SUNY Buffalo State’s Elmwood Leaves Journal held a book drive from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 30 in Ketchum Hall.

The Elmwood Leaves Journal is a Buffalo State-produced literary journal. It has been in production since 1948, bringing in writers from all around the country. This semester, however, the journal is run and produced in a class, literary publishing, led by Kim Chinquee and her students.

Last semester’s issue, The Wild Edition, marked the first semester that the class was offered. This publishing class offers an opportunity to students and aspiring writers to see how getting their writing into a published journal works. It’s also an interesting way to put publishing on a list of accomplishments. The students on the ELJ team receive submissions just about daily and decide as a class if it should make it into the publication.

This publication is, of course, not as easy as it sounds. Beyond accepting and rejecting submissions, ELJ must come up with extra money — along side a given budget — to help get the submissions published. That’s where the Book Harvest comes in.

ELJ’s Book Harvest helps to fund the book as well as simply give books to those who wish to enjoy a good read.

“Even if they want to take a book and leave a book, that’s fine,” Chinquee said. “They could even leave a quarter and take a book, they can. It’s just a little celebration of books.”

The Book Harvests usually happen on Tuesdays or Thursdays in Ketchum Hall. On Thursday, ELJ held one of many book harvests this semester, and received an exciting amount of donations, Chinquee said.

Students and professors alike came by to visit, chat and donate.

“Some people gave kind of ‘Halloweenish’ books,” said Dajae Rogers, sophomore English major on the ELJ team. “There were more donations, and it was much more lively.”

Tamara Burross, a senior English major agreed.

“People were even asking about the journal,” she said.

ELJ is still looking to fill its pages and is looking for poets from all over, including on campus, to submit work. In addition, students interested in learning about the class and participating in the publishing of a literary journal should know that the class is being offered next semester as well. Students from this semester’s class said that it is a very unique and engaging class.

“It’s the most insight I’ve gained on journals,” said Kaitlynd Brzostowicz, a senior Arts and Letters major.

The Elmwood Leaves Journal’s next Book Harvest will be on Nov. 13. Poets interested in getting their work reviewed by the ELJ team should email [email protected].

The journal also will be hosting a student reading event on Thursday, Nov. 6 during Bengal pause in the bookstore.

The harvest edition of the Elmwood Leaves Journal is expected to be published and released in December.

E-mail: [email protected]

Twitter: NajeeW93