Learning
Students compete, place in collegiate literary competition
Jenna Durant '19, of Zanesville, and Matthew Early '18, of Gahanna, competed in the 2018 Echo Student Literary Competition. More than 100 entries were submitted in all categories.
Durant placed third in the category of Creative Nonfiction. Her essay, “Mosquito Bites, Geysers and Dick Cheney,” tells the story of a chaotic road trip with grandparents.
“In this essay, I wanted to capture a fond family memory that also conveyed how unconventional my family is, particularly my grandparents,” said Durant. “Through writing this story, I learned the importance of creating a complex setting for the reader. I found that the more a reader can escape reality through a story, the more they will enjoy it.”
Early received honorable mention in the category of Poetry. Early’s poems “Kunstlerroman,” “The Semiotics of Hoarding” and “Visiting my Grandpa’s Gravesite” are each inspired by a real event or place in his life that had a profound impact on him. In his poems, he works to understand how the seemingly mundane can be deeply significant.
“I've always had a great deal of respect for authors who are able to take a seemingly insignificant moment in time and write about it in such a way that it conveys something symbolically meaningful,” said Early. “I found it quite a challenge and undertaking, but having done so successfully has given me the confidence to try again, despite the copious amount of thought and editing writing such pieces require.”
The contest is hosted by Hiram College’s Lindsay-Crane Center for Writing & Literature and open to students attending Muskingum University, Bethany College, Heidelberg University, Hiram College, Marietta College and the University of Mount Union.
