Meet The LOGOS Volume 13 Social Marketing Editor: Katie McWilliams
Hello fellow scholars, casual readers, and social media enthusiasts! My name is Katie McWilliams, and I am very excited to serve as the Social Marketing Editor for LOGOS Volume 13! This is my second year as a proud Missouri State bear (technically I’m a junior with credit hours). I was born and raised in the suburban area of Parkville, right next to the heart of Kansas City, Missouri (the Missouri side, not the Kansas side). If you’re on the Kansas side, though, please stop at Joe’s Kansas City barbecue and try their Z-Man and fries (you’ll thank me later). I am an aspiring poet in the English/Creative Writing program (with a distinction in the major) and a Spanish minor (I’m sort-of bilingual). I have always enjoyed making music as well, and I love playing in the MSU Symphony Orchestra as a second violinist. I am also involved in virtually everything around campus pertaining to Residence Life and Creative Writing. One day, you might see my bubbly self sharing my amazing MSU experiences to prospective students and families as a University Ambassador. The next day, you might see me reading my poetry at a Pagination Bookshop Open Mic Night (please check out Jen Murvin’s wonderful bookshop if you haven’t already!).
What do I want to do with my Creative Writing major, you might ask? My dream career is to be a writer or editor at Hallmark Cards. I absolutely love composing verses and creating cute designs for the handmade cards I send to my friends and family. I create cards for all occasions imaginable, whether it’s a whimsical Star Wars-themed birthday card (I love anything and everything Star Wars) or a pop-up teddy bear sympathy card for a friend that just lost a loved one. I’m also hoping that my Spanish minor will come in handy if I had the opportunity to work at Hallmark. My passions for Creative Writing and Spanish blended together beautifully when I wrote an original children’s book for a Spanish class, and I would love to work on similar projects in the future. I would also enjoy writing Spanish cards for Hallmark’s Vida line, which is exclusively for the Latin American community. DaySpring Cards (which is the Christian subsidiary of Hallmark) is another company that I’m thinking about applying for. I would love to write cards for a Christian audience, and I already use Bible verses in a lot of my own greeting cards. Regardless of where I might end up, it would be a dream for me to write cards that could go to millions of people all over the world. I’m currently applying for a summer Writing and Editorial Internship at Hallmark!
How did you hear about LOGOS?
As a senior in high school, I remember seeing LOGOS listed as one of the many perks of enrolling in the Honors College on a packet I received in the mail. What in the world does that stand for? I thought, not really motivated to research the mysterious acronym as the swarms of college mail continued to pile in. A few short months later, I was sitting in the PSU theater at my SOAR session. I was trying to keep my growling stomach quiet during yet another financial aid presentation. When I heard Shannon Wick (our former Managing Editor) talk eagerly about the LOGOS journal and how it was one of the first organizations she joined on campus, my dinner daydreams immediately faded away. That could be me! I thought to myself. I applied and was accepted as a Peer Reviewer the following September. Little did I know how much I would enjoy this role.
I had always loved writing (I would hope so because it’s a huge part of my major!), but LOGOS was one of my first sneak peeks into the amazing world of publishing. I found that I was just as much at home in the collaborative discussions with my small group of Peer Reviewers (led by my lovely Associate Editor, Cara Sibert) as the close-knit workshops in my creative writing classes. I am also an Associate Editor for LOGOS Volume 13, and I hope that I can help instill the same enthusiasm I have for the reviewing process and LOGOS as a whole into my Peer Reviewers.
What made you want to apply for this position?
I was actively searching for an internship experience that would help me stretch my creative abilities, and the Social Marketing Editor position sounded like the perfect fit. I get to use my knack for writing clever lines to help encourage students to submit (or get involved with) LOGOS. Staging Volume 12 of LOGOS at random places around campus has already been a ton of fun to work on! Writing blog posts that feature some of the outstanding research of faculty and students at Missouri State is also a huge part of the position, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to refine some of the skills I gained during high school as the journalism intern for the Park Hill School District Professional Studies program. I had some really cool opportunities to interview students and their project managers from industries that I knew very little about, from a local recording studio to the control tower at the Kansas City International Airport (which I actually got to go up in!).
What is your advice for submitting and/or applying to LOGOS?
My number one piece of advice if you’re thinking about submitting to LOGOS? Go for it! You’ve got nothing to lose! Pick a piece you’ve worked on that you’re passionate about. I would also suggest getting as much feedback as possible before you submit your work. If it doesn’t make it into the journal, don’t be discouraged! Read the feedback that the amazing Peer Reviewers at LOGOS leave for you. Work on making your piece (and the knowledge you have in your field) even better; that’s the best way to learn!
If you’re a member of the Honors College and would love to improve your own writing and collaborative skills (as well as get a pretty snazzy resume line), consider joining our team! We’re always looking for more Peer Reviewers. I can say from personal experience that becoming a Peer Reviewer definitely helped me improve my own writing (both academic and creative) as well as reevaluate how I provide feedback on the work from my own peers. Our Peer Reviewer applications will open again in mid-August, so you have plenty of time to think about it! If you’ve got some experience with LOGOS under your belt, take advantage of some of the other amazing leadership opportunities we offer. We’re currently looking for the Copy Editor (if making things look pretty and fixing grammar is your thing) and the Chief Editor (if you want to be one of the head organizers and recruiters). Okay, I’ll end my advertising campaign now, but please…apply, apply, apply!
Closing Thoughts
I can’t wait to see what this semester brings for LOGOS; it’s going to be another fantastic publishing season! I hope that I can help the Social Marketing Editor position grow in new ways this semester as well, and I’m eager to get started on some cool marketing campaigns (stay tuned). Oh, and if you ever need ideas for what to write in a greeting card, stop by the Honors College office. I’d be glad to offer you inspiration!