Melissa Reflects on Post-Grad Internship at LEI
In the spring of 2013, as my graduation from college loomed closer, about to swallow me like an ominous, all-consuming shadow, I kept tweaking my resume, writing dozens of cover letters, and filling out pages of job applications, sending them into the vast black hole of the internet in the hopes of finding a steady, full-time job, which has proven to be as mystical and elusive as a unicorn. Graduation came and went, and I continued spending hours in front of my computer, sending resume materials into space, trying to figure out what I could possibly do for the rest of my life with a retail background and a creative writing degree. Like most twenty-somethings, I am still trying to solve the tangled puzzle of my future, but Lake Erie Ink has taught me that you don’t always have to have everything figured out, and you certainly don’t have to box yourself into a traditional cubicle from 9-5 every day.
Last September, four months after leaving school, I received an email from an old professor about internship opportunities with Lake Erie Ink. During my time at Hiram College, I had heard about the organization and its work with Cleveland youth, and I had almost contacted them earlier about internships. In the midst of another day filled with job postings and cover letters, I decided to reach out to Amy in the hopes of getting some experience that might make a potential employer at least read halfway down my resume without hitting the delete button. Just a few days after our initial conversation, I visited Lake Erie Ink’s space and discussed my goals with Amy. I had been keeping my options open for a job in marketing, and fell in love with the idea of helping to promote an organization that helps kids express themselves through writing, something that I have always been passionate about.
Fast forward a few months, and I was creating newsletters, writing articles about Lake Erie Ink’s programs for The Heights Observer, and distributing press releases for the organization’s upcoming events. I had also landed an editorial assistant position with another local newspaper, The Spirit of Bainbridge, and was contributing monthly articles there, as well. Amy even talked me into helping with writing workshops at St. Rocco’s School, where I had the opportunity to meet some of the kids that Lake Erie Ink works with. I had never wanted to teach—I never thought I was outgoing or patient enough to work with kids. But through the program at St. Rocco’s, I was able to directly help students begin writing and improve their drafts, and it felt great to be able to share my passion for creative writing with kids who might one day follow in my footsteps and pursue a career in writing.
In my last few months at Lake Erie Ink, I helped organize the second Teen Fiction Symposium and had the opportunity to meet local writers, who shared their own stories of setbacks and success. The event gave new energy to my dream of becoming a published author, and was one of my favorite experiences with Lake Erie Ink.
As I continue looking toward my future, that dark shadow has begun to dissipate. In addition to my work with The Spirit of Bainbridge, I have also been awarded my own Solon community column on Cleveland.com and in the Chagrin Solon Sun newspaper, as I have accepted a position as a freelance writer for the Sun News with Northeast Ohio Media Group. I still don’t have that full-time job that I’ve been so desperately hunting for, but it will come. And so will my first published novel. My internship with Lake Erie Ink has shown me that not everyone has to work that 9-5 job in an office with photographs of their two, beautiful children on their desk. Amy and Cynthia don’t. They cut their own path, establishing their own organization and giving kids a place to express themselves, to let their voices be heard in a world that might not always listen. They have inspired me to keep tinkering with my writing, to keep searching for any opportunity that will allow me to use my passion to help others—even if it’s not that full-time, steady job that I’ve been hunting for.