News
Penn State Creative Writing Students and Faculty Describe Unique Journeys to Publication
Students and faculty in Penn State’s Creative Writing program, housed in the Department of English, share similar dedication to their craft and an end-goal for their work: publication. However, the path to publication looks different for every writer, including Professor Samuel Kọ́láwọlé, whose first novel—The Road to Salt Sea—will be published by Amistad/HarperCollins in spring 2024.
“Each writer has a different journey,” Kọ́láwọlé said. “I came to the United States having already published and was a working writer when I arrived. So, it was easy for me in some ways, but it was also challenging because the industry is very white and American, which makes it a bit difficult for a foreigner to break into the industry.”
Kọ́láwọlé explained creative writers have “more play” with short pieces because hundreds of literary journals, all with “different aesthetics,” are willing to publish diverse works from authors of different backgrounds. Meanwhile, he said long-form works face increased competition because of the dominance of the “Big 5” publishing houses—Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, and Macmillan—and a handful of independent or academic presses.
Due to the “subjective” nature of writing, Kọ́láwọlé explained, writers may submit their work to agents and editors who aren’t interested in the subject or feel a lack of connection with it. However, Kọ́láwọlé emphasized that “at the end of the day, one of the most important things about writing is consistency [because] a good story will always rise to the top.”
Emmanuella Eneh, a BA/MA creative writing student, said she’s “constantly notified” about literary journals that are accepting submissions. One of these magazines, Outrageous Fortune, recently accepted three of Eneh’s poems for publication in its 2023 edition.
Eneh said the BA/MA program hosts a variety of writing workshops, which have helped her improve projects before submitting them to literary magazines.
“At the moment, I honestly don’t have strong opinions about the publishing industry other than: it’s intimidating,” Eneh commented. “When I was told I was officially going to be published, I felt a massive weight lift off my shoulders—it was like confirmation that I was doing something right as a budding author.”
Creative writing student Lance Colet submitted approximately 50 works of fiction and nonfiction to literary journals across the country, yet kept receiving “really sugary rejection letters,” urging him to “continue writing” and reminding him that publishing is “completely subjective.”
“If you’ve ever seen hydraulic press videos online, that’s what the publishing industry is like,” Colet stated. “It entails these really sharp slaps in the face done with these very sugary rejection letters.”
However, Colet recently experienced his first acceptance from A Thin Slice of Anxiety for a nonfiction work, which he said focused on “the disappearance of the American frontier and how it affected people’s psyche in contemporary times.” Colet initially worked on the piece in a Penn State creative writing course and spent time editing it before submitting to publications.
Colet said he’s happy Penn State offers literary journals like Kalliope and Klio, because the “competitive pool is way smaller” and they can “act like an intermediary for those who’ve never published before.”
“There’s very little fuel to keep you going when trying to get published, but those outlets can provide you with motivation to keep trying,” Colet expressed.
Colet said forming a writing community or support system—whether composed of friends, peers, or family—aids writers during the publication process.
“Read more, write more, think more, and call your mother,” Colet advised. “My mom is very supportive. I could write the word, ‘cheese’ on the paper two thousand times, and she would think it is literary genius. It’s very nice to have someone support you on this journey, and I hope everyone can find someone like her.”
He said his peers and faculty within the creative writing department also provide a support network. When working with students interested in publishing, creative writing professors can draw on their own experiences—of both success and failure—to guide and inspire young writers.
Regardless of how far along they are in their career, writers experience a rollercoaster of acceptances and rejections. Penn State’s 2021-22 Laureate and Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of English Shara McCallum shared a similar experience in her own publication journey.
“The CV only shows people’s successes, but what it doesn’t show—and I think it’s really important for younger writers to know this—are the numerous failures that you have to come back from,” McCallum said. “I teach, but I also have kids, and I tell them the definition of ‘success’ is how you come back from failure. As a writer, you have to endure a lot of it, especially early on.”
McCallum explained her first two books were fortunately released “right out of the gate,” but she faced rejection for her third book two years in a row. These rejections led McCallum to send her book to the two presses that she’s been working with since.
“I was basically going through the slush pile [of unsolicited manuscripts and queries] again with my third book,” McCallum said. “This happens to writers where you have a successful run with a first or second book, and for whatever reason, it’s not for the editor’s taste or the company’s interest anymore. It’s part of the process.”
McCallum’s sixth book, No Ruined Stone, released August 2021 through two literary presses: Alice James Books in the United States and Peepal Tree in the UK. The collection received the 2022 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award in Poetry, which recognizes exceptional poetry, fiction, and nonfiction by Black writers.
When crafting her projects, McCallum said she “writes for [herself], but inside of that tradition of the art.” McCallum recognizes that she’s “working within a long-standing discipline” that allows her to express emotions and thoughts.
Creative Writing Director and Faculty Advisor for the Creative Writing Club, Julia Kasdorf, shared similar sentiments. Although “there are always way more rejections than acceptances,” Kasdorf said writers learn how to keep on writing and “feel good about how many poems you have ‘out’ under consideration in the world.”
Kasdorf released her fifth collection of poetry, As Is, with the 2023 Pitt Poetry Series. She said this book differed from her previous publications because fewer edits and drafts were required.
“What makes this collection different from earlier ones is that the editors didn’t ask me to change anything,” Kasdorf explained. “So, this one really does feel like it’s ‘as is.’”
Kasdorf emphasized that “every author desires a reader, and vice versa.” Writers need to find a way to bridge that gap through publishing, forming a community between themselves and those interested in their work.
“There has never been a better time to be a writer by any measure: more opportunities to publish, more grants, awards, and other funding opportunities, more communities of writers,” Kasdorf said. “And all the skills you need to become a successful writer—imagination, problem solving, diplomacy, fearless revision and change of direction, community building—are needed in many jobs, and certainly are essential to a good life.”
Through workshops, courses, and support offered by Penn State’s Creative Writing program, many students and faculty find outlets for their writing projects and support on their publication journeys. To learn more about the Creative Writing Department at Penn State, check out their website or follow them on Facebook.
Students and faculty in Penn State’s Creative Writing program, housed in the Department of English, share similar dedication to their craft and an end-goal for their work: publication. However, the path to publication looks different for every writer, including Professor Samuel Kọ́láwọlé, whose first novel—The Road to Salt Sea—will be published by Amistad/HarperCollins in spring 2024.
“Each writer has a different journey,” Kọ́láwọlé said. “I came to the United States having already published and was a working writer when I arrived. So, it was easy for me in some ways, but it was also challenging because the industry is very white and American, which makes it a bit difficult for a foreigner to break into the industry.”
Kọ́láwọlé explained creative writers have “more play” with short pieces because hundreds of literary journals, all with “different aesthetics,” are willing to publish diverse works from authors of different backgrounds. Meanwhile, he said long-form works face increased competition because of the dominance of the “Big 5” publishing houses—Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, and Macmillan—and a handful of independent or academic presses.
Due to the “subjective” nature of writing, Kọ́láwọlé explained, writers may submit their work to agents and editors who aren’t interested in the subject or feel a lack of connection with it. However, Kọ́láwọlé emphasized that “at the end of the day, one of the most important things about writing is consistency [because] a good story will always rise to the top.”
Emmanuella Eneh, a BA/MA creative writing student, said she’s “constantly notified” about literary journals that are accepting submissions. One of these magazines, Outrageous Fortune, recently accepted three of Eneh’s poems for publication in its 2023 edition.
Eneh said the BA/MA program hosts a variety of writing workshops, which have helped her improve projects before submitting them to literary magazines.
“At the moment, I honestly don’t have strong opinions about the publishing industry other than: it’s intimidating,” Eneh commented. “When I was told I was officially going to be published, I felt a massive weight lift off my shoulders—it was like confirmation that I was doing something right as a budding author.”
Creative writing student Lance Colet submitted approximately 50 works of fiction and nonfiction to literary journals across the country, yet kept receiving “really sugary rejection letters,” urging him to “continue writing” and reminding him that publishing is “completely subjective.”
“If you’ve ever seen hydraulic press videos online, that’s what the publishing industry is like,” Colet stated. “It entails these really sharp slaps in the face done with these very sugary rejection letters.”
However, Colet recently experienced his first acceptance from A Thin Slice of Anxiety for a nonfiction work, which he said focused on “the disappearance of the American frontier and how it affected people’s psyche in contemporary times.” Colet initially worked on the piece in a Penn State creative writing course and spent time editing it before submitting to publications.
Colet said he’s happy Penn State offers literary journals like Kalliope and Klio, because the “competitive pool is way smaller” and they can “act like an intermediary for those who’ve never published before.”
“There’s very little fuel to keep you going when trying to get published, but those outlets can provide you with motivation to keep trying,” Colet expressed.
Colet said forming a writing community or support system—whether composed of friends, peers, or family—aids writers during the publication process.
“Read more, write more, think more, and call your mother,” Colet advised. “My mom is very supportive. I could write the word, ‘cheese’ on the paper two thousand times, and she would think it is literary genius. It’s very nice to have someone support you on this journey, and I hope everyone can find someone like her.”
He said his peers and faculty within the creative writing department also provide a support network. When working with students interested in publishing, creative writing professors can draw on their own experiences—of both success and failure—to guide and inspire young writers.
Regardless of how far along they are in their career, writers experience a rollercoaster of acceptances and rejections. Penn State’s 2021-22 Laureate and Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of English Shara McCallum shared a similar experience in her own publication journey.
“The CV only shows people’s successes, but what it doesn’t show—and I think it’s really important for younger writers to know this—are the numerous failures that you have to come back from,” McCallum said. “I teach, but I also have kids, and I tell them the definition of ‘success’ is how you come back from failure. As a writer, you have to endure a lot of it, especially early on.”
McCallum explained her first two books were fortunately released “right out of the gate,” but she faced rejection for her third book two years in a row. These rejections led McCallum to send her book to the two presses that she’s been working with since.
“I was basically going through the slush pile [of unsolicited manuscripts and queries] again with my third book,” McCallum said. “This happens to writers where you have a successful run with a first or second book, and for whatever reason, it’s not for the editor’s taste or the company’s interest anymore. It’s part of the process.”
McCallum’s sixth book, No Ruined Stone, released August 2021 through two literary presses: Alice James Books in the United States and Peepal Tree in the UK. The collection received the 2022 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award in Poetry, which recognizes exceptional poetry, fiction, and nonfiction by Black writers.
When crafting her projects, McCallum said she “writes for [herself], but inside of that tradition of the art.” McCallum recognizes that she’s “working within a long-standing discipline” that allows her to express emotions and thoughts.
Creative Writing Director and Faculty Advisor for the Creative Writing Club, Julia Kasdorf, shared similar sentiments. Although “there are always way more rejections than acceptances,” Kasdorf said writers learn how to keep on writing and “feel good about how many poems you have ‘out’ under consideration in the world.”
Kasdorf released her fifth collection of poetry, As Is, with the 2023 Pitt Poetry Series. She said this book differed from her previous publications because fewer edits and drafts were required.
“What makes this collection different from earlier ones is that the editors didn’t ask me to change anything,” Kasdorf explained. “So, this one really does feel like it’s ‘as is.’”
Kasdorf emphasized that “every author desires a reader, and vice versa.” Writers need to find a way to bridge that gap through publishing, forming a community between themselves and those interested in their work.
“There has never been a better time to be a writer by any measure: more opportunities to publish, more grants, awards, and other funding opportunities, more communities of writers,” Kasdorf said. “And all the skills you need to become a successful writer—imagination, problem solving, diplomacy, fearless revision and change of direction, community building—are needed in many jobs, and certainly are essential to a good life.”
Through workshops, courses, and support offered by Penn State’s Creative Writing program, many students and faculty find outlets for their writing projects and support on their publication journeys. To learn more about the Creative Writing Department at Penn State, check out their website or follow them on Facebook.