Jay’Mi Vazquez – News Editor
On Friday, Oct. 13, Folio held its Halloween-themed open mic at the Adanti Student Center Fireside Lounge. The open mic was open to any student to come and share art, poems and other creative art forms.
“Our Halloween-themed event is one of our biggest events of the year,” Editor in Chief Ethan Sabetta said.
Students attending the open mic were recommended to wear a Halloween costume to match the Halloween spirit.
When asked what the best part of the even was, Sabetta said, “The costumes because that’s different than all of our open mics, but it was fun seeing people into it and dressing up.”
Fiction Editor Christopher Durand said he was excited about the overall turnout.
“We’ve been getting even bigger turnouts since doing events in the Fireside Lounge,” Durand said. “The laughs of the stories and just hanging out with like-minded people was fun.”
Sabetta said open mic events take place in the Fireside Lounge and in the English Common Room, depending on the expected turnout.
Students were not required to speak, but Sabetta said he was thrilled that students felt confident enough to share poems and other creative art forms during the event.
“A lot of people wanted to read, which was nice, and we had some new faces, which was also nice,” Sabetta said. “It’s very nice when people show up and support these types of events because it brings more people into the world of Folio.”
History education major Justine Dobbin, a sophomore, said the event was a nice environment, and she is looking forward to attending more events in the future.
“I was a little nervous, but seeing others speak definitely inspired me to open up out of my shell,” Dobbin said.
Dobbin said that she will be attending the next Folio interest meeting when it is announced to students.
“I definitely want to get involved in Folio somehow; I’m just not sure when or where I’ll fit. But being friends with the editor, I’m sure there will be a place for me and for other new people to join,” Dobbin said.
Sabetta said he encourages students to attend future open mic events and consider submitting stories to be featured in the magazine.
“I would like to see more people come to some of the other open mic events. Even if there isn’t a theme event, it would be great to see more people show up and come support this semester and in the spring,” Sabetta said.
Sabetta said Folio is accepting submissions for poems, art, memoirs, fiction and non-fiction stories until Dec. 20. Folio submissions are open for any student of any major, regardless of their status in the organization.
“If you like writing and literature and fun people that aren’t uptight about much of anything and want to feel welcomed in a safe space, you can come down and join,” Durand said.
“I encourage students to even volunteer to get involved with Folio because it’s a great opportunity for students to work on the production side of the magazine but trying to be on the E-board is always great,” Sabetta said.
