.Vignettes of Home
My writing career started years ago with a bedtime story. My dad would tuck me in nightly, despite my complaints, and get me to sleep with a variety of stories set in fairytale land, all stories from his own imagination. In these stories I’d have to close my eyes and picture myself “flying past Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and many stars. Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and suddenly you land on soft ground.” That’s the beginning of each of his stories. My dad thought, at the time, that he was coaxing his daughter to sleep, but in actuality he was developing a love for the craft of storytelling and helping me find my own voice.
By the time I learned to read, I was already plunking away at my mom’s old desktop in a plush leather chair, my legs not yet touching the ground. My mom would joke, “She’s our little author” to any guest that I would subject to my writing. It is her, the little girl I still see in my mind’s eye typing away at a computer and writing stories about blueberries and witches, that I think of whenever I doubt myself. It is easy to write something bad, much easier than it is to write something good, but I picture my younger self with bright eyes and a lack of care for the quality of work, only caring about telling the story and loving every minute of it. I’ve always been a writer.
When looking for a job on campus, I found one that seemed to be too good to be true. Student Life Marketing was looking for someone to write articles for them and despite being a finance major and being wrapped up in the world of currency conversions and balance sheets, staring at the job application link I felt like I was being called home.
I took a risk with my application. When asked for a writing sample, rather than turn in some old essay I’d written on a book I didn’t care about, I turned in two creative writing short stories. It was silly – two horror stories didn’t necessarily qualify me for writing articles about student organizations, but I was hoping that it would reveal something further- that it would show off my inspiration that I drew for the world around me and how I had the tendency to convert regular every-day-events into chances to express my creativity.
Matt Vader, writer for Student Life Marketing and my supervisor, laughed in the interview and said something that has stuck with me ever since: “I could tell you’re from the Midwest after I read your stories.”
It took some reflection to understand what that meant, but after going through my writing I realized something fundamental about myself: my writing is a reflection of my identity and is a love letter to my surroundings. 
Whether it be stranded, surrounded by cornfields face-to-face with some strange monster in a horror short story or through the eyes of a club founder who raised funds for those struggling with food insecurity in a student organization feature, every piece of writing contains a deep and unshakable appreciation for my slice of the world that I have the privilege of existing in.
I grew up in Noblesville, Indiana. I was raised going to the Indiana State Fair in the summers and the Covered Bridge Festival in the fall. I have a particularly fond memory of my grandfather bringing me an entire stalk of corn and explaining how each of the silk strings at the head of the stalk connected to a juicy kernel hidden under vibrant green leaves. My childhood was filled with Midwestern, Hoosier charm, and in the background of this always stood Purdue. My first song that I learned when I was little was the Boilermaker fight song and I have handfuls of memories being decked out in Purdue merchandise, attending basketball games and drinking soda out of novelty Purdue cups.
Indiana had been home to me and as I grew older Purdue started to look more and more like a piece of my heart. I wore the Boilermaker label with pride. It only seemed natural for me to accept the challenge when given the opportunity to use my gifts as a writer to write for Purdue and show off the Boilermaker spirit. It didn’t feel like clocking into a job, it felt like capturing vignettes of my admiration for the Purdue spirit and college experience.
With every article I’d write, I did my best to recognize the feats of Purdue students and to show them that their work did not go unnoticed. I wanted each article to emphasize that each incredible student and organization was a piece to the puzzle of the greatness of our community and how lucky we are to be given the opportunity to be here, now. With Matt’s guidance, my writing skills sharpened, and with every article I grew my confidence and honed my communication. The art of it mattered to me, of course, but the lasting impact it had mattered more. The idea of a student being able to take one of my articles home and say “Look what I’ve done!” made my work feel important. The idea that I helped someone see a reflection of their accomplishments and be proud of themselves filled me with pride.
The ability to connect across so many different facets of campus, learning more every day about what it means to be a Boilermaker never failed to fill me with awe. In my time as a writing intern, I spoke with environmentalists who taught me of the importance of the small but mighty honeybee, future doctors who would shape the future of medicine, racecar drivers who built the cars the raced and so many more fantastic and inspiring people who entrusted me with the story of their passions.
The mentorship I experienced working as a writer was unmatched and the encouragement and faith that was extended to me made me feel truly at home. I love the work. I love the people. I love writing. I love Purdue. When I think to all of my accomplishments and contributions on campus, it is with teary eyes and a smile on my face that I reflect on my dearest: my time as a writing intern.
Hannah Williamson has served as a writing and communications intern for Student Life Marketing since January of 2023. In her role, she has written numerous articles featuring the experiences and accomplishments of student organizations on the West Lafayette and Indianapolis Purdue campuses. She was named the recipient of two gold Marcom awards for her articles and received the honor of being named Student Life Student Employee of the Year Award. During her time at Purdue, she has been involved in Alpha Kappa Psi Business Fraternity, Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Larsen Leaders Academy, Student Life Advisory Board, Old Masters, Aquatics and Exotics Club of Purdue, Financial Planners Association Student Chapter of Purdue and The Data Mine. Hannah has presented on her involvements to leadership to provide input on the student experience at Purdue.
About Student Life Marketing
Student Life Marketing provides marketing and communication services for Student Life departments and units. We focus on crafting student-centered communications showcasing on Student Life’s impact on the Purdue campus experience. We strive to create smart, honest and intentional work from a team with diverse points of view, knowledge, and skills, while acting as a learning laboratory for student intern staff.