“The magazine has a real legacy, and it’s one that has been a pillar of elevating and celebrating distinguished student creativity,” Gonzalez said. “I’m always left feeling humbled. I feel like I’m part of a force that is greater than just myself.”

This year, the Collective’s editorial staff had approximately 25 members, a 28% increase from last year. Gonzalez said this significant uptick in participation and enthusiasm over the publication allowed him to step back and watch the students let their creativity take the reins on the magazine, something he was thrilled to see.

“This year it was my job to support a student-led publication from which the goals, vision and imperatives would come from the students rather than me projecting or assigning some kind of vision,” Gonzalez said. “There were so many people who were involved and passionate and wanted to make the thing, and this really created the structure that we needed to land the plane.”

Gonzalez said this year Stone-cutters saw not only an increase in the number of staff members, but also an increase in the number of works being submitted to the magazine itself, both of which filled the publication with more passion than he has seen in past issues.

“Whereas other issues have perhaps had fewer pieces and been printed on nicer paper, this year’s magazine had the emotion,” Gonzalez said. “Every one of these pieces I think is truly one that we could not give up; that had to be published.”

Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Stone-cutters Collective Josephine Wiener said the length of the publication wasn’t something that the group frowned upon, rather, it was something they celebrated.

“This is by far the longest issue we’ve put out in recent memory,” Wiener said. “We were lucky enough to have tons of incredible poems submitted, so many that we actually had to ask for more artwork at the last minute. And when we reviewed all of those pieces to try to find a narrative or commonality between them, that’s when the magazine really started to come together.”

Gonzalez said the deep emotion and themes of vulnerability led the Collective to make the decision to focus on the emotional effect of the publication as a whole rather than the technical details.

“We weren’t precious about what it would look like,” Gonzalez said. “Instead, we cared about what it would feel like, and that’s what makes an impact on people.”

Wiener said the Stone-cutters Collective has always been a space for her creativity to be seen and instead of solely her academic prowess, and that this issue highlighted that intrinsic value of the publication.

“I’ve always loved that Stone-cutters creates a space for artists to show their creations, not just for something to put on their Common App, but to be recognized by their peers,” Wiener said. “This issue is a poignant testament to the creativity and skill of my fellow students, especially in a time when that individuality is being challenged in the world around us.”