By Claire Neiberg, English Major / D.U. Quark Intern
I write a lot, which is fine because it’s what I love to do. However taking five writing-heavy classes that require me to write in different genres can be overwhelming.
Alongside this internship, I am taking Brit. Lit. I, Poetry Workshop II, Constitutional Law, and Philosophy of Law. Given that it was just midterm week, in the last several weeks I have had to write in a variety of styles, which is a difficult transition. An elegy for Poetry Workshop is drastically different than a hypothetical court opinion and trying to shift from a philosophical position paper to an essay depicting clothing in the Canterbury Tales feels like my car is in reverse.
However, my internship (this year and last year) has helped my writing process immensely because it gives me a creative outlet but does not push me as far as a true creative writing piece. One of my greatest challenges this semester is quickly having to shift gears from one style of writing to another and having more legal writing assignments on my plate has hindered my creativity, but the writing I do for this internship helps me to feel balanced.
This internship was one of the first exposures to nonfiction and professional writing I have had in a classroom setting, and my process has evolved as a consequence. Having to write blog posts and social media posts have allowed me to develop a tone that is conversational yet professional.
This style of writing has helped me with the many discussion board posts I’ve had to write (thanks, COVID) but also helped when crafting my Personal Statement and “Why Duquesne Law” Essay. As I stated in the beginning, I do love writing, and it is something I am truly passionate about. However, all writer’s suffer from writer’s block, but I am pleased to say that the writing I get to do for this internship has helped me to keep things moving forward as the semester continues.
Building Bridges 