Writing Their Own Love Story

With Valentine’s Day quickly approaching, “love is in the air” everywhere. This week, the MC Writing Center caught up with a couple whose own love story began in the English department several years ago.

Caleb Bedillion and his wife Allison worked as MC Writing Center tutors and then graduated in 2011. The happily married couple now enjoys living life together, him with an English literature degree and her with an English education degree.

Originally hailing from Monroe, Louisiana, Caleb Bedillion now works as the government and politics reporter at the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, located in Tupelo.

As a well-known Mississippi reporter, Mr. Bedillion had the opportunity to serve as a moderator for the Senate debate last fall. He often writes several articles per day and works on bigger projects as well, including the November election day coverage of 2018.

Concerning his time at MC, his growth as a writer, and his best piece of advice for an MC student, Bedillion provided some interesting insight. During his senior year, he chose to work as a tutor because it was a good on-campus job. It would help in “building my own skills as a writer,” he said.

He first encountered his now wife Allison through various English classes. They both took Dr. Randle for Analysis of Literature during sophomore year and then took two different English classes together during junior year.

“We were already dating when I started working at the writing center during the spring of junior year, but we had a couple shifts together, and that gave us an opportunity to spend a little more time together,” he said. “I think Allison enjoyed working at the writing center even more than I did.”

To reach his current level of writing and reporting, Bedillion practiced and practiced. Combining his English major with two minors, Philosophy and History, he was challenged with multiple term papers or writing projects that helped improve his skills.

Bedillion is very satisfied with the quality of writing he produces. He specifically enjoys writing personal columns for the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, “including one reflecting on the ongoing legacy of racial division in Mississippi,” he added.

He now writes multiple articles each day as a journalist. “I have tried to exhibit ongoing effort combined with a self-critical attitude and a desire to keep improving,” Bedillion said.

As a word of advice, Bedillion suggests students should focus more on learning from their classes rather than just earning a good grade. These two “are not always the same thing,” he explained.

The MC Writing Center allows you to both learn and turn in a better paper. You can get a head start on your next assignment by making an appointment here: https://mc.mywconline.com/.

To this day, Caleb and Allison utilize the many skills they learned at Mississippi College. This love story started with just a writing center and a few English classes. Now they pursue exciting careers and continue to write their own story…together.

You can follow Mr. Bedillion on Twitter, @CalebBedillion, or read his writing at djournal.com to keep up with all the latest in Mississippi government and politics.