from English Department Communications Coordinator Ashley Alfirevic

Back when we were both on the Greyrock Review, Taylor served as our group’s fearless leader, tackling everything from editing to formatting. Now, she’s working on some pretty cool stuff and stopped to chat with us about Eddy, NYC, and NBC.

Taylor Heussner
English, Creative Writing Major

What do you like most about your major?

I like how we are taught how to critically think. It’s a valuable technique inside and outside of education. Depending on the courses you choose, you can learn information that is usually found in certain majors only. It’s a melting pot of subjects.

How do you spend most of your time in Eddy Hall?

Printing my endless amounts of papers and articles I have to read. Also, using the gender-neutral bathroom because that’s awesome.

Do you have a favorite moment in Eddy Hall?

When I turned in my graduation qualifications! Also, when everyone moved back into Eddy Hall – I work at Resources for Disabled Students and when they were in Ingersoll Hall, well, that’s a long walk to deliver a test.

Do you have a favorite English class or teacher?

I really enjoyed Advanced Poetry with Camille Dungy because she gave me constructive and beneficial advice; I felt like I grew as a poet.

I also liked Environmental Writing with John Calderazzo because he is a great storyteller and the topics are pretty relevant subjects right now, and I liked how he mixed science with literature and writing. I think our schools need more inclusiveness like that.

Right now, I am taking the Empathy Capstone with Lisa Langstraat and I find it interesting to be studying emotion critically – maybe this is how psychology majors feel, but with less memorization and more essays.

What did you enjoy about your internship with the Greyrock Review?

I enjoyed reading other people’s work because I was able to discover a lot of hidden talent. It was also nice to work with deadlines to reach an end product. Our team liked to have fun, and when you like your tasks and meetings together, it’s easy to manage stress.

Have you had any cool or interesting internship experiences?

Summer 2015, I interned at USA Network, NBCUniversal in New York City as a production marketing intern. I fell in love with the smelly city and I loved working with video and media every day. To have the ability to work closely with Creative Directors and Producers is something I’ll never forget. I made a lot of valuable relationships, and I don’t have the horror intern stories that some people get on their first “real life” job.

Currently, I am interning for 303 Magazine in their music section, so I get to attend concerts and review them, as well as conduct interviews with artists and write up anything I feel like writing. It’s a cool gig.

I also intern at F and W Media as a marketing intern where I copy-write and update their website. I like the experience of marketing, especially since I am not a business major, and it’s fun that I get to dip into other fields – don’t be scared when people ask you what you’re going to do with your degree!

What’s your favorite book, poem, quote, lyric, or genre?

I really hate this question because once people know you’re an English major, this is the first question they will ask you. It’s like asking a parent which child they love the most. Sometimes I’ll get anxiety depending on the person who’ll ask. But, I guess The Reader by Bernhard Schlink because I read it in middle school, and if you’ve read the book, you’ll know the adult themes, and it was classic and unlike anything I had read. “There’s no need to talk about it, because the truth of what one says lies in what one does,” is a quote I admire from the novel.

If you were to give advice to incoming CSU English majors, what would it be?

Value your major because language and communication is very important, especially post-grad.

Clean up your life and get rid of your filler words. They are not needed and you’re not fooling anyone with word count.

What’s your biggest goal/priority right now?

To get through my last semester without slacking off.  Finding a job would be a bonus.