Callie Hibbitts: A story worth mentioning

BY ASHTYN HANSARD

Digital Media Director

As graduation grows closer, many Tarleton State University seniors are preparing to leave the gates and step into their future away from school. For senior Callie Hibbitts, this is just the start of her journey.

Hibbitts, an English major with a focus in creative writing, is preparing for graduation while also preparing to get her Master’s Degree in Fine Arts (MFA).

Growing up in the small town of Seymour, Texas, Hibbitts’ time at Tarleton was nerve-wracking when she first arrived, but she soon found her place in the university.

“I was used to basically doing life for the last 12 years with the same 30 people, so Tarleton felt big for me… I was completely freaked out to be here,” Hibbitts said. “I feel like I did pretty well for myself as far as finding my people in a way that I didn’t really expect to, especially with the English department.”

Hibbitts originally didn’t aim for an English degree, but she’s always had an interest in literature.

“I just read all the time. And I’d always had a huge interest in stories, especially fantasy. It never really clicked in my brain that writing was an option for a while,” Hibbitts said.

The first time Hibbitts ever considered her writing as a career path was in her music appreciation class back at Seymour. Her band director assigned essays for homework, letting Hibbitts’ talent shine.

“He would give us essays as assignments, and I was the only person who was doing them,” Hibbitts said. “One day he pulled me into his office and he was like, ‘This is good. I don’t know if anyone’s told you, but it’s good and you need to think about it more.’”

Hibbitts was originally a business major when she started at Tarleton but soon dropped it when she decided to take an intro to creative writing class and fell in love with it.

“My creative writing classes are my favorite as a bunch, just because that’s what I like to do. And workshopping is my thing. I like to just sit in a circle and talk about what we’re reading and everything,” Hibbitts said.

While being an English major and working the front desk for the English department, Hibbitts has also spent her time as the editor-in-chief for Tarleton’s new literary magazine, the Bosque River Review (BRR).

“I had been asked by Dr. Brewer when I took his class if I wanted to be in charge of the [BRR]. And then I proceeded to become the most annoying person ever, and I would ask him about it every time I saw him,” Hibbitts said. “So I’ve always been interested in [BRR] ever since it was kind of teased to me.”

Helping run the BRR has been one of the highlights of Hibbitts’ senior year.

“It's been such a big thing that I’ve been looking forward to for a couple of years now, and just finally getting to see it come to fruition was really important for me,” Hibbitts said.

On the night of November 20, the BRR held a poetry reading and a canned food drive for Tarleton’s Purple Pantry, an idea suggested by Hibbitts. This event helped collect over five carts filled with food to resupply the pantry, fulfilling Hibbitts’ goal.

“I cried a little bit [that] night, just because I was so excited. And it’s always nice when your expectations are not only met, but it goes beyond that,” Hibbitts said.

Although Hibbitts is graduating and won’t be able to stay a part of the BRR, she has high hopes for the future of the magazine.

“We have a lot of students who really love each other and really love what they’re doing. Everyone in the [BRR] is so committed to what we’re doing and committed to reading, writing and especially committed to events like we did [that] night with the fundraising.”

Hibbitts plans to get her MFA in creative writing next fall. While she hasn’t decided on where she would like to attend, Hibbitts is looking at all kinds of schools, ranging from Texas State to Washington State.

Wherever she decides to go, Hibbitts is excited to start the next part of her journey and learn more about creative writing.

“You get to be with people who are exactly like you and so different at the same time. You get to read their work and they get to read yours and you get to write, which is all I really want to do at this point,” Hibbitts said.

After she gets her MFA, Hibbitts plans to get her doctorate one day and teach creative writing herself to aspiring students. While she wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of publishing her own works or working in publishing, her ultimate goal is to teach.

While attending Tarleton, Hibbitts has interacted with several students in her classes. However, one student made the biggest impact on her.

Christina Lunsford is another English major who is graduating in December. While Lunsford’s focus may be in literature rather than creative writing, she and Hibbitts have bonded over their time together at Tarleton.

“I met Christina when we first started working in the office together last May… I just remember feeling very alone in a way because I, for my first year and a half at Tarleton, had not met a single other English major. I genuinely thought I was the only one,” Hibbitts said.

Hibbitts’ fears were soon disregarded once her friendship with Lunsford began.

“That was the first time I was like, ‘Oh, there are people like me who just really get me and want to have those conversations with me that I felt like everyone else was shying away from.’ I always felt like I was always going a little bit too deep into everything until I met Christina,” Hibbitts said.

Lunsford agrees that they’ve both made an impact on each other’s lives.

“I'm not a creative writer… but I had the opportunity of taking creative writing with Callie when in our poetry class, and I got to read some of her stuff, I kind of realized that, ‘Oh, Callie’s incredible,’” Lunsford said.

Lunsford believes that Hibbitts’ talents are shown through her work and praises her creativeness.

“She’s actually really incredible when she’s getting the chance to learn so much in this department. I think I have a whole new appreciation for creative writing because I’ve seen how much she’s grown in it,” Lunsford said.

Lunsford’s friendship with Hibbitts runs deep, and she feels as if they can understand each other without it feeling transactional like some other interactions she’s had.

“I’m a little bit older than everyone, so I’m kind of used to other students expecting life advice… but with Callie, it’s really easy to talk to her because she’s also been through a lot. I don’t have to feel like I’m teaching her things. I feel like I’m just talking to her,” Lunsford said.

Hibbitts has also been impacted by Dr. Jacob Brewer, her intro to creative writing and fiction professor.

Their first class together was intro to creative writing. After seeing some of the work she was turning in, Brewer pulled Hibbitts into his office to tell her what a great writer she is.

“I’ll always remember when he pulled me into his office, and he was like, ‘Hey, I think I need to tell you ‘cause you’re not quite getting it. You’re good, you need to keep doing this and you need to think about publishing your own work,’” Hibbitts said. “I walked out of the building, and I just started crying because it was like there was a door in the wall that I didn’t know was there. He kind of opened that for me.”

Brewer not only made an impact on Hibbitts’ life, but he also felt the impact Hibbitts made on him when she was his student.

“I always wanted to have students that cared as much about writing fiction, specifically, as I always cared about it. It’s been really nice for me to see somebody who cares the way I cared in my undergrad, and it makes me feel like I’ve done the right thing,” Brewer said. “She’s an exemplary student, and I’m proud of the growth that she’s displayed.”

While Hibbitts has proved her skills and worked hard while attending Tarleton, she didn’t have the easiest life growing up.

By the time Hibbitts finished junior high, she had lost both of her parents to illnesses. It was an odd predicament for Hibbitts to handle when it came to college considering that without this loss, there was a chance she wouldn’t have been able to afford college.

With her hardships and being given an opportunity to further her education, Hibbitts ended up putting a lot of pressure on herself to succeed.

“I wanted to make them proud, and everyone wants to make their parents proud, but I wasn’t ever gonna get to hear that. It was like, ‘If I’m gonna do it, then I’m gonna do a little bit extra,’” Hibbitts said.

Losing your parents is a very hard thing to wrap your mind around, and Hibbitts found herself incorporating her feelings into a lot of her creative work.

“I do think a lot of stuff that I write tends to be tied in with loss. At first it used to be concerning to me because I thought I was a little bit messed up for it… but in a way, it became very comforting for me. Not only was I putting this all out on the page, but I know it and I know how to write it because I’ve been through it,” Hibbitts said.

After her father passed, Hibbitts was taken in by her older sister, Kayla. While their relationship was complicated at times, Hibbitts is glad to have gotten that connection with her.

“I am still thankful that I got to have that relationship with her because I do think that, fundamentally, she did change me in a way beyond the loss and everything because I got to be with her,” Hibbitts said.

Hibbitts still experiences grief, but she doesn’t try to shut it out despite how much it hurts.

“There’s no real solution to grieving. I wake up some days and I’m like, ‘I really miss my mom.’ I don’t think that really changes. And I think there’s always an expiration date on it—at least in some people’s minds—but you’re always going to miss them,” Hibbitts said.

While Hibbitts has made the most of her life during dark times, she still wishes she let her younger self shine through more – and encourages others to do the same.

“I think the best advice I could give to my [younger] self is just to be a freak. It’s okay… I cared so much about all the people that I went to school with and what they thought about me… I think anyone that I truly care about and that means anything to me is part of my chosen family or people that I’m with at college,” Hibbitts said.