As far as anyone in the archive can tell, creative writing journals at Rider date as far back as 1927 with the Rough Rider, which served as part newsletter, part creative writing magazine for what was then the Rider School of Shorthand and Typing. The earliest existing copy is from December 1927, and it includes short fiction and poetry, as well as articles summarizing that fall's athletics and campus events. The issue begins with a poem entitled "Life," by Editor-in-Chief Donald M. Wells:

            Life is just a game to play
            So let's all play it well,
            For each and every one of us
            Has worthy service to sell.

    Given its date, this jingle is what could be called the first "Rider" poem, serving as the cornerstone of creativity for aspiring poets and artists alike at our school. The Rough Rider continued in the same way through World War II, providing news, art, and wisdom to the future accountants and secretaries at Rider.

     In 1947, Jargon replaced the Rough Rider, covering sports, socials, and creative writing at our school. In contrast to the Rough Rider, Jargon was less concerned with ontology, featuring a monthly "Cover Gal" in each issue, as well as articles such as "Short or Long Skirts: which Fits the Female Figure Best?" Mary Lou Hoffman graced the inaugural cover, and is described by the editors as "twenty years old, honey-voiced, freckle-faced, with a peaches and cream complexion that made the boys from Jargon practically stampede with a unanimous choice for our November cover girl--need we say more?" Among the many additions, the artistic tradition at Rider continued in short stories like "The Joker" by Jack O'Hea, which begins:

            I was very young as a boy.  Younger than most boys.  Maybe
           that's why all the other boys hated me?   I think it was, . . . 

      Unfortunately, Jargon's shelf-life was short-lived, ending in 1954 and giving way to our current creative writing publication, Venture.

      Perhaps the best summary of the last forty-seven years of creative writing at Rider can be found in the Editorial that begins theinaugural issue:

          Noah Webster said that "venture" is "an ndertaking involving
         danger; a hazard; risk; specifically, a speculative business enterprise". 
         We feel that the problems confronting us in our attempt to create a
         successfull magazine are sufficient in mumber and magnetictude to
         merit the name VENTURE.

Amid this typo-ridden call-to-arms is the noble declaration: "Venture is the latest attempt to stimulate, and perhaps elevate our thinking." Somehow it seems that this call has caught in the unstopped ears of the current Venture staff, inspiring us to follow the same path that generations of receptionists, clerks, and middle-management people have tread before. It is against the backdrop of such an illustrious tradition that we publish our current little journal, and although we don't know where, we hope that it goes.

by Joseph Pizza