Smith Publicity 2023 Scholarship
Qualifications:
Applicants must be a high school senior or university/college student in the United States.
To apply:
-Write a persuasive essay in response to the prompt: “Is there a book that you think should be required reading for everyone? Write an essay persuading your audience to read this book.”
-Minimum word count: 1,000, Maximum word count: 1,500
-Include a cover page with name, school, and graduating year
-All essays must be sent as either a Word document or PDF
-Send all entries to wraavsre@fzvguchoyvpvgl.pbz with the subject “2023 Scholarship”
-Deadline: June 9th, 2023
The Smith Publicity 2022 Book Marketing Scholarship Recipient
Smith Publicity announces that Eve Jensen of NYU, New York, NY, is the recipient of the 2022 Smith Publicity Book Marketing Scholarship. Jensen is a member of the class of 2023.
Jensen’s persuasive winning essay, “How Plastic: An Autobiography Can Change the Conversation Around Environmentalism — And Your Life” was selected out of hundreds of other submissions, and addressed the given prompt “Is there a book you think should be required reading for everyone? Write an essay persuading your audience to read this book.”
“Smith Publicity is thrilled to continue this initiative,” says Corinne Moulder, Vice President of Business Development. “Eve’s essay was passionate and skillfully written, and convinced our panel of judges that it should be required reading in 2022. We’re hopeful that this scholarship will help to support Eve’s education and wish her the very best in her future endeavors.”
This year’s scholarship amount of $2,500 will be applied toward Jensen’s tuition costs at NYU. As she plans to pursue continued education, Smith Publicity is honored to be a part of her journey.
We had the opportunity to connect with Jensen for a short interview to learn more:
You wrote a beautiful winning essay on the topic of “Is there a book that you think should be required reading for everyone? Write an essay persuading your audience to read this book.” What stood out about this topic to you?
First of all, thank you! The prompt really got me thinking about what unites people and what sort of book would be able to inspire a large and diverse audience. There are numerous ways to approach this question, but it stood out to me chiefly as an opportunity to put a spotlight on an issue that permeates everyone’s life. There are so many books I believe should be required reading for everyone, but I chose Plastic: An Autobiography because I felt anyone could find something in this book with which to connect. I was first introduced to this book through my Reading as a Writer class in college and was blown away by how it engaged each student and how differently we each interacted with it. The topic of the book itself may not seem very exciting, but the way the author Alison Cobb presents the subject through multiple disciplines struck me as innovative and moving.
Aside from the book you wrote about for this essay, what is another book you’ve read recently that you’ve enjoyed and/or a favorite genre that you always come back to?
I’ve just finished Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, and it’s now at the top of my recommendations list. It’s a beautiful telling of Thomas Cromwell’s life and influence during the reign of King Henry the VIII and his fight to divorce Queen Katherine for Anne Boelyn. Mantel does an incredible job of recreating these characters and the world they live in, nitty gritty political turmoil and all. It’s interesting to examine the societal issues they faced so long ago and recognize how they linger today. I will also always have a soft spot for medieval fantasy; my dad read A Game of Thrones to me in my crib, so I credit him.
You are a member of the class of 2023! What do you hope to do after you graduate?
Tell stories! Read stories! Convince other people to read stories! Even true ones, like Plastic. I feel like there’s so much more to learn, so I may be interested in graduate school further down the line, but right now I’m eager to get out into the world and make my mark. I would love to work for a literary agency or a publishing house and, of course, I will keep writing. My passion in life for as long as I can remember has been written words, the joy and depth that can come from them, and I really just want to keep finding new ways to put them together and share them — my own, anyone’s, everyone’s.
Congratulations, again, to Eve Jensen!