TWSS’ Susie Long discusses the publication’s feature in Miranda Matthews’ new book, reflecting on the importance of joining organisations whilst at uni. 

At the end of last year, That’s What She Said was lucky enough to be featured in a new book by Miranda Matthews: Arts Methods for the Self-Representation of Undergraduate Students. Admittedly, this article is partly an excuse for me to blow the TWSS collective trumpet because, well, yay! But more than that, Matthews’ work made me think a lot about why we do what we do, and why student organisations are so important. 

As Matthews explains, projects such as ours “begin with energies of hope, protest, joy in being with others, and fear of isolation.” As someone who has been involved in our little mag since I started at Bristol Uni, I think I take that for granted sometimes, but it really is wonderful to see how communities can grow thanks to activists and like-minded people within student populations. 

Particularly post-COVID, I think university can at times feel like an impersonal, clinical experience: you sit in the ASS library, staring at shelves of books you don’t understand (or maybe you do and that’s just me!), seemingly not seeing natural light for days – whenever exam season is over, I barely feel like a human being. Academia, as much as I love it, can be a lonely place. 

When my very ‘go-with-the-flow’ sixth-form guidance counsellor told me that a student society was where I would “find myself”, I thought she was kidding. However, I do think that societies and student organisations – whether in the form of a sport, a hobby, or a publication such as this one – help to bring a sense of humanity back to university life. In terms of TWSS, I am always pleasantly surprised by how many people approach us saying that they’ve loved an article, or that they really resonate with the content that we publish, and it is an honour and beyond surreal to see our “supportive, creative society” recognised in a full-blown academic book. 

I promise, this is not a very elaborate ploy from me to get you to create for us. Rather, Matthews’ book not only helped me realise the reach of TWSS, but also the importance of finding some way, any way, to express yourself whilst you’re at university. As cliché as it may seem, these are the years where we can work out who we want to be – and I am a firm advocate for that not just being the subject you study. Audition for the play, write the article, try out for the sports team – find out what drives you and throw yourself into it. As Matthews explains, finding groups of people that make you feel represented in a sea of students is so “important [in] navigating in and beyond [your] time at university.”

In short, and with as minimal gushing as possible, I feel very lucky to lead the team here at TWSS, and I am surprised daily by the community and personal effects that our little publication has. I am incredibly thankful to Miranda Matthews for highlighting us in her work, and reinforcing why societies and groups like this one feel so important. 

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Miranda Matthews’ book Arts Methods for the Self-Representation of Undergraduate Students is available to read online through the Bristol University library (we’re in Chapter 6!). If you cannot access this, please feel free to get in touch with us and we can help you access it.