Alice Cattell, George Appleton and Emily Burrell
Sadly, the time has come for three of our editors, Alice (Joint Editor-in-Chief), George (Treasurer/Sub Editor) and Emily (Arts and Culture Sub Editor), to leave The Quack. Before they left, we thought it would be great to have a final interview with the three of them to gather their thoughts on their time as editors – this is what they had to say.
Why did you join The Quack?
Alice: I joined the Quack because I wanted to write again, having written for many websites when I was a bit younger and having run my own journalistic style website before.
George: I joined The Quack firstly for some more editing and writing experience. I have just finished my final year in my Creative Writing degree but am not 100% sure of what I want to do next, so I want to try and get some experience in a bit of everything. Joining The Quack has let me experience some of what it’s like to work on an online publication and I hope I can some day use the skills I’ve learnt in whatever I end up doing. I also joined simply because I enjoy writing and editing and wanted to do something different outside my course.
Emily: I joined The Quack as I have always been a keen writer, but I had never worked or been a part of a collaborative project. I was excited to be a part of a society in which everyone could share their ideas and work together to create something wonderful. I think we have achieved that this year.
What have you learnt from being an editor at The Quack?
Alice: Being an editor has taught me a lot more patience when it comes to web design. In the early days, we had a lot of issues getting the site up and running, and in truth, things were a little bleak on my end, but eventually we managed to pull through and get it running. In addition, I’ve learnt writing can be a lot more of a collaborative thing than what I’d experienced prior.
George: I think being an editor for The Quack has really helped improve my own writing as well as help develop my editing skills outside of my course. I also think that as an editor I have learnt you need to be impartial when looking at people’s work – whether they are your friends or complete strangers- in order to get the best work possible.
Emily: Publishing your first piece of writing is nerve wracking but completely worth it. No one, other than a few of my friends, had really read anything I had ever written. The idea of more people reading it was frightening but overall very rewarding. From an editor’s perspective, trying to organise writers and weekly article runs was a new challenge. However, with the help of all the other editors we quickly got into a routine. We started The Quack from scratch this year, so seeing readers respond and students being excited to get involved created a great sense of achievement.
What is your favourite moment from your time at The Quack?
Alice: My favourite moment over this past year has to be when we got the website running and working. Hard work and determination finally paying off as we uploaded pieces to the website for viewing. No other moment trumps that.
George: Setting up the website and then being able to see the finished product. It was kind of gratifying to see something we’d all worked on in it’s finished form and then have people actually submit work- it felt like we’d all created something really successful.
Emily: I have two favourite moments from The Quack. The first is the day we finally got the newspaper up and running. We had been working for several months to figure out the design, layout and all the other behind the scenes intricacies. The day we finally had functioning newspaper designed the way we wanted was incredible. The second is our collaborative piece for Black Lives Matter. The article was written by our editors and readers working together. It was constructed and executed quickly despite our added hurdle of lockdown. The article truly feels like a work made by a community of people.
What are you planning to do after university?
Alice: As for what I’m doing next? I’ll be starting my second year in October and plan to put a lot more time into my studies, hence having to make this decision. Maybe I’ll write the odd piece for the website if I get nostalgic, time will have to tell. All good things must come to an end, and sadly this is the end of myself writing for The Quack. It’s been fun but this year I stretched myself too far, so have made the decision to step down going into my second year at Edge Hill. It’s been a lot of fun, both setting up the website but also meeting with the rest of the team to try and get things working. The Quack is being left in very safe hands with Daisy taking full editor-in-chief responsibilities.
George: In all honesty I have no idea, which is kind of terrifying. I was initially planning to do an MA but have since decided not to, so I will probably try to look for a job somewhere – hopefully to do with writing but who knows?
Emily: My plans were to go travelling straight after graduation. Clearly this is not possible at the moment. I am just going to try and find a job until borders open again.
Although it’s sad to see Alice, George and Emily leave us, we wish them the best of luck in their adventures outside of The Quack and are grateful for all the work they have done for us this past year. It’s been great working with you all!
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