Something I’ve learned during my time at Muhlenberg is that I am a person who bumps into things—literally and figuratively. The Weekly has very much been one of those things.
Like so many freshmen, I had a very clear idea of how my college career would go; so of course it didn’t go that way at all. After I ran head-first into the writing tutor program my freshman year, I slowly started to approach writing—cue lightning strike and dramatic music—for fun. It took me a while to get up the courage to approach The Weekly about writing for Op-Ed (that’s your first piece of unsolicited advice: don’t be afraid, especially of The Weekly staff. We’re all just a bunch of nerds who like words). Finally, in spring 2022 I submitted my first piece to the incomparable Mustafa Hall ‘23, former Op-Ed section editor. It was an incredibly unserious “naturalistic observation” of late-night GQ goers, that I pretty much just wrote to make myself laugh. As if my ego weren’t big enough already, when the piece came out someone laminated it and put it at one of the GQ registers. I don’t know who did it, but I hope they know how much that meant to me.
After that I wrote a few more pieces here and there, all equally unserious, and was content to just submit every few weeks if the section had room. I also took the terrifying step of taking my first creative writing class, taught by the one and only Professor Linda Miller. I was appropriately terrified, and ended up absolutely loving it (unsolicited piece of advice number two: take classes you’re afraid of). Soon after, I tripped over the opportunity to work on staff, when Mustafa reached out asking if I would be interested in coming on as an assistant.
Walking into The Weekly office is walking into a little community, which can be intimidating when you still feel on the outside of it, but after experiencing it from the other side I can tell you we really are so excited to bring new people into our basement-dwelling world. I loved getting to work on everyone’s pieces, and discovered my passion for Campus Safety notes—seriously, they do not disappoint.
To offer just a little more unsolicited advice—because I’m a sappy English major who doesn’t know when to shut up—keep an open mind. I truly believe part of a successful college career is ending up somewhere different than you planned to, because it means you took advantage of the opportunities you bumped into along the way.
Stepping into the Section Editor position with the lovely Megan Hansen ‘26 has been such a wonderful experience, and I’m honored to have been able to work with her and all of the incredible staff on The Weekly. Safe to say, of all the things I’ve tripped, bumped, smacked and stumbled into at Muhlenberg, The Weekly has definitely been one of my favorites.
The Weekly is so lucky to have had you on their staff<3 you are amazing!