Jenzabar University

Hannah: 2021-22 Student Coordinator, English Major, Legal Studies Minor

Favorite Quote: “Every form [of writing] is difficult, no one is easier than another. They all kick your [butt]. None of it comes easy.” ~James Baldwin

Commentary: This quote spoke to me because it's so true! No one is gifted with the ability to write well (or to want to write well). It's not always fun. Everyone struggles with writing; the more you do it the easier it gets. Just keep going, keep writing, keep working at it, and eventually it gets easier.

Jenna: English Major, Psychology Major, Communication Minor

Favorite Quote: “Fear is felt by writers at every level. Anxiety accompanies the first word they put on paper and the last.” ~Ralph Keyes

Commentary: Whether a twenty-page thesis paper or an email to a professor, writing is stressful. We, as writers, face potential criticism from everyone who reads our work. However! Although the writing process can evoke stress, anxiety, and self-doubt, it also evokes creative expression. As a writer, we get to transport our thoughts and images into someone else's mind. I try to remind myself of this as I write to work past the anxiety that I have. After all, I get to use my voice to illustrate my ideas. That's amazing! 

Maida: Studio Art Major

Favorite Quote: “You don’t start out writing good stuff. You start out writing crap and thinking it’s good stuff, and then gradually you get better at it. That’s why I say one of the most valuable traits is persistence.” ~Octavia E. Butler

Commentary: Any creative process, whether writing, composing music, or painting can be an incredible outlet for joy. However, the act of creation does require commitment. You have to lean into your work and put in the time to truly develop your skills. As you continue to practice, you develop your style, and each piece of writing helps you find your voice. So persist! Strive to find your voice and make your writing your own.

Davis: English Major, Music Minor

Favorite Quote: “Read, read, read. Read everything - trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it. Then write. If it’s good, you’ll find out. If it’s not, throw it out of the window.” ~William Faulkner

Commentary: When you digest the ideas of writers, you are participating in the great marketplace of human thought. When you write, you take an idea that you have internalized and you make it your own. A mind without great ideas gained from reading will be less equipped for quality writing. If you make a habit of spending time with books, you will be stocked with a bank of top-notch ideas. Then you can use the standards of quality you have gained through reading to assess your own work.

Delphine: English Major, Mathematics Major

Favorite Quote: When revising and editing writing, “Your feelings are none of your business.” ~Annie Dillard

Commentary: No matter how good the writing is, one will always receive feedback. There will always be suggestions for change and it can be difficult to edit. However, that’s the purpose of feedback, for someone to show you the opportunities you have to level up your work. For the best feedback, both the reader and writer have to speak honestly, but with gentleness.

Emily: Communication Major, Legal Studies Major, Spanish Minor, Communication Disorders Minor

Favorite Quote: “Good writing is formed partly through plan and partly through accident.” ~Ken Macrorie

Commentary: Writing is a process that takes time and thought; no matter, facing an empty Google doc is nerve-racking. Once you feel vulnerable enough to type out the beginning of the essay, the flow can sometimes stop. When this happens, I try to outline my essays and then slowly connect the dots. Still, after rereading my work, I find that not everything makes sense, and I will have to go back and revise. Planning is good, but sometimes freewriting comes in handy.

Izayah: Business Major, Sport Management

Favorite Quote: "You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Wayne Gretzky!” ~Michael Scott from The Office

Commentary: If you’re scared about writing a paper because you think it will be “bad” you have already failed. In order to achieve growth, you need to fail a couple of times; failure produces growth! So, don’t be afraid to take your shot and chase success! 

Leah: Biochemistry Major, Spanish Minor

Favorite Quote: “Close the door. Write with no one looking over your shoulder. Don’t try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It’s the one and only thing you have to offer.” ~Barbara Kingsolver

Commentary: I find that the best way to enjoy difficult writing assignments and complete them is to try and forget they are assignments. Try to make the topic apply to you or seem interesting to you. This will make the assignment feel less daunting as well as seem more manageable and enjoyable.

Libby: English Major, Multimedia Writing Minor

Favorite Quote: “Write until you reach the edge of something, whether it’s the world, the community you live in, or your skin.” ~Bhanu Kapil

Commentary: Writing is more than meeting the rubric requirements. Writing is vulnerability. It is meant to connect us and push our boundaries, to be a catalyst for exploration. This is not meant to intimidate; it is meant to serve as a reminder that—even among so much academic writing—there is opportunity. Opportunity for growth.

Sabrina: English Major

Favorite Quote: “I don't feel I write fast. I write in longhand and do so much revision. On the page, it's so old-fashioned. I could write a whole novel on scrap paper, scribbles and things. I keep looking at it and something develops. For me, using a word processor would mean staring at a screen for too many hours.” ~Joyce Carol Oates

Commentary: Like Oates, I can stare at a blank screen for hours. I might write two lines in two hours and then delete them. There’s something freeing about putting pen to paper. Writing on paper is comfortable. There’s this feeling that comes while writing—when your hand cramps from exhaustion yet you keep writing—a kind of rush. If you stop writing, your thoughts will vanish forever into endless expanses of time! It’s adventurous, it’s dangerous, and I love it.

Sarah: Exercise Science Major

Favorite Quote: “Meaning is not what you start with, but what you wind up with.” ~Peter Elbow

Commentary: In my experience, I just need to get a thought out or to start writing. It could be five words or a whole paragraph. The bottom line is that once I start, I know where I’m headed. For me, the key is to keep moving forward. Everyone’s voice is important, but we cannot realize our thoughts if we don’t write them out.

Tristen: Legal Studies Major, Business Administration Major

Favorite Quote: “Half my life is an act of revision.” ~John Irving

Commentary: I’ve spent the entirety of my life making mistakes, discovering new ideas, and forming new perspectives. John Irving understood exactly what I’ve come to understand: life is meaningless without revision. Why should the act of writing follow a different standard? In life, our thoughts are subject to comprehensive and calculated revision. As a result, our written thoughts must be subjected to the same level of scrutiny. Only then can our writing—and likewise, our thinking—be perfected.