One of the most rewarding things writers experience is being published for the first time, and two College of Charleston students from English Professor Bonnie Devet’s Advanced Composition class have accomplished just that. English major Phoebe Doty and English and biology major Hannah Starke submitted essays they wrote in Devet’s 2012 fall semester class to online magazines, and the pieces were published.
“This Advanced Composition course teaches writing, and writing is essential for success in any career that the students choose to follow,” says Devet. “I was pleased at the way the students applied the information they had learned in the course.”
Doty was inspired by the College’s own campus setting, downtown Charleston. She wrote a travel essay, “Charleston’s Southern Jungle for the Dead”, and then submitted the piece to SpiritualTraveler.com. “I was surprised and excited to be published because it is proof that the work we do in the classroom prepares us for the professional world,” Doty says. The essay examines the welcoming spiritual quality present in the Unitarian Church of Charleston’s 200 year-old graveyard. “I wanted to pick a Charleston destination that isn’t a common tourist stop, so I thought the Unitarian graveyard would be a great choice. Most tourists only go there on ghost tours, but it is actually a beautiful retreat from busy King Street during the day.”
Starke’s travel essay, “The Plight of the Narrow Stall: A Cosplayer’s Tale”, looks sarcastically at the Dragon Convention attendees and was recently published at Hackwriters.com, a website that boasts more than 30,000 page views a month. “There’s just something about seeing your name next to a published story that’s very rewarding,” Starke says.
For more information, contact Bonnie Devet at 843.953.5772 or devetb@cofc.edu.
