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Over the course of this school year, our staff created a whole new position for getting our name out and really advertising the launch of our books and the work that we do. Being the first social media editor, there was a lot to do, and so much to leave behind. I had the privilege of having junior social media editor Madison work under me and really help prepare the role of what social media is. During book launches, it consists of consistent and multiple posts throughout the week to help promote the work from all of you. Madison and I wanted to ensure that your voices would be heard farther than the boundaries of our school. We were really excited when we got our first outside submissions, because that meant we were doing something right. So to guarantee that more would come, we researched other magazines and studied their social media habits to see just how well they reached out to their writers and readers as well. In doing that, we created ways to stay involved and keep in contact with you as much as we could. Thus, Mondays and Fridays were dedicated to posts about our current book. We highlighted what we felt best represented the caliber of both art and writing that we publish. That way not only could we show our gratitude and appreciation of the talent that you have, but also spread the word. Without a doubt, this position was a time-consuming but rewarding job to have. I feel each and every staff position is crucial to the success of this publication, social media being the driving force to help find all of you. I am completely satisfied in the work that we have accomplished (although I know next year, it will run more smoothly,) and I hope you enjoy your new social media editor, Madison, as much as I did. The next chapter to Élan is in such incredible hands and I couldn’t be more confident in the way all of our future seniors will do. So thank you readers for making our jobs on this staff so incredibly rewarding and fulfilling. We could not produce the work that we do without you. I know this publication will thrive, and I am so happy to have been a part of it. -- Haley Hitzing, Social Media Editor

Welcome to Élan literary magazine.  This launch of our website is the beginning of what our staff hopes will be a home for aspiring young writers and artists. We are proud that what started out as an after school club in 1986 has grown to a publication that accepts submissions from national and international high school students. This year, as our inaugural dive into the digital world, we will publish two online magazines. A year-end print edition will highlight the best of all this work. Our staff selects all pieces for publication through three to four rounds of evaluation as part of a blind reading process. Writing submissions, which include fiction, non-fiction and poetry, are read by all staff members and art pieces are chosen by group discussion. We follow the National Council for Teachers of English guidelines for excellence in writing and look to seasoned professional writers and professors of English for our overall finalists in writing and art. The experience of creating our first digital magazine after years of print editions has deepened our identity as a publication run by young artists and writers for young artists and writers. As the world becomes involved in our endeavor, we strive to be on par with prestigious literary publications in offering artists new opportunities to share work. We are a dedicated staff under the direction of two passionate teachers, and we hope to make the staffs of years past proud. With that said, we continue the tradition of spontaneous, boundless love for art and literature, while adding a fresh edge that reflects the changing dynamics for youth around the world. This website is a place for creative thoughts to be published, but also a place for reflection and interpretation. It is our valued readers who keep such an imaginative book alive. With much gratitude, Jenn Carter and Emily Cramer, Editors-in-Chief

Fiction writing is…hard. For me, the longer the piece, the harder it is to produce words. Perhaps it’s a magical word count; you reach a certain amount of words and suddenly the pages seem too crowded. So crowded, in fact, that your mind refuses to crowd the poor pages any more. This past November (feeling inspired by the incredible fiction pieces we received in our Winter Submissions) I decided to participate in NANOWRIMO, National Novel Writing Month. Basically, you have a goal of a certain amount of words per day which by the end of November will hopefully have produced a full novel. It’s hard enough to keep your thoughts organized to reach that word count, but on top of school and work, it forces your brain into overtime. The progress I made was below satisfactory, I can assure you, and yet I feel somehow better about my writing as a whole. Shaping the characters, working through the plot, it has been a rough journey, but I’m closer to the words because of it. I have a few tips, though, for your long-term writing process: Don’t compare yourself to other famous writers. Jane Austen may be able to create a timeless masterpiece, but that doesn’t mean your characters should go around saying, “Oh, there is nothing more I love than to sit and enjoy the splendors of reading, Mr. Smith! I daresay a woman who does not enjoy reading has not fully exercised the true potential of her mind!” If you reach a block, just keep writing. Even if the words are nonsense, sometimes the subconscious powers your writing more than you know, and you just might get some material out of it. Sometimes it’s not about the end result. The point of NANOWRIMO was not to produce the next award winning novel – it’s about the experience. –Zoe DeWitt, Fiction Editor

I’m not the kind of girl who wonders why Katy Perry hasn’t been making new music. I’m not the kind of girl who cries herself to sleep with Lana Del Rey dripping in her ear like melting popsicles turned black and grey. I’m the type of girl who listens to the weird musicians, with the mellow voice and cocky attitude. The musicians who don’t care if they have fans or not. I’m the type of girl that listens to bands from the 90s and early ‘00s. Who listens to the musician that only posts music on sound cloud, and expects their fans to post concert videos on random YouTube pages. Ever since seventh grade, I’ve been obsessed with the album (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? by Oasis. Wonderwall is one of my favorite songs. I absorb the orchestral background like a washcloth absorbs sweat and grime. I bask in the off pitch voice of Liam Gallagher as he sings about some girl that he’s probably still in love with. His voice drifting in the prominence of the cellos, acoustic guitars, tambourines, and drums. Leaving me in a tranquil state that makes me smile, even when tears are fanned out on my cheek like a parachute. This is the album I listened to when I got a phone call saying that I was accepted into Douglas Anderson School of the Arts. The album I listened to when I had to stay up until 2:00 in the morning, because I had to finish a “group” project by myself, since no one finished the book we were assigned. The album I listened to before my dog was diagnosed with cancer. The album I listened to when she died. The album I listened to when I decided to tell a good friend of mine that I had a crush on him. The album I listened to when he told me he was dating a girl whose name wasn’t even her real name. The album I listened to after an old friend of mine walked by me, and neither one of us said hello. The album I listened to when I won an iPad for a poem I’m not proud of. The album I listened to when I wore eyeshadow for the first time. The album I listened to when my friend told me it looked bad. The album I listened to when my doctor told me I was done growing. The album I will listen to when I get accepted into one of the colleges I want to go to. The album I will listen to when I get my first car. The album I will listen to when I get married, then divorced, and decide that maybe I should wait a while before looking for another man. The album I will listen to when I retire and live in a beach house, even though I hate sand. As long as I listen to this album, I’m okay. -Christina Sumpter, Senior Creative Nonfiction Editor

We’re approaching the end of our first year as an online literary magazine. Did you submit? Were any of your pieces published? If so, congratulations! If you weren’t published, however, or if you received an email from one of our staff members asking for revisions and didn’t know how to go about that, then I might be able to help you out. Here’s a few revision techniques I’ve picked up from four years at Douglas Anderson: Poetry: Symbolism is your best friend. You never want to give your intent away, or in other words, be “too tell-y.” Instead, utilize devices such as extended metaphor and related imagery to communicate what you would like to say about your topic. Think of it this way: You wouldn’t tell your best friend that the pair of shoes or the shirt he/she picked out was in every way revolting, would you? Hopefully, you would show them another pair of shoes or shirt in an attempt to dissuade them from buying that crime against vision. Diction is your favorite aunt. Poetry is all about what specific words are used and where they are used. How you describe certain events, atmospheres, or even people says a lot about how you or your narrator feels about the topic of the poem and goes a long way in building an intent (what you want the reader to leave with after reading your poem [or story]). It’s similar to how aunts tell stories. Aunts always seem to have the best stories and usually they are the best because the way in which the aunt tells it is exciting or thrilling, depending on the type of story being told. Syntax is your parent. In my experience, not many writers are fond of utilizing structure and line breaks because it is so simple that in poetry it seems almost unnecessarily acknowledged. However, your line breaks can say a lot about the tone of your poem. For instance, choppy lines that break before the thought is finished (and usually at a grammatically incorrect spot) help to build tension. Don’t brush syntax and structure aside because, like a parent, it is often trying to guide you to the best possible outcome. Fiction: Characterization is key. Writing to communicate an intent is all about specifics. What did this character do? Why did he do it? How does he feel about that blue vase in the kitchen that was given to his mother by the character’s stepfather? Remember that you can characterize by what a character does, what a character says, what another character says about that character, and what the narrator says about that character. Perspective, perspective, perspective (and POV) A lot of times, a story that has met a road block can be freed with one question: Whose story is this? This is a huge huge concept for a writer to tackle. Ask yourself what you want the reader to know and how you want him/her to view your character. This is where you start playing with pairings. For example, a first person point of view from the perspective of one of the outlying characters (such as the narrator in The Great Gatsby) brings the reader in close to the action but still allows the writer to keep secrets from the reader until the time is right for a big reveal. Non-Fiction: It’s all about using techniques from poetry and fiction to make a true story more fun, creative, and relatable. Use poetic imagery to communicate how you feel and foreshadow possible events without having to spoon-feed the reader. Use fiction techniques such as dialogue and setting to bring the reader in close to the story. –Sarah Powell, Non-Fiction Editor

It pains me to think that some people finish their education and never read another book. Words have woven themselves so deeply into my life. If I stopped reading and writing I wouldn't be myself anymore. It would be like reincarnation.I don't know who I would become. Lately, I've been telling myself this quote a lot: "Dream big, work hard, stay focused, and surround yourself with good people." Right now my classmates and I share a common goal to work hard and focus on becoming better writers. A community like this should never be taken for granted. It should be appreciated completely. Pretty soon, I will graduate from high school, and perhaps, I will never see some of these amazing people again. My creative writing class has become a family. Writing reveals such intimate, personal parts of ourselves, and over the past four years, my classmates have come to understand, accept and love each other. It takes a lot to create a community as strong as the one we currently have. It's strange to think where we'll all be ten years from now. Which of us will stay writers? Which of us will get married, have kids, or live somewhere other than Jacksonville? Maybe our decisions will not only surprise others, but ourselves. I'm such a calender, plan oriented person. Maybe I will make a decision and forget who I am. Maybe the person I will become will be better than the person I am now. I can't believe that all of the years of learning, workshopping, and critiquing are almost over at Douglas Anderson.Whoever the members of my class become, we will always know each other within the experiences of our pasts. I can't ignore the power of having other writers in my life. People influence each other. I want to stay connected with other writers. Being with other writers creates an even stronger desire to create an art with words. I will forever try finding other writers to connect with. The power of a writing community creates incredible bonds and paves pathways for improvement. In the future, the worst thing that could happen to me is that I would wake up one morning and realize I never pursued my passion. My life is all about the people I surround myself with. Graduation, the summer, and the start of college will really test me. Staying connected sounds like a good plan, but people drift, and meeting new people and making connections takes a leap of courage. For right now, I'm going to appreciate every moment I have with this writing community. We're all different and come from different areas of Jacksonville but we cam together for one thing. The love and support a group of strangers can create when they come together is powerful. I can't say thank you enough for my experiences here at Douglas Anderson with my teachers and peers, who have become my writing family. -Kat Roland, Art Editor

Many say that you will forget the people you meet before college, or even in college. They say that you will probably be able to walk past people you hung out with 24/7 in high school like they're strangers. It is hard for me to understand this concept since I have had the same group of friends since I was a year old. I met my best friend of 15 (almost 16) years ago in Pre-K. Before we knew how to talk or what certain words actually meant, we understood each other. It's been that way ever since, even though we're 375 miles apart and never seem to be available at the same time. When we happen to have share spare time, we talk and it’s like we’re in that Pre-K classroom again, feigning deep conversation. I met the rest of my friends in K-4. We unintentionally bonded while running around the playground and pretending to nap. Nothing has changed, except now we spend most of our time sleeping at each other's houses with one of us being forced to sleep on the floor while the rest of us try not to hang off of the bed. And we hardly ever run. When I imagine my future, I don’t see a lot of concrete details. I see colleges floating in the air, and grasping majors. I see career opportunities rolling away like tumbleweeds in a deserted town. The only thing I can hold onto, the only thing real, is the image of my friends and I, together. I envision it as a Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants or Sex and the City scene, as something iconic I don't talk to my friends every day. I hardly talk to my best friend during the week and I see the rest of my friends about once a month. We don't have a movie friendship where I have them all on speed dial. We don't have the Disney Channel friendship where I can walk to their house in five minutes or less. We have our own type of friendship and I can't see myself walking away from that or passing it up for anything. -Chelsea Ashley, Junior Website Editor

We learn the art of storytelling as children. We embellish our experiences, come up with new ones, more interesting stories to tell. This is not to be confused with lying, a not entirely separate art we master in the same time frame. Lying and storytelling serve different purposes, the latter definitely a more celebrated craft, and more enjoyable to be ensnared in. The beauty of a story is that there is no one way to tell it, and it does not have to be your own. In reading and writing, I prefer the story behind a poem to a narrative in fiction. Longer pieces have more room to develop setting, characters, and so on through scenes. That can be done beautifully and uniquely with perspective, narrative voice, dialogue. But in poetry, the detail in describing a moment can tell a story just as vividly in a few words. I feel like there is more room for interpretation, and just enough is given to you to make the experience resonant. There is the opportunity to decide on backstory, character motivations, etc in either genre, but I feel like poetry allows the reader to feel more connected to the story. The reader becomes the storyteller to fill in the missing pieces. I love the escapist quality of reading fiction, which is not always attainable with poetry, when the described experience becomes your own. Writing fiction remains a challenge for me since I’m so used to seeing the story in a moment. It’s hard to step back and create something full in a less confined space. -Jordan Jacob, Junior Editor-in-Chief

Quiet as I am, throughout my first year as an Élan staffer, I have noticed a lot of things. One: the seniors are pretty awesome. Two: they’ve taught me a whole lot about myself without ever having to say a word. Emily Cramer, Editor in Chief, taught me how to lead by example with a bright personality and a whole lot of love. Kiera Nelson, Fiction Editor, taught me the importance of self- confidence. Emily Jackson, Non-fiction Editor, taught me how to think as an editor not as a casual reader. Makenzie Fields, Submissions Editor, taught me that being organized is the only way to get through life. Raegan Carpenter, Poetry Editor, taught me how to laugh at everything that can possibly go wrong. Haley Hitzing, Social Media Editor, taught me to stay on top of things and take very copious notes. Brittanie Demps, Poetry Editor, taught me to live life. Emily Leitch, Print and Web Design Editor, taught me that being small should never make you act small. And most importantly all of the seniors taught me through their constant love and support how to be someone worth being remembered. Trust me, I will remember all of them. — Shamiya Anderson, Nonfiction Editor

This is my second year as non-fiction editor, and during my time here my coeditor and I have constantly struggled with obtaining as much work as the fiction and poetry editors. Non-fiction is a neglected form of writing, yet in my eyes it is one of the most beautiful, most personal. It allows writers to put themselves on paper, their story, their past, and their fears. My favorite part of my role on Élan staff is reading through the pieces, discovering who the writers are. I feel as though I get the chance to see a private and personal sliver of dozens of lives as papers pass through my hands. When I was first chosen to be on the Élan staff as a junior, I was overjoyed. I had admired the magazine since I was a freshman, marveled at the eloquent and powerful pieces. However, I noticed that something was missing—the magazine featured an obvious absence of creative non-fiction. Non-fiction is a genre that I fell in love with early on in my writing career. A personal essay that I wrote in my sophomore year was my first piece to ever receive recognition, when I won a national silver medal in the Scholastic Art and Writing Contest. When I applied for the position of non-fiction editor, I took a pledge to bring a new wave of non-fiction to the magazine. This year, Shamiya, my coeditor, and I have completely revolutionized the non-fiction submission process. We have reached out to younger writers, held workshops, met with students afterschool, and gone above and beyond to provide thorough comments on pieces. Not only have we increased to overall volume of work, but we have also improved the quality. I am so excited to leave the legacy of non-fiction in Shamiya’s hands next year. She shares my love of the genre, and I know she will do amazing things as she continues to move the non-fiction section of the magazine forward. -- Emily Jackson, Creative Nonfiction Editor

There are some people that without ever having met, you just know. You watch their movie or hear their music and you just think “I relate to you; we could be friends, even.” You know facts about them and try to emulate their positive traits. This is most common with celebrities, specifically those who are masters of our individual trade. Athletes look up to other athletes, writers to other writers, businessmen to Donald Trump. As a writer –and a teenage girl- there are many people that I idolize and from them draw inspiration. I tried to think of the one person who inspired me the most, who handed me life’s lessons one at a time until I really felt that I found my footing. If you talk to as many people as I have, you’ll realize that this is nearly an impossible task. I thought that I could cite Emily Dickinson, who made me first want to be a poet with “Hope is the Thing With Feathers,” or Mrs. Melanson who taught me to be who you are unapologetically, even if at times that means you have to be a little cynical. I thought about my mother, who –despite her shortcomings- implanted within me a set of morals that can’t be messed with, no matter who I talk to or what I do in my future. I started jotting down every Walt Disney fact that I know. How can one not draw inspiration from the original voice of Mickey himself? But then I realized that maybe I don’t have to write a miniature feature on any one individual. We learn from one another all the time; that is the silver lining of constant human interaction. During the hum drum of day to day life, we steadily gain lessons from those that we watch on TV, those who we read in books or on websites, if we only keep our eyes and ears open. -Savannah Thanscheidt, Web Editor

How to complete a spring book in steps: Step 1: Find a dedicated staff who are in love with literature and art Step 2: Make a website and reveal your publication to the world through social media! Step 3: Open submissions and let the work come to you Step 4: Organize the submissions and number them so it is a fair blind reading Step 5: Read everything! Step 5: Make staff decisions on writing and art Step 6: Choose finalists and send writing to judges Step 7: Now that the art and writing finalists have been chosen, you can make the order of the pieces for the actual book! Step 8: Layout Step 9: Layout Step 10: Layout and upload Step 11: Enjoy your finished masterpiece! I wish that making a book was as easy as typing out the process, but it is not. Simply put, being in a publication takes a lot of time and effort; you really need to have a passion for what you do. When you have passion however, it makes it easier to stay organized and keep faith in what you do. That is what the Élan staff have always maintained throughout the years, and this year has been no different. We are extremely proud of our latest spring edition, and I hope that you will enjoy all the talent and hard work that has gone into creating it. The edition is on our website: elanlitmag.org We are also working on our print compilation of both the winter and spring books, so please keep an eye out for announcements related to the print book! --Sarah Buckman, Editor-in-Chief