Along with pumpkin carving and costume hunting, students can get into the Halloween spirit this October by breaking out their pencils and paper.
Just Write, a creative writing club at ASU's Tempe campus, is hosting a Halloween-themed workshop on Oct. 15. The two-hour event, which will be located in the Memorial Union’s Gold Room, will give students a chance to share their writing and receive critiques from fellow students.
Read more: Why does ASU love Halloween so much?
Jack Smith, Just Write’s president and a sophomore majoring in accounting, said other spooky activities will follow the workshop portion, including reading the workshopped stories with flashlights in the dark.
Smith said all writing is welcomed, but he encourages students to bring scary stories for the event.
“For October, we're pushing people to write more scary things,” Smith said. “But we still accept work in any genre or any form. We have poets, we have people into fiction and we even have a few people into screenplays. Whatever people like to write, we're going to encourage.”
Danielle Patterson, the club vice president and a sophomore majoring in psychology, said students are encouraged to have writing prepared ahead of time.
“It sounds obvious, but to have a creative writing workshop some people need to bring their work so we can discuss it,” Patterson said. “A lot of new members don’t know that we would actually like them to bring their writing.”
However, Smith said it’s ok if new members do not have writing prepared. He said that if they are interested, they should still go to see what the meetings are like.
“Even if you haven't written something you're encouraged to come to get experience with reading somebody else's writing," Smith said. "You can see what they're doing right, what they're doing wrong and you can apply it to your own.”
“Having a theme like Halloween makes it easier to actually start writing. It gives you a topic to work with, and once you start you can become more confident in your abilities,” said Chris Hines, Just Write’s secretary and a sophomore studying mechanical engineering.
Hines said the club offers students various resources to practice and become better writers.
“We have a couple of different files in our Google Drive that we share with every member,” Hines said. “They really teach students how to just get started. We have templates for character creation, world creation and other key areas of writing.”
Hines said the most helpful aspect of the club is the community it creates.
“Being in Just Write, you always have people to bounce ideas off of,” Hines said. “We love to talk with each other and share tips and tricks.”
Smith said students don’t need to be experienced writers to attend the workshop or any other meetings put on by Just Write.
“It doesn't matter what your skill level is in writing,” Smith said. “Whether you're just starting or you’re the next best-selling author, we want to see you.”
Reach the reporter at jkbeneve@asu.edu and follow @JacobBenevento on Twitter.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
