SKINS OF DIRT AND DUST

Originally from Northville, MI, Alexis Aulepp is a writer, photographer, and creator who has experimented in many mediums. She began writing at a young age, composing her own "books" by 1st Grade (or before). Her first published work was a short poem printed in the 2007 National Anthology of Poetry by Young Americans when she was in 3rd Grade.

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Alexis' love for writing grew from a mutual love of reading and creating. While she has continued to enjoy both throughout her life, her first "aha" moment of wanting to be a writer can be traced back to 5th Grade post-lunch reading time. During one of these daily periods, Alexis haphazardly decided to start the Harry Potter series with the third book when the first two could not be located (under what would later be deemed the ludicrous assumption that it was fine because she had already seen the first two movies), and immediately fell deeply in love with the power of the written word and the creative genius of J. K. Rowling.

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That year, Alexis composed her first "novel" (short story) using painstaking cursive handwriting and endless amounts of lined paper. It was titled "Alone" and followed a young, female protagonist who got lost in the woods on the way to visit her grandmother. Sadly, the original transcript has not been seen since middle school and may be lost. Also that year, Alexis was a winner in the Unity in the Community Writing Contest at her elementary school.

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In 8th grade, as part of a semester-long project, Alexis researched how to write and publish your own book, and subsequently drafted an almost-5,000-word outline of what she hopes will someday be her first novel – complete with character biographies and other descriptions. Since then (especially in high school), Alexis has developed this story into a double trilogy (set approximately twenty years apart) with a complex storyline and an extensive cast of richly diverse characters.

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In high school, Alexis served as a member of the Yearbook staff for three years (as a staff writer for two years and the Photography Editor her senior year) and contributed several stories and many photographs across the three publications. Multiple pieces of her writing (poems and one short story) and numerous photographs were also selected to be published in several editions of Cavalcade Literary Magazine, her high school's biannually published literary magazine, for which she served as Secretary her junior year and co-Editor-in-Chief her senior year. Also at this time, Alexis participated in the National PTA Reflections Program and placed in both the Literature and Photography categories.

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As a freshman at the University of Michigan, Alexis joined the Lloyd Hall Scholars Program (LHSP), a Michigan Learning Community, to continue to pursue her lifelong passion for writing and the arts. That year, Alexis was one of the Editors of the LHSP Arts and Literary Journal Club and had two poems and one photograph selected for publication in the 2016-2017 journal, Things Worth Mentioning. That same year, Alexis was nominated by a professor to have three poems published in the 20th Annual Café Shapiro Anthology, a University of Michigan publication.

 

In her sophomore year, Alexis returned to LHSP as a Student Assistant (a sophomore leadership position) and served as a co-leader of the LHSP Arts and Literary Journal Club, as well as an Editor-in-Chief of that year's journal, Hold On. Four of Alexis' poems were selected for publication in Hold On, two of which ("Ashes, Ashes" and "Falling") were selected as Caldwell Finalists. That same year, "Ashes, Ashes" was also published in Xylem Literary Magazine, a student-run publication on the University of Michigan campus.

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In her junior year, Alexis returned to LHSP as a Resident Advisor and served as a co-leader of the LHSP Arts and Literary Journal Club, as well as an Editor-in-Chief of that year's journal, if you need time to think... One of Alexis' poems ("Yin & Yang") was published in the journal as a Caldwell Honorable Mention. She also took her Sweetland Minor in Writing Gateway course and created a Minor in Writing E-Portfolio featuring some of her work from the Winter 2019 semester.

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In her senior year, Alexis returned to LHSP, now renamed Lloyd Scholars for Writing and the Arts (LSWA), as a Resident Advisor and served as a co-leader of the LSWA Arts and Literary Journal Club, as well as an Editor-in-Chief of that year's journal, Pause, whose publication is forthcoming at the time of this writing. In Pause, Alexis will have several poems and several photographs published. In the Winter 2020 semester of this year, she also completed her Minor in Writing Capstone course, the product of which is the website you are currently viewing.

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On April 30th, 2020 (followed by a virtual commencement ceremony on May 2nd, 2020), Alexis graduated from the University of Michigan with a BA in Communication and Media and a Minor in Writing from the Sweetland Center for Writing. She remains a book-lover, a night owl, a people pleaser, a “mom friend,” a writer, a photographer, and a number of other things. Most likely, her interests continue to include poetry, photography, dad jokes, her faith, good food, cute dogs, and random acts of kindness.

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She wishes you well as you explore the rest of Skins of Dirt and Dust, and she hopes you will contact her at aaulepp@umich.edu if you have any comments, questions, or friendly hellos waiting to be shared.