Writing is one of the most valuable skills we use in our everyday lives. It is a versatile form of communication, present in our academics, workplaces, the media, and personal areas of life. The possibilities writing brings are endless. With writing, we can share stories, ideas and information while expressing ourselves and connecting with the world around us. Such a prolific form of communication deserves to be celebrated.
In 2009, the National Council of Teachers of English created the National Day on Writing, celebrated every year on October 20th. National Day on Writing is observed as a day to appreciate the importance of writing and to celebrate us as writers. Stated on their website, the NCTE aims through National Day on Writing “to draw attention to the remarkable variety of writing Americans engage in and to help make writers from all walks of life aware of their craft.”
Headlined by the “#WhyIWrite” campaign, National Day on Writing is a time for writers to come together, sharing their inspirations and what they love about writing.
The UMass Boston Writing Center and Undercurrents, the university’s undergraduate journal for composition, collaborate in holding a tabling event in Campus Center to celebrate the National Day on Writing. All campus members are welcomed to stop by, jot down why they write, and pin a colorful “Why I Write” paper to a wall with their peer’s responses. In addition to creating a vibrant wall filled with the wonderful reasons why we write, those who join in are offered a free piece of candy, too.
Across our campus, UMass Boston is full of talented writers who deserve to be celebrated outside of the holiday. After noticing other universities publishing student writing, UMass Boston’s Brittanie Weartherbie-Greco and Dan Messier were inspired to create a way for UMass Boston’s excellent student writers to have their work published.
“We have this huge body of students, with all different majors, doing all this different work, and we just wanted to celebrate the work they do. We felt there was a lot of great stuff happening inside the classroom, but then there wasn’t a way to showcase that to anyone once students finished their courses,” Weatherbie-Greco stated.
Weatherbie-Greco and Messier then took their idea of an online journal to Lauren Bowen, UMass Boston’s composition program director. Bowen was in favor of the journal, and the three assembled an editorial board of volunteer faculty members. This team then collected work submitted by students and professors in Composition 101 and 102 courses, began their editing process, and Undercurrents was born. The journal made its debut publication in 2018 and has been growing ever since.
Bowen praised, “Brittanie and Dan have made Undercurrents so much more than a ‘website that publishes student papers once a year’: it is an annual celebration of student writing, and a reminder of why the more than 60 instructors who teach composition at UMass Boston do what they do.”
This September, Undercurrents published its 7th issue, highlighting nine writers in a diverse collection of undergraduate work. This year’s honorees include Bella Brown, Lauren Brown, Brian Coughlin, Yelena Hernandez Bonilla, Mandy May, Allison Peguero, Reese Smith and Anh Tran.
The beauty of Undercurrents is, as Weatherbie-Greco puts it, “it provides an opportunity for students who are in any major and any discipline to show off their research and writing skills, and is a unique opportunity to be published as an undergraduate.”
For students who are interested in the chance of getting their work published, Undercurrents accepts submissions from any student in Composition 101 and 102, including Honors and ESL courses. Students in these courses can submit their work by asking their professor or directly submitting via email to [email protected].
Our campus celebration will take place on Monday October 21st and Tuesday October 22nd on the first floor of Campus Center from 11:00am to 3:30pm.
This article appeared in print on Page 10 of Vol. LVIII Issue V, published Oct. 21, 2024.