Addressing the demand for a space where students can accessibly share and publish their creative pieces, a group of students at Binghamton University founded Triple Cities Magazine, an undergraduate-run literary magazine on campus, last fall.
Co-founders and co-editors-in-chief Elaine Braunshweiger, a junior double-majoring in English and comparative literature, and Esti Klein, a junior majoring in English, felt inspired to found the publication after recognizing a gap in the creative writing community.
“The true origin of Triple Cities goes wholly to [Klein] — this was her brainchild,” Braunshweiger wrote to Pipe Dream. “We were having coffee one day, and [Klein] asked if I wanted to learn how to start a literary magazine with her, and of course I said yes. We went to our wonderful professor and mentor, Shannon Hearn [a Ph.D. candidate in the English literature program], for advice on how to get this rolling and then we went for it. It took a lot of communication with higher-ups in the English department, as well as many rounds of edits on our proposed plan, but over a semester we were able to gather a team of dedicated students and get the support of the English department!”
Triple Cities Magazine publishes a large range of work across a variety of genres and mediums, including fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, hybrid works and visual art. The magazine is open to submissions from undergraduate students within the University, and across other colleges.
Lucy Harnish, secretary and creative nonfiction editor for the magazine and a sophomore majoring in psychology, discussed the magazine’s openness to submissions from a wide range of students as a way of making publishing more accessible.
“There was a recognized need for a creative writing community here at Binghamton,” Harnish wrote. ”BU has so many amazing writers and so much untapped talent, and we really wanted to do just that — tap the talent!”
Since its founding, Triple Cities Magazine has received over 100 submissions for its first issue. The team has grown from 11 to 15 members with the addition of new interns, and the team expects the magazine to continue to expand in future semesters.
Submissions are made up of students across colleges and majors at the University, not just English or creative writing, reflecting Triple Cities Magazine’s emphasis on welcoming all undergraduates to share their work and encouraging creative expression beyond the classroom.
Rey Griffin, the vice president and poetry editor and a sophomore majoring in English, emphasized the importance of finding joy in writing for its own sake, not just for coursework.
“You can (and should!) continue writing creatively if you find a knack for it — even if it’s not ‘for’ anything, not for a class or a grade or even to be seen by somebody else, it’s worth it if it’s for you,” Griffin wrote. “It’s a vulnerable thing to let your creative work get published, even to allow us to edit and workshop alongside you. I cherish that we get the chance to.”
Beyond the publication process, Triple Cities Magazine fosters community through general body meetings, poetry and prose workshops, classroom visits, campus tabling and events. It aims to foster a supportive space for creative expression, helping writers grow through collaborative workshops and building lasting relationships within the on-campus arts and creative writing communities.
Kirsten Lilly, an editor and a sophomore double-majoring in electrical engineering and English, described the welcoming space fostered by the organization — especially as someone who once felt detached from other students interested in writing.
“Triple Cities is judgment-free, fun, and welcoming,” Lilly wrote. “It feels so easy to make friends and stay connected at workshops, and they promote events for other English-related orgs which bring the community even closer together.”
Griffin elaborated on the impact that Triple Cities Magazine has had on campus since its founding a few months ago.
“There are so many talented writers on this campus; some are studying English or creative writing, and some are probably working on the exact opposite,” Griffin wrote. “I really love the range of submissions we receive, and the sheer number of voices we get to hear from — at our general body meetings, in our first published edition, and even within our own editing team! I’ve been blown away by how many people we’ve managed to reach already, and I’ve felt really lucky getting to watch this magazine grow.”