Last Tuesday, I attended the yearly event at my university that celebrates the on-campus publication going live. It is called Making Public and it was my first time attending, as well as my first time being on staff for one of the magazines, one of the small presses, and having my writing published on-campus. It was a special moment that I didn't expect to feel until I heard my name being called on stage in front of all of my peers, professors, and friends in a wave of accomplishment. I have been telling people I am a writer since fifth grade, but it wasn't until this night during my sophomore year spring semester in college that I felt like I wasn't making it up anymore.
My essay, "Girlhood," was published in Essay Magazine, the creative nonfiction literary magazine at Susquehanna University. It explores the experiences of growing up as a girl in my generation and realizing that I was and always will be a girl living in a man's world. It's hard to promote something that I wrote so long ago and that I am quite frankly tired of reading, which is an issue that will only get worse during my future publishing industry endeavors, but you can read my essay here: https://essaylitmag.com/6/girlhood/
I am going to keep this post short and sweet, but I wanted to thank the people who read my work because you are the ones who are helping me beat my imposter syndrome, whether you know it or not. I posted the link to my essay on my Instagram story the night of Making Public and I got fifty story likes from an array of people that I didn't expect to care in the slightest. I got messages from old friends, family, a random acquaintance's girlfriend, my mom's work friend, and people who I never expected to take the time to read a nonfiction essay I wrote. Most of these messages led with, "that made me cry" or "you just said everything on paper that I have ever thought in my head" or "thank you," which is just insane, but the best possible response I could have gotten. My goal has always been to touch people in the way my favorite writers have touched me and knowing that I was able to do so even for a couple of people is enough for me.
Thank you to my greatest support system: Lost in Thought readers :))))))
-Emma Claire