This hasn’t happened since before I became editor.

In fact, it hasn’t happened since before the editor before me became editor.

But I’m happy to announce that, once again, the Voice Magazine is hosting a writing contest.  If you haven’t seen the article about it already, go look now, as that has all the details, but the short version is we’re looking for your very best fiction, or your very best non-fiction on the topic of inclusivity, diversity, and equity at AU, and we’ll be giving out some decent size prizes to the best entries.

But even if you don’t get picked as a winner, you still could win, as publishable articles and stories may be reprinted in The Voice Magazine and we’ll pay for them like we do any other thing we publish.

Of course, you’ll need to be able to write a short, focussed piece, as the word limit is a hard 1,500 words (title and references not included) for either category.  And you’ll need to do it quickly as well, as the deadline is only a month away, on March 19th, 2021.  Judging will be by a panel of judges from the AU community that, frankly, know a lot more about writing than I do, and we’ll get more information about them at the close of the contest.

So, good luck, and happy writing!

But that’s not the only thing we’re revisiting.  As you already know, we’ve brought back course exams, and I’m happy to say that we’re also starting to bring back our music reviews.  I’ll be honest, our music reviews were not the most widely read of our articles, but I’ve always thought they’re a useful thing to have in The Voice Magazine, especially these days when there’s simply so much music coming out that, frankly, is pretty lousy.  If The Voice Magazine can help even one student dodge the stinkers and find the music that helps get them into “the zone” when studying, then I think we’ll have done a good thing.

And that’s not all there is, as we continue with our feature articles interviewing students like you.  This week, we’re talking to William Logan.  How has his ADHD affected his quest to become an advisor and counsellor to students or people in difficult struggles?  He opens up with us in this week’s “Mind We Meet”.

We also have the second instalment of Women in Fiction, this time taking on one of the leading anti-heroines of English literature, the Lady Macbeth.  Spoiler warnings, as always, though I have trouble picturing anybody who’s able to take a course at AU that hasn’t.

And Karen Lam has given us both the latest Course Exam and the start of a new column we’re calling “The Reading List”, where she gives us a rundown of what books an AU student would recommend to other AU students each month.

Plus, our usual assortment of events, scholarships, news, thought-provoking articles and more all await you in this week’s Voice Magazine.  Enjoy the read!