New Ink

This year we’re going to do things differently.” Spoken by every new leader, every new editor, since time immemorial. This year, however, student-editors really did do things differently. Enter the revamped Dickinson Review, edited by English majors Allison Charles ’14 and Colin Tripp ’14 of the Belles Lettres Society (founded in 1786), and the brand-spanking-new Dickinson Science Magazine (DSM), co-founded by longtime Dickinsonian editors and contributors who also happen to love all things science.

DSM Editor-in-Chief Gloria Hwang ’16 (biochemistry & molecular biology) got the idea of creating a full-color glossy science magazine after taking a science-writing class with Mary “Missy” Niblock, assistant professor of biology. Michaela Shaw ’16 (international business & management) and Lydia Marks ’14 (neuroscience) soon joined as executive layout editor and managing editor, respectively. From a feature on the Joseph Priestley Award and student-faculty research updates to an ode to the sci-fi cult classic Blade Runner and Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sarah St. Angelo’s deconstruction of the famous bathtub scene in Breaking Bad, the magazine’s first issue demonstrated the wide-ranging interests of its editors. “I wanted the magazine to be as inclusive as possible,” said Hwang at the April launch party. “It’s received tremendous support, with 32 students and two faculty on staff, all of whom have inspired me.”

Dickinson Review’s metamorphosis began with guest editor Nicola Mason of the Cincinnati Review, who helped guide the redesign process. Tripp and Charles also reached out to faculty and staff, as well as student groups like eXiled and the Arts Collective. In addition to a clean, modern layout for poetry and short stories, the Review includes a full-color center folio of visual art submitted by students.

“It’s all student-run, student-generated, so it’s great for skill-building for future work,” said Assistant Professor of English Siobhan Phillips, one of the Review’s advisors. “Putting together a journal and thinking about selection, content, layout, the feel of the whole thing—these are interesting and important elements that can lay the groundwork for future writing and publishing endeavors.”

Dickinson Review is available for purchase in the College Bookstore (Dickinson.collegestoreonline.com), and you can view the Dickinson Science Magazine on issuu.com/dickinsonsciencemagazine.

Read more from the summer 2014 issue of Dickinson Magazine.

Published July 22, 2014