I had never heard of Her Campus before I saw their table at the winter orientation fair in January 2019. With all the pink and flowery decorations, I knew I had to stop by if only to see what it was all about. Jennie and Claire were absolutely gracious and were very excited at my interest. While I admitted that I would not be able to do much in person, they assured me that Her Campus was accessible to everybody. And it certainly has been the case for me.
I was unable to attend many meetings. I worked two jobs and was finishing my senior year as a double major. I was (and still am) attempting to graduate early with both Anthropology and History. When I signed up to write for Her Campus, I was worried that my predominantly online presence would not be useful or would not be enough to pass as a writer. However, after my first article was published, I knew that Her Campus was the perfect place for me.
My very first article, “The Hazards of Loaning Money to Friends,” was a reaction to my friends being incredibly stupid with their money. As I was writing it, I found that using the article as a means to both vent and to educate others was very therapeutic. My mom loved the article, and I was more than excited to write more. (Thanks, Mom!)
I loved writing about things that inspired me, like volunteering in Charleston or reading banned books, but I also liked to write about fun things, like horoscopes and movies. I should have known that I would write and publish three fall-themed articles (it is, after all, my favorite time of year!) and that they would focus on entertainment, whether it be movies, games, recipes, books, or TV shows. Entertainment is, well, entertaining! I found those articles to be the most fun to write about.
On my birthday, my favorite article that I had written, “Buzzfeed Unsolved: An Appreciation Article,” was published. It was my favorite show and the hosts had even visited Charleston! That article was the most fun to write and I was beyond ecstatic to hear the positive feedback from our amazing editors.
Time flies when you’re having fun, as the saying goes. It seems surreal that I have written with Her Campus for a whole year. Including this article, I will have 13 published articles with Her Campus magazine. I have enjoyed my time with you immensely and have grown as a writer. The articles I wrote were fun and I hope that everyone enjoyed reading them as much as I enjoyed writing them. I will graduate in only a few weeks and my time both at Her Campus and the College of Charleston will be over. I appreciate everyone who supported me, both at Her Campus and beyond. I have grown so much here and I hope that those of you who have yet to graduate will learn from me: enjoy what you have while you have it. It’ll be gone before you know it.
Thank you so much to everyone and I wish you the very best.
Sincerely,
Katie Crane