I recently took a trip to Penn State Berks for a Journalism convention. I went to this convention representing Malvern’s yearbook, I got the chance to compete in a Yearbook writing competition.
For the competition, I was tasked with making a write-up for a fictional girls soccer team who won their championship game. I competed against several students from other schools, and we were given fifty minutes to create a 250 to 300-word season summary. This was a unique challenge, and it really tested my writing skills. Normally when I do write-ups I have the chance to stop working on something and come back to edit it with a fresh perspective, but in the contest I had to quickly create and creative way to describe the season and make sure what I was writing was engaging.
When I wasn’t competing, I had the chance to listen to several speakers about writing and journalism. The first speaker talked about her career as a writer, and the career path she took. This talk was very interesting because it showed us how someone who aspires to be a writer creates their career, and what obstacles and opportunities they have. The second speaker I attended spoke about free speech and problems that people in the profession of writing may face. This talk was very interesting because it showed me what obstacles I may face in the future while writing.
Overall this day was very fun and insightful. I learned a ton about writing and the lives of professional writers. This experience made me glad I joined the Malvern yearbook, and it made me more likely to recommend it to new Malvern students.
-Stephen Fratamico
The Friar's Lantern Trips 