By Dan Elliott

Last Wednesday, the Writer’s Club met for the first time of the fall semester, and I had a chance to sit in for their discussion, held in the L.L.Bean Learning Commons.  The group’s organizer, Sara Hervey, welcomed potential members with a smile, a cheery hello, and the customary refreshments of soda and an amalgamation of candy bars, which had a difficult time capturing student favor in the presence of the pizza being distributed throughout the Commons.

The club attracted  students from all walks of life and backgrounds — men and women, young and old, students from a variety of majors, all united to talk about their love of written works. I was also surprised to notice that some of the attendees who spoke of their love for literature were also artists, peering down at their sketchbooks occasionally as they joined in on the conversation. Original works of students were brought up, and some students readily displayed their character artwork during the gathering.

A myriad of formats were also discussed at the group’s initial meetup, ranging from creative fiction, poetry and prose to a blend of visual storytelling media such as graphic novels and comic books. Works from authors both famous and obscure were talked about and analyzed in a round-table fashion. Members were encouraged to bring in some of their own work to share, as Sara elected to demonstrate when sharing some of her own poetry while the group listened on and enjoyed.

Students reflected on the different sources of inspiration with which to feed the creative process of writing. Among the long list, students were unanimous in declaring music to be one of their major inspirations, with different genres having a different effect on writings. Creative influences that were brought up also included people in our daily lives, and stories of quirky coworkers were abundant in conversation.

This is not to say one has to be a writer to be in Writer’s Club. When asked about the level of expertise among peers, Sara told me, “You don’t have to be the next big author, you could just listen and read.” Yes, the club is called Writer’s Club, but the actual act of authoring is only a part of the purpose of the club. The true intent is to collectively share a person’s love of literature, in all of its forms, with other people. The conversation would often shift widely and regularly from subject to subject; students brought up in conversation poetry, comic books, video games, anime and manga, and more.

The Writer’s Club holds weekly meetings on Wednesdays from 12:00 to 1:15 in the Learning Commons, and is open to anyone interested. Sara also expressed interest in holding some events for the club; she mentioned a possible open-mic night in late October. Regardless of a student’s writing talent and proficiency, the Writer’s Club is an excellent opportunity for them to share their love of both reading and writing in a positive and encouraging environment.