Ringing in the new yea--er, semester

By Abby Ponder 

Welcome back to campus, friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful and engaging summer. Whether you're a returning student or new to the hill, we're happy to see your smiling faces on campus again--and in the Writing Center.

With the start of the new semester, we're happy to announce several new developments in our neck of the woods.

First of all, while we are still very sad to see last year's graduates go, we're excited to welcome several new tutors to the Writing Center staff! As the semester progresses and we all get to know one another, we'll be posting bi-weekly tutor profiles to this blog. So, keep an eye out for some familiar and new faces alike!

Our writing-themed blog posts will also continue like usual, but we're open to suggestions for topics. Is there something in particular you really want to learn more about? Is APA giving you some trouble? Are you baffled by that block quote and why you really need it? Ask your questions and we shall deliver!

Another thing we're super excited to unveil is our newly-created writing groups!

Are you interested in learning about conference and publication opportunities? Do you thrive in a collaborative environment? Do you love to write or, in some cases, need to write?

Well, if you answered "YES" to any of the above questions, then this group is perfect for you.

There will be several meeting times throughout the week where we focus on specific areas of writing and what comes after the words have been put on paper. It is, after all, an evolving process. The general idea is that we'll come together as a group on a weekly basis to share thoughts and ideas on writing. So, whether you've got a working draft or a budding idea, come see us! It'll be a casual time for us to work together and do what we all love best: write. You'll also meet some pretty cool people, if we do say so ourselves.

For students interested in conferences or publications, you'll want to come to our meeting on Monday, September 14, at 4:30. We'll be located in the FAC Commons (Room 166). This meeting time could also be very beneficial for students working to complete Honors CE/T projects, though it is by no means limited to Honors students. If you're interested in publications/conferences or you want to brainstorm ideas with your peers, you should definitely stop by! Our first meeting will also have free snacks, which is always a plus!

For groups interested specifically in creative writing, there will also be different groups focusing solely on its sub-genres, led by our MFA students. These groups will meet at the following times:

• Fiction Writing: Wednesday, September 16, at 3:00pm in the English Department's Study Room (Cherry Hall 124)
• Poetry Writing: Wednesday, September 16, at 5:00pm in the WKU Writing Center (CH 123)
• Creative Writing Publication: Monday, September 14, at 4:00 in the WKU Writing Center (Cherry Hall 123)

Mark your calendars, but know that we'll probably have more information available as we draw closer to these dates. 

So, all in all, I think it's shaping up to be a pretty fantastic semester. We hope you'll join us for it!