Princeton students are very talented and get up to some very cool stuff. There’s always new writing circulating around campus, in print and online; that literary liveliness is one of the aspects of Princeton I love most. Here are some of my favorites.
The NASS:
I’m biased because I’m part of the Nass, but I really believe it’s the most consistent and original creative outlet on campus. The Nassau Weekly is Princeton’s premier alternative magazine. It publishes fiction, poetry, essays, and journalism on a weekly basis, both in print and online, during the academic year and occasionally over the summer. Submissions and pitch meetings are open to all Princeton students.
“Letter to my cat (human nature)”: This is a piece I recently had the pleasure of editing by Sasha, Managing Editor of the Nass. It’s original, thoughtful, totally un-self-absorbed, and attentive to detail.
“My Other Half With That Thy Gentle Hand Seized Mine I Yielded”: The title comes from Paradise Lost, if you’re curious. Postmodern Adam and Eve, kind of. Deliciously written; the final contribution of the last Nass volume’s Editor-in-Chief, Charlie Nuermburger.
“The Trial”: Lucid and highly observant journalism about the trial of Daniel Piegaro, a Princeton student in the Class of ‘25. Makes a carefully-watched and highly publicized trial fresh, and allows the Nass’s readership to take from it what they will. Exactly the kind of journalism the Nass excels at.
The PRINCE:
The Daily Princetonian is Princeton’s campus newspaper. In addition to regular reporting by a strong core staff, the Prince also features opinions and other work by guest contributors from all parts of campus. I appreciate the Prince’s seriousness about reporting, and their dedication to journalistic coverage of just about everything that happens here, daily online and weekly in print.
“The art museum promised a revolutionary layout. Why didn’t the space deliver?”: Incisive and well-researched opinion that balances the new museum's merits with its flaws in design. I particularly like this piece because of how obvious the writers’ expertise is, and because of how keenly their observations cut to the heart of the art museum project at Princeton in general. (Personally, I loved the museum’s design, but I also love reading what whip-smart Princeton students have to say, especially ones that so clearly know what they’re talking about. This article complements it particularly well if you’re interested.)
“University publicizes expanded Immigration and ‘Non-Citizen’ FAQ page”: A timely and well-executed article from last spring on Princeton’s particular efforts in the face of a national push by the Trump administration against international and undocumented students. An example of how useful, journalistically sound, and pertinent the Prince’s reporting can be.
NASS LIT:
The Nassau Literary Review is a semesterly literary magazine (poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction) on campus. They publish less frequently than some of the other campus outlets, which means that their issues (and often pieces) are longer and the submission and editorial processes can be more intensive. I read prose for NassLit in freshman year and I loved it. Submissions come from writers all over campus, while the editorial process and meetings are for staff. Fun fact—Nass Lit was one of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s first publications.
“The Two Hundred Won Manuscript Fee”: I read this before it was published last year, and I’ve thought about it way more often than I would have thought since. It’s deceptively simple. It’s particular to the way gender works in Korea, but also speaks profoundly to how patriarchy works worldwide, and to the corrupting, fraught nature of money. It reminds me of Elena Ferrante.
“Tequila”: A little absurd, a lot atmospheric, infused with a heady rhythm. If a Sally Rooney novel were a pared-down short story and if Rooney was from the American Southwest, it might turn out something like this. Nass Lit is home to such excellent short fiction.
“A woman and the Beberibe river”: A recently-featured poem in translation from 1979. Slow-moving, graceful, and huge in scope. It effortlessly pulls together young and old, slow and fast, and time and space.
PLJ:
The Princeton Legal Journal is the home for legal writing by Princeton students on campus. Its “Forum” is for shorter-form content, and its “Review” is for longer, full journal articles. In its issues, student writers offer creative, nuanced insights into ongoing and past legal questions.
“Abortion Exceptionalism in the Post-Dobbs Period: Violation of Equal Protection?”: Specific and well-researched article on how abortion is treated differently from other medical circumstances that hinge on bodily autonomy.
“To Infinity at the Expense of the Pond”: Incisive pushback against the FAA’s failure to adequately regulate airspace companies and their environmental impact.
“The Price for Plastic: How Oil Companies Float Through Anticompetitive Suits”: Original and focused argument for a “rule by reason” approach to anticompetitive suits against increasingly-consolidating American corporations.
Other publications, in case you’re curious, that I don’t keep up with as well:
figments (speculative fiction)
GLOSSA (multilingual)
Moon Press (they publish whole books!)
Off-Pitch (music criticism!)
Passionfruit Zine (LGBT+ creative space)
Princeton Tory (conservative political publication)
Rah-Rah (arts)
Tiger Magazine (humor)