Kristen (Woszczynski) Lund
Class of 2008
![Kristen (Woszczynski) Lund](/majors/english/images/profiles/kristen-lund.jpg)
Kristen (Woszczynski) Lund has worked as the senior writer at Tucker Publishing Group in Evansville, IN, and director of news services at the University of Evansville. She currently works as a freelance writer and editor while pursuing a graduate degree in physical therapy.
Can you tell us how majoring in Creative Writing at UE has helped you?
I feel that a writing degree served me better than a traditional journalism major would have. Writing for a magazine is fundamentally different than writing for a newspaper, which is different than writing for TV, radio, etc. My classes at UE taught me the skills that make good magazine writing: telling a story with a narrative arc and memorable characters. Also essential is the ability to write pieces that have both timeliness and staying power — and to make every word count, whether a story is 250 or 2,500 words long.
Even though I am pursuing a different field now, I am confident my education and professional background will help me in my future career as a physical therapist. As a journalist, I learned how to gauge people's unique personalities and communication styles, and to make them feel they could trust me as they shared their stories. I also learned how to ask the right questions to fill in critical pieces of information, and I know this will help me evaluate and treat patients in the future.
Did you have any memorable experience (in or out of the classroom) that changed you as a writer or a creative thinker?
Yes, namely my semesters at Harlaxton College and Stellenbosch University in Stellenbosch, South Africa. I traveled as much as possible, tutored South African preteens, walked through buildings 1,000-plus years old, met refugees, talked with Northern Irish young adults about their wartime childhoods, and more. Hearing those stories and experiencing other ways of life gave my writing a broader frame of reference and (I like to think) a maturity that I may not have otherwise gained at a young age.
Office Phone
812-488-2963
Office Email
ML281@evansville.edu
Office Location
Room 329, Olmsted Administration Hall