Neal Karlen

“I always told Prince I knew he really didn’t consider me a friend, but as one of the few people in Minneapolis who was probably awake, like he always was, in the middle of the night, and was ‘Willing and Able,’ as my favorite song of his is titled, to talk about loneliness and death,” Karlen wrote.

“I even rubbed it in, in the opening of my second Rolling Stone cover story on Prince, published in 1990.

‘The phone rings at 4:48 in the morning,'”

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The honored poet will receive $1,000 and publication by Howling Bird in a trade paperback. That book will be guided through the publication process, from editing and design to marketing and distribution, by three students in the newly established publishing concentration in Augsburg’s low-residency Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program. To learn more about the MFA program and its students, read “” on the Pioneer Press website.

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Murphy Square

You can submit to the 2012 edition of Murphy Square through Friday, Feb. 3. Email murphysquare@augsburg.edu with your art or written work attached as a document. Your name should not be on the file. Put your name and the title of the work in the body of the email. Email olsoncar@augsburg.edu with questions.

Pictured here is the Murphy Square editorial staff.

Murphy Square has been a part of the Augsburg Community for over 35 years. This literary and art journal has provided hundreds of students the opportunity not only to share their writing and art, but also to experience work as editors. Many professional writers had their first editing experience and publication in a student magazine. Murphy Square is a fine example of the power of a liberal arts education!

Cary Waterman, Professor of English

Murphy Square is the greatest opportunity a writer or artist has to begin their career, because submitting to galleries, contests, newspapers, publishing companies and other literary journals is what a working writer or artist has to do in life. Why not start now?”

Brianna Olson-Carr, Theater and English, Senior

Writing helps the writer see their own thinking. This is what I love best about writing.”

Nou Yang, English, Senior

Art is so important to us as human beings. There is no better way to communicate emotion than through the reading of others’ writing and the expression of visual art, and Murphy Square brings our entire Augsburg community together to express and feel and share with each other.

Will Trembley, English, Senior

Art brings us entertainment, passion and clarity by imitating our lives. Murphy Square brings these snippets of our lives into a collection of what it means to be an Augsburg Student living in thriving city.

Josh Jones, Theatre, First-year

As college students, a lot of us are still unsure about where exactly life is going to take us. However, the opportunity to see our name in print on something that we are proud of can provide the motivation we need to push through the hardships and self-doubt and allow ourselves to be who we really are.

Laura Morales, Spanish and English, Senior

Murphy Square is not only a place where anyone can get his or her work published and read by the entire Augsburg community, but it is a highly valuable learning experience for students who want to learn the process of editing, putting together, and publishing a professional quality journal. Being on the editorial board of Murphy Square is like participating in a year-long publishing and editing course during which the board members gain leadership, management, and marketing skills that will be applicable to any future real world situation.

Dalia Teodonno, English, Sophomore

Writing is not just some hobby I enjoy doing in my spare time, it is something that is a part of me as an individual and “what I bring to the table.” It is something that allows any one of us to express what we are truly thinking and feeling at any given time and then gives us a chance to share those ideas and understandings with the rest of the world. Murphy Square is imperative to Augsburg because it is a collection of publications which tell a story of that year, years prior, and many years to come, and is the means for many students who want to leave their footprint for the rest of the years to come.

Bryan Rassat, English, Senior

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Read:

Most of you have been reading for a long time now, but this first advice is not your typical magazine or newspaper read. I am referring to the reading that requires you to find the main point and supporting details in a particular passage. Sounds easy? Because it is. But for me, it was much more of a struggle than anything…. The difficulty was not comprehension, but rather the lack of focus that was put into it. It is easy to quickly read an assigned chapter, close the book and go do something else. I am sure this is familiar to some of you. So remember to read your textbooks before going to class, and also take a few minutes to make marginal notes as a reminder of the main point and supporting details in each paragraph. At the end of your first semester, you want to be able to read with your eyes closed.

Write:

Every chance I get I enjoy writing personal reflections and poetry to soothe the mind and soul. …In the past two years of college, I discovered for myself that writing is a skill that is most crucial in any major even in sociology. …I have also learned that I still get intimidated with a 10-page paper assignment. But I tell myself; like poetry, writing an essay paper is more than just submitting it for a grade but is an art form that takes practice. It will be worth your while and college money to utilize the writing lab (located in the street level entrance of the library) or ask your English professors for assistance. Do not worry, it is only your fellow colleagues working in the writing lab and will not criticize you but will only make you a stronger writer. Remember, write not just to complete an assignment, but write to be good at it.

Speak:

One of the first classes I took here at Augsburg was public speaking. I knew it was a valuable skill to have but never thought I will be preparing a speech for the entire college. Am I terrified of public speaking? Absolutely! I am also afraid of heights and death. But last month, I jumped out of a plane at 13,000 feet going down at a speed of 150 miles per hour terrified of a parachute accident and how my parents will react for not letting them know. And here I am facing my number one fear: public speaking….

The art of speaking is more than that of your daily conversations, or voicing your thoughts and opinions. Most importantly, you must be able to articulate the materials you read and the papers you wrote. Many philosophers and educators will say that a student solidifies their knowledge when they are able to teach another person what they learned. So speak with confidence. Speak to learn.

As you get to know more about Augsburg. You will also find that “Augsburg College educates students to be informed citizens, thoughtful stewards, critical thinkers, and responsible leaders.” You must also make commitment to yourself to perfect the art of reading, writing, and speaking, not only to pass your classes but also to be good at it. I would like to leave you all today with a quote from my favorite poet and writer, Maya Angelou that reads, “Nothing will work unless you do.”

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Actually, they were in the City of Light to experience the art and music. In this course, professors Merilee Klemp of the music department and Tara Sweeney of the art department worked together to develop a program that would help students understand and appreciate the intersections between the disciplines.

The result was a two-week itinerary filled with excursions to churches, museums, concert halls, opera houses, artisan studios, even a cruise on the Seine.

Throughout the course, all students recorded thoughts about their experiences in a journal. This is a common practice for study abroad participants, but keeping a sketchbook is not. Art majors and non-art majors alike created sketches at every site the group visited.

Klemp and Sweeney say the combination of writing and sketching was meant to teach students to see and listen more deeply and to begin to appreciate art and music as interrelated.

For first-year art major Melissa Herrick, sketching helped her experience the art and music more intensely. “It gets etched in your brain and helps you identify what speaks to you.”

Colby Reineke, a senior computer science major, said he didn’t want to sketch and journal on his first trip to Paris. “I don’t think I draw very well, but if I really like something then I put a lot of focus into it,” he says.

Reineke was especially taken with the Opera Garnir and did what he calls the best drawing of his life in the space. Though he says he was not very interested in art and architecture, experiencing the detail of the opera house was “information overload” for Reineke. “The color, the statues, the staircase, the marble, the velvet, the chandeliers. Every experience topped the one before.”

Sketching and journaling helped Reineke see art differently. “I used to just look at art and go ‘Wow! Cool!’ but now I can look at a painting and describe what I feel.”

For Courtnie deGrand, a senior music therapy major and a pianist, the program was a chance to hear the music she loves in the place where it was created. “I’ve always been fascinated by French music, especially Debussy,” she says. She even plans to incorporate some of the art she saw and sketched with the music she will be playing at her senior recital this March.

In addition to their scheduled excursions, students had four opportunities to plan activities using Pariscope, a popular weekly events publication. With a small budget, students chose events or venues to explore in small groups. These activities helped the students meet local people, speak a little French, develop travel smarts, and make informed and independent programming choices.

This exercise allowed the students to see an ice sculpture garden at the Champs-Élysées, visit the Museum of Natural History, learn about the Gobelins Tapestry Museum, and hear a Chopin piano recital at the Church of St. Julien le Pauvre.

deGrand especially enjoyed the Chopin and Beethoven recital. “It was amazing to hear his music in a venue where he might have been,” she says. She was also surprised by the influence of American music in Paris, particularly jazz. On their last evening in the city, deGrand and some friends went to a club and heard the music of Louis Armstrong. “Jazz is my first love, and that was a great synthesis for me to have my experience in Paris end that way.

The students said the program changed them in ways they hadn’t anticipated. “Even if you think you won’t come back a different person, you do,” says Herrick. “An experience like this broadens your view and gives you a deeper understanding of the world.”

Photo top: students with Sweeney and Klemp on the stairs of the Rodin museum

Photo middle by Nora Dahlberg

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