Gillian McCain (GSAS '90) reflects on NYU and her Artistic Passions

We recently chatted with Gillian McCain, author of two poetry books, Tilt and Religion, co-author (with Legs McNeil) of Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk, and co-editor of Dear Nobody: The True Diary of Mary Rose (also with Legs McNeil). She is also a collector and exhibitor of found photography. She spoke about her time at NYU and her eclectic artistic pursuits.

Photo Credit: Annie Watts

Do you have a favorite NYU memory?

My friend Eric Swenson and I organized a reading by Gregory Corso at the Loeb Student Center—we got a thousand people there! It was crazy. It was free, but it was still crazy. We made flyers and went to the park all the time and gave them out. We were hanging out at this rare bookstore in the West Village, and that’s where we met Gregory Corso and the some of the other Beat writers; so they told some of their friends, and it was advertised well at NYU. They were paying Corso a thousand bucks, which was pretty significant at the time. It was an exciting event. And all the friends I made are still my best friends. I met my friend Chris Simunek first day of Expository Writing class—and he is still my one of my best friends. Up until recently he was the editor at High Times. I remember I’d hang out in Washington Square Park a lot and I remember there was this girl about my age, Corene LeMaitre, she just goes: “Nice boots.” And I go: “I like your boots, too.” And she is still a friend of mine. She ended up writing a novel for HarperCollins. So everyone did pretty well. A lot of people I have lost touch with, but I should look them up on Facebook.

Helen Arteaga (CAS ’99) Alumni Mentor and Stephanie Stanley (CAS ’18) Student Mentee on the CAS Alumni Mentorship Program

“The energy they give back to you is amazing!” - Helen Arteaga (CAS ’99)

Can you tell us about your experience acting as a mentor this semester?

I loved my mentee! Mentoring Stephanie reminded me that I can still do so much more. As we get older, and set in our careers and caught up in projects, we can forget that. Her energy reminded me that there are still more possibilities out there.

What advice did you give your student mentee?

I advised Stephanie to articulate in ten words or less what she wanted to do, and to match her research and internship project to her end goal. I also told her that there is no such thing as a straight path in your career. If you are not having U-turns, then you are not analyzing if you are on the right path professionally. I have had a lot of U-turns in my life and I used those opportunities to help me achieve what I set out to do.