Volunteer with the Lyre

As a well-read student who has volunteered in many capacities on and off campus, I’m often asked what practical skills I’ve gained by studying literature and how I’ve expanded these skills in a practical manner. I can narrow down the skills I’ve gained to five main areas: communication skills, writing skills, researching skills, critical thinking skills and empathy. Spending years using works of fiction, poetry and drama has taught me to how to present a thesis coherently, craft a compelling argument, debate and defend my point of view logically, analyze an issue by questioning assumptions and also cognitively empathize with others.

So how was I able to apply and grow these skills practically in a way that looked good on my resume and helped me meet new people? I discovered the Lyre, a magazine created by World Literature students at Simon Fraser University that aims to publish the talents of creative undergraduate students at SFU and other universities, regardless of what academic discipline they belong to. The publication is available to students around the world with both an extended online version and a hard copy available for pick up from all SFU libraries, from the SFU Surrey campus in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences lounge.

Students are able to volunteer with the Lyre Magazine as editors, who work in the primary stages of each issue to promote the magazine and help advertise the call for submissions as well sharing their own ideas of what theme, color and layout the magazine should have. The secondary stage for editors is to edit the different works that have been submitted. This is done on their own time and they must meet the appropriate deadline for their edits to be in to the Managing Editor and Editor-in-Chief. After this stage editors have completed their commitment unless the Managing Editor or Editor-in-Chief requires further assistance. Students who volunteer as an editor can also continue as editors for future issues of the Lyre or be able to move up to the positions of Publisher, Managing Editor, or Editor-in-Chief. My past experience volunteering with Lyre Magazine has given me an even better understanding of how to edit work and I feel even more confident in my skillset at work and in my other volunteering capacities, like as an Engagement Peer Educator or as the current President of the World Literature Student Union.

Another way to engage with the magazine creatively is to submit your own work to the magazine for potential publication. The fifth issue of the Lyre is currently under works and you can submit fiction, poetry, essays, travelogues, reviews, interviews or dramas. Visual artwork is also accepted and can be entered into the Cover Art competition. The deadline for submitting work and visual pieces to the contest is Jan 31^st 2014 and details about submitting are available here.

For more information, don’t hesitate to email lyre.editor@gmail.com. Good luck and don’t hesitate to tweet me questions!