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January 17, 2003
New
Jersey Proves Fertile Ground for Aspiring Writer
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Photo: Fred LeBlanc
Kelly Kealy ’03
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Home to several battlefields
of the Revolutionary War, the first Continental Congress, the
fourth college in British North America (Princeton University),
the laboratory of Thomas Edison, and numerous other significant
sites, the “Garden State” of New Jersey could just as
well be called the “Historic State.” No one knows that
better than New Jersey native Kelly Kealy ’03, who spent
last summer researching and writing about her state’s fascinating
history for New Jersey Heritage Magazine, a quarterly publication
of the Public Policy Center of New Jersey.
Kealy held the position of editorial assistant at the Trenton-based
magazine, enjoying the wide range of work that is typical at small,
nonprofit organizations. Her daily duties ranged from answering
phones and stuffing envelopes to editing articles and (dressed
as a Colonial Army post provisioner) selling subscriptions at
a reenactment of the Revolutionary War’s Battle of Monmouth.
“I was the quintessential intern gofer,” said Kealy,
“but I was also a field reporter, interviewing museum curators,
nationally renowned political analysts, and even Doug Forrester,
the Republican challenger for New Jersey state senate.”
In addition to coauthoring a Web article on Forrester, who ran
against Democrat Bob Torricelli and his replacement, Frank Lautenburg,
Kealy researched and wrote two articles for the summer 2002 issue
of New Jersey Heritage. One focused on the Botto House, a Victorian
home in Haledon, New Jersey, that was the meeting place for more
than 20,000 silk mill workers during a critical labor strike in
1913. The other reported on the designation of Morristown, New
Jersey, as one of America’s “Dozen Distinctive Destinations”
by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The three pieces
varied greatly in subject and research method, but all had the
same outcome: increasing Kealy’s confidence and ability as
a writer.
“I hadn’t bolstered writing with real-world things like
interviewing and fieldwork to such an extent before,” said
Kealy. “When I started, I was uncomfortable interviewing
and was sheepish when people asked my opinion on the content of
articles. By the end of the summer, I was cracking jokes with
people to whom I’d introduced myself only five minutes before.”
Back on campus to complete her English degree this year, Kealy
is too far from New Jersey to do regional reporting or research,
but she hopes to do some writing for the Mount Holyoke News, in
which she previously published two reviews. Among the first group
of editors of the literary magazine Verbosity, Kealy will also
continue her editing work for that publication.
“I’ve had the pleasure of watching Kelly grow as a reader,
and as a writer of both prose and poetry, since the first day
of her first year at Mount Holyoke,” said Kealy’s adviser,
Mary Jo Salter, Emily Dickinson Senior Lecturer in the Humanities.
“She’s a mature young woman who is also full of vitality
and fun. I’m not surprised she’s already writing at
a professional level, and I’m confident she’ll succeed
at whatever she sets her mind to.”
Kealy hopes for a career in publishing, journalism, or travel
writing and is waiting to hear from graduate programs in writing,
publishing, and literature. n.
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