This is the second article exploring the Inkwell project and how students, faculty, and alumni can benefit from its influence on Evergreen’s writing culture. The first article of this series introduced the history of Inkwell at Evergreen.

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The editorial board (from left to right: Matt Turner ’15, Nicole Christian ’14, and Mary Kallem ’14) working with writer Katelyn Peters ’14.

The Inkwell process begins each fall. Over the course of the school year and countless hours of meetings, Inkwell’s editors and writers—the student tutors at the Writing Center—hone their skills, developing articles from still-forming ideas into the finished versions that appear on paper.

In this interview, Publications Editor Thane Fay ’13 sat down with Inkwell editorial board members Mary Kallem ’14 and Matt Turner ’15 to discuss their experience with the project.

“Inkwell [is] a process that I immediately identified as something that would enrich my experience not only as a student, writer, and tutor, but as a human who values collaborative engagement.” – Matt Turner

Inkwell is a publication born out of Evergreen and the Writing Center’s unique approaches to collaborative learning, student empowerment, and linking theory to practice. The in-depth cooperation between Inkwell’s writers and editors reflects the Writing Center’s value that all writers, no matter their skill level, can benefit from supportive and comprehensive guidance from their peers. With articles centered around the experiences of student writers, Inkwell serves as a fulcrum for conversations about writing at Evergreen.

“Unlike other publications, I don’t think Inkwell’s ‘final result’ is the published artifact that sits on my shelf. The ‘results’ I’m in it for are the benefits the Evergreen community gets from reading it: the circulation of grassroots knowledge gleaned from working with students.” – Mary Kallem

Keep your eyes out for Inkwell 9, coming soon in Fall of 2014. You can read digital copies of past editions of Inkwell on the Writing Center’s website, or find physical copies in the Evergreen Archives.

Read the full interview here.

Cover of the first Inkwell, 2006.

Editor’s Note: The Writing Center, located in the Library building just off Red Square, is the creative home of Inkwell, A Student Guide to Writing at Evergreen. In this interview, Writing Center publications editor Thane Fay, ’13 talks with Inkwell co-founders Shaun Johnson, ’07 and Victoria Larkin, ’07 about the history of this student publication. 

This is the first of a series exploring the Inkwell project and how students, faculty, and alumni can benefit from its influence on Evergreen’s writing culture. 

Inkwell cover 2012

Inkwell is written, edited, and designed entirely by Writing Center peer tutors, students dedicated to helping others find their voices through the writing process. Each year, authors discuss writing specific to Evergreen—such as seminar papers, evaluations, and academic statements—as well as exploring themes like developing a writing process, finding your voice as a student writer, and learning tools for academic and creative writing. With its emphasis on cultivating student voices and creating a culture of student empowerment in academics, Inkwell inspires student writers to think about how they write and invites them to become part of the Writing Center community

Inkwell cover 2008

Inkwell co-founder Shaun Johnson, ’07 reflected that “Evergreen puts incredible emphasis on writing in curriculums across disciplines, so it seemed especially appropriate to draw a map for students to navigate.” Inkwell was created to be this kind of map.

The Writing Center distributes over a thousand free copies of Inkwell annually, both on campus and to the wider community. Inkwell co-founder Victoria Larkin ‘07 sees the publication as providing “a common ground, a jumping off place for conversations,” inspiring writers to “go into and beyond their preconceptions of the writing process, of writing in general, and of their own abilities.”

Learn more about The Writing Center. Read digital copies of past editions of Inkwell.

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