The underrepresented of the underappreciated, no I'm not an English or a Journalism major, but to all you upcoming college students here's a bunch of reasons why you should be a Writing major:
1. You can create all the characters and poetry you want without having to just write an analytical essay
Am I the only one who the only reason they wanted to get out of high school was because they’re sick of writing 5 paragraph analytical essays? In my last six months of college I’ve gotten to write multiple short stories, free writes, poetry, anything with a character of my choosing. I get to create, to be imaginative, and this is in class. If you’re anything like me and creative writing gives you some sort of high, these creative writing, personal essay, and poetry classes will make you leave with a grin ear to ear.
2. Getting published for the first time is the best.feeling.ever
By yours truly. What better three words could you ever hear? Evidence of your hard work, your sweat and tears. Seeing an article of mine get published in a hard copy of a literary magazine brought me to actual tears. I got on the phone with my best friend, flinging around the pieces of paper, nearly scared of breaking my bed from excitement. Can’t you imagine how amazing it’s going to feel when all your hard work pays off and then you start getting emails from other newspapers or groups on campus begging for your input? It’s pretty damn cool.
3. Writing can help you with all sorts of things, not just to be an author
This major is not just for the authors, the poets, the screenwriters. Writing can help with any profession, it’s better to be more than literate and if you can kill it on any paper that comes at you and learn to speak in more sophisticated language, what’s better than that? It’s such a broad major, you’ve got the world to decide on. An incredible amount of options.
4. It’s a dying love
Anyone ever heard journalism is a dying career? Well, if you’re into the whole let’s rejuvenate the dying arts, this is the major for you. We write with actual pencils and paper (yes, no laptops). We create raw and real creations, and I don’t know about you but I don’t want this love of mine to die.
5. Writing majors are the quirkiest
Practically about 70% of the students in my creative writing class either wear tatted up converse or own a pair of John Lennon glasses. They’re all the quirkiest. We’re awkward, we’ve got loud laughs, but we sure as hell got a lot to say. We’ve got the coolest sense of style and our dorm rooms turn out pretty sweet as well, not to brag.
6. You’re probably located in the building farthest on campus, so killer legs
This is probably not the same at every school but at least where I go, writing majors are probably one of the smallest, most underappreciated programs. Therefore we get the leftover building, the smallest lounge, the fewest classrooms, and we’re the building everyone complains about getting classes even though they’re probably only taking academic writing once in their entire time at school. Not bitter, I promise. Point being, I get to walk to the farthest building on campus so as you may be able to imagine writing majors get KILLER calves or they'll be late for class.
7. Everyone asks you to edit their papers, so you’re pretty popular
Again, may just be me, but my roommate and best friends are constantly asking me to look over their work. They think because I love writing so much I must be a grammar wiz (jokes on them), but for real, it makes me feel pretty cool and wanted for my talents. You get a lot of friends that way, getting them the A’s in the one writing class they take in their college career, and you feel pretty cool.
8. No final exams
This is the best reason ever. While all your friends are cramming for their biology or statistic exams, you can just lay back, relax, and pack your things to head home. I have yet to encounter a writing class that requires a written final or midterm during the semester. Most of the time they’re just reworks of your old papers and stories that end up being filed into portfolios, which I think is pretty nifty anyhow.
9. You get to buy 300 different pretty notebooks to write in
I’m a stationery fanatic. When my creative writing professor announced we needed a free write notebook I spent hours on Etsy and Pinterest looking up the cutest ones. You don’t need to do this, and you may not even find this all that intriguing but for me, I’d apply to be a writing major just because I get leather notebooks with crinkly paper.
10. It makes me pretty happy
Do what makes you happy right?
