head Of Programme for Creative Writing Abi Curtis. I decided on these two as they told me I could use them as references and they are the two lecturers who know me best on a personal and academic level.
Creative and Critical Writing: Professor Nicholas Royle Reading Event
Last Friday (27th March) I attended the Creative and Critical Writing event at York St John. I have always admired Nicholas Royle’s fiction and academic work and this talk was a great insight into his creative process relating to his semi-autobiographical novel Quilt. This novel is so experimental in narration and filled with obscure ray references that I was dying to hear how it came into creation. The rays themselves came from Royle’s own interest in the creatures as he enthused greatly about his own fascination with them, stating that the novel is an experiment in how one can “describe their movements, their reality” and the narrators grappling with language is reflective of the “grabbling with the question of representation”.
However it is the Afterword in Quilt that perhaps explores the idea of reality fiction in a clearer manner than the novel itself. It is Royle’s brief mention of Roland Barthes’ Death of the Author that is enough to convince me that he is using Quilt as an example of how the text is inevitably an extension of the self and somewhat acts an internal discourse within the writer. Therefore the undecipherable nature of this novel comes from the fact that writing about oneself cannot come in an decipherable way. Even the title of novel itself is built up of layers that the reader may initially not see, as the term Quilt has three meanings, that of a bed cover, “to swallow” and as a “synonym in the Eighteenth Century for a manta ray”. This novel is so patched together with parts of Royle that it makes for a unique read, not only because he himself is an intriguing individual but also because he does not (like many other authors do) try to remove himself from the work.
Lack of Posting
Unfortunately due to travelling I haven’t been blogging much in the last few weeks. However now I am back in sunny York I will be updating this blog biweekly.
York e-learning Conference
On Thursday I attended the York e-learning Conference at York St John university. This conference focused upon how technology can improve HE students learning experience. I spoke briefly about how this blog has enabled me to progress at university and create an account of my creative pieces. This blog has given me the opportunity to have a voice when I am too nervous to speak. By having this outlet I have gained confidence in my ability to write in multiple forms of literature and I am very thankful for my university asking us to create this blog.
Blogging and Esteem
University is challenging for everyone. However university can be much more challenging if you have self-esteem and confidence issues. I have BDD and have somehow managed to attend all my lectures and seminars but sometimes just being there is incredibly difficult for me. There have been times I have felt unable to participate in group work and have not felt confident enough to read out my creative responses. Therefore having a blog gives me a voice when I feel too anxious to speak up. As a student of Creative Writing it is very important for me to engage with texts and forms and to also get my work out there. Blogging allows me to have a presence as a writer even if I struggle in everyday situations. I am very pleased that York St John value platforms such as blogs because it gives every student the ability to show their skills and progress.
Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell: Astronomy & Poetry
On Tuesday I attended a lecture given by Professor Joycelyn Bell Burnell on the connection between astronomy and poetry. She expressed that both science and creative outlets try to explain the ‘unexplainable’ and that we strive for answers whether we attempt to do this through poetry or experiments. She did oversimplify scientific elements such as the electromagnetic spectrum, which I found a little unnecessary. However I was impressed by Burnell’s idea of having the attendees of the lecture read out the poems aloud, as this was engaging. I have often found the scientific and the creative closely linked as I find inspiration from nature and the body. As a fan of Hardy and Wordsworth I was glad that Burnell acknowledged these writers as great poets and amateur astronomers. I found this lecture sometimes too basic but overall entertaining.
University is
Stressful
University can become overwhelming exceedingly quickly; from weeks until a deadline and enjoying evenings with friends to days until a deadline and only a rough plan sketched on a receipt completed.
Scary
University can be really terrifying. First off you have to pay rent, live with strangers, share a kitchen (sometimes bathroom) and manage your own life. This is hard enough without university work on top.
Amazing
University gives you freedom to do as you please and study what you want. You can meet really nice students and make good connections in the industry. Plus all the lecturers have your back, they don’t want you to fail!
Taxidermy Class
Last Friday I attended a 4 hour taxidermy class where I preserved a mouse, now named Marlowe. I booked this class because taxidermy has always interested me and inspired some of my more gruesome poems. As a huge fan of 19th century gothic fiction the love of taxidermy seems almost natural, as the pieces are uncanny and often comical. I found the experience a very relaxing and calming one. When carefully making incisions, pulling the skin away, cutting through bone and removing all organs and flesh I found myself completely immersed in the activity. By taking something tiny apart you really have to concentrate and the mouse did take all of that 4 hour session to preserve correctly. Although activities such as this appear grotesque and morbid it is actually extremely fun and does take a lot of patience. I recommend for all creative writers to go out and find inspiration from strange places.
Future & Writing
Most of those on the Creative Writing module dream of becoming best-selling authors and professional writers. However this has never been an aim of mine. I write mostly poetry which is not really a form one can earn enough money from to make it a full-time profession, therefore I do not dream of become a writer. Instead I dream of becoming a lecturer and teaching people who have the potential of becoming great critics and writers.
My goal is to complete my Joint Honours in English Literature & Creative Writing, take up a Masters in 19th Century Literature & Culture and then to finally do a PhD. These plans require a lot of commitment, dedication and funding. However I have determination to do this.