On Being a Kenyon Review Associate
I'm taking a break from my usual musings about Exeter because, to be honest, not much is happening. I'm turning in essays left and write (get it?) (just kidding that was a mistake a legitimately made but I'm keeping it) and seemingly always leaving my flat when it starts to rain. So I thought I'd turn to something else that's been on my mind recently: my position as an associate at The Kenyon Review.
It was this article that got me thinking about it again. I'm in my second year as an associate so it's sort of just become a part of my routine, but this article reminded me that, hey, this is cool, and hey, I should tell people about it. Hey.
So first off, what is an associate? Good question. Thanks for asking. You're doing great. An associate position at the Kenyon Review is something that any student can apply for, and it essentially involves reading the submissions for the literary magazine and deciding whether or not to pass them on to an editor. There are other aspects as well, like attending meetings, volunteering at events, and doing what I'm doing, which is working as an RA over the summer for The Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshop (which is something I also attended when I was younger).
There'll be more on that when the time comes, but for now, I use this opportunity as a chance to get a taste of the literary and publishing world. Other than providing me with invaluable experience, the associate program also brings in speakers, from authors to people in the corporate world, to talk to us about publishing and the future of books. It's one of the reasons that working in publicity or social media for a publishing house is just one option in my long list of Things I Could Do After Kenyon (it's scary, let's not talk about it).
If you're at all interested in the literary community, this is definitely something that is unique and special to Kenyon that should be checked out. Not many people can say they've graduated with publishing experience, but the associate program provides just that, as well as, sometimes, bagels.