I'll start off by saying this, going to college, I was terrified. One of the only things that brought me comfort was writing. I would write about an idea that came to my mind or at least write the idea down. I had already read numerous Odyssey articles with the idea of joining in the back of my head. I went to the application multiple times, but always ended up closing that window.

When the day finally came where I actually submitted my application, I was terrified yet again. "Why did I just do that?', "Can I undo that?", "Am I excited?" Well, when I went to my interview with one of our editors, my body was a bucket full of nerves. I doubted myself. Lo and behold, I joined the team.

Every week, we write an article or a listicle. An article is consisted of at least 500 words in paragraph form and a listicle is numbered with pictures and short summaries. It may seem easy to write 500 words, but when you get to the point where you think there is nothing left to say, you are frustrated and think you should switch topics. When you are writing a listicle and can't think of how to describe the picture or gif, you're frustrated and annoyed. You think the point on your listicle is great, but you have no words in your brain to make it better.

Writing an article each week has helped me with deadlines and planning out when I need to get something done.

In fact, it has helped me to plan at least a week in advance. Now, that doesn't always go as planned. There weeks when my brain is fried. I have no idea how to switch from topic to topic, but by the end, I am proud of my work.

Sometimes, we, the Odyssey team, come across weeks where we are out of ideas. Yet, we encourage each other and help one another out when it comes to that. Being on a team with incredible writers, getting to read their pieces, and learning about them simply through what they write has made me realize the different types of writing.

As a college student, I have a style of writing that I like and hold in my "comfort zone". I have learned to walk outside of that comfort zone thanks to Odyssey. Because of Odyssey, I am way better with deadlines for classes, and thinking outside the box. Because of Odyssey, I have been able to freely share my writing even when it can be scary.

To add on, when you join Odyssey, you get to connect with all sorts of writers. People from numerous majors will join the team. It makes you realize that anyone can write. On my team, we have education majors which range from elementary education to secondary education. Secondary consists of English majors, science majors, math majors, history majors and so on. We also have music majors which is so cool! Another major we have is communication majors, which also has a large range. Most of us would probably never know each other without Ody!

Odyssey has brought a different array of people together.

I have to be honest, writing an article and hitting the "Submit For Editing" button can be scary sometimes. What will they think? Will they get where I am coming from with this? Does any of this make sense? Did I just write words and nothing else? The list goes on, but at the end, I am always excited to share my work!

What I want to say, or at least inform people of, about joining Odyssey is the overlying joy of working with people who love to write. My team is the best. Our group chats make me laugh, their words of encouragement help me as a writer and their articles are great as well! Seriously, go check some out! I highly suggest joining Odyssey if you enjoy writing.