By Lily Papendick
On Tuesday, Nov. 11, the Creative Writing Department hosted the second senior reading of the semester in the Lore Degenstein Gallery.
This event featured six graduating creative writing students, giving each of them the opportunity to share the work they have produced over the course of their time in the Creative Writing program.
Professor Monica Prince, who specializes in poetry and works closely with each of the students prior to their reading, gave the opening remarks, thanking both the arts and gallery interns for their time in preparing for the event. She then passed the night off to Professors Dr. Catherine Dent and Dr. Apoorva Bradshaw-Mittal, who took turns in introducing each student.
The first reading came from Kaed Willis. A creative writing and secondary education double major, Dr. Dent described Willis as being passionate in both writing and literature: the exact young teacher needed in today’s classrooms. His first piece, “Hurricane,” from which Willis read three different excerpts, centered around an elderly woman’s journey coping with her husband’s terminal cancer while in the midst of a tornado. Raising the question of what you are supposed to feel when you know someone you love is going to die, “Hurricane” was an emotionally complex piece that led the audience through this couple’s marriage until the very end. Willis’s second piece, a poem titled “Chosen,” was a beautiful ode to his mother and a testimony to the role our parents play in each of our lives. Willis advised future writers to “write anything that interests them, whether real or not…write what you can, and bring your vision to life.”
Kaeli Waldstein performed the second reading of the night. A music major with a minor in creative writing, Waldstein’s two loves intersected in a few excerpts from their memoir, “Five to One: A Memoir of Authentic Cadence.” Humorous yet genuine, Waldstein detailed their fluctuating journey through the music world and what led them to pursue chorale music education as a career, focusing on a key mentor from their past that had significant influence on them and swayed them to want to “create an environment in [their] classroom that fosters passion, comforts with compassion, and radiates positive energy.” Waldstein’s advice: “keep going no matter who or what tries to tell you otherwise.”
Described by Dr. Glen Retief as being “as hardworking as she is creatively gifted,” Haley Seitz continued the night with excerpts from two short stories. A double major in creative writing and publishing & editing with a minor in film, Seitz’s pieces were witty yet sincere as she dissected the relationship between two characters suddenly stuck at sea, and the consequences of a man who decided it would be good to eat a star. With great tonal shifts and an exceptional way of fluidly transitioning between scenes, Seitz captivated the audience with her fiction. She advised young writers to “write what you love, and write often.”
The fourth reading of the night came from Olive Lambert, a Creative Writing major with three minors in psychology, English, and honors. Entirely dedicated to their literary pursuits, they have been the recipient of the Juliet Gibson award twice in a row, published by the 2023 and 2024 small press classes, and are currently working on a novel with Dr. Gary Fincke, to name just a few accomplishments. Following two dictionary-style poems, Lambert read an excerpt from their short story “When the Sky Glows, Don’t Panic,” which threaded elements of the supernatural within the mundane setting of a gas station, all while written in the second person point of view. A passionate performer and a poignant writer, Lambert’s work enthralled the audience and left them hungry for more, with everyone curious as to what they will accomplish next.
Alex Vidal Pérez, a Creative Writing major with minors in publishing & editing and Spanish studies, performed the fifth reading of the night with three poems and a flash nonfiction piece. Described by Dr. Karla Kelsey as a “philosophical poet who is not afraid to grapple with some of the most difficult problems of being human,” Pérez’s work did not disappoint. Discussing the harsh difficulties of getting older, the raw reality of racism in our society, and the significance of advocating for your rights, his words filled the room with their truth and demanded you to listen, a symptom of some of the best writing. His poem “On This Day” was particularly engaging as he combined repetition with performance to create a unique poem where each line seemed to bleed into the next. Pérez’s advice to us all: “You are a human before you are a writer, and it’s important to never forget that.”
The night’s final reading came from Jake Kolasa, whose “sense of humor tempers and balances his empathetic…portrayal of the human condition,” as per Dr. Dent’s description. A creative writing major with a minor in Spanish studies, Kolasa’s passions include fiction, playwriting, and directing, as he recently wrote and directed Richard Green is Completely Rotten alongside senior Ella Baker. Kolasa’s chosen piece of the night, a short story titled “The Cat’s Ass,” was a humorous, riveting, and sometimes disturbing salad tossed up and served on a silver platter. Chronicling the events of the Partridge parents after they unfortunately realize their seven-year-old son Willie has stolen his father’s power drill for the afternoon, “The Cat’s Ass” pivoted on every page, keeping the audience entirely on their toes. Kolasa advised young writers to “read everything with an open mind” and “to not be afraid to explore any topic within your writing.”
Each piece read during this event was excellent, and we wish a huge congratulations to the six graduating seniors! The next senior reading will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 2, in the Lore Degenstein Gallery. Hope to see you there!