Members of the Literary Magazine took a glimpse into the world of professional writing at the Dodge Poetry Festival in Newark on Friday, Oct. 19.

The Dodge Poetry Festival is a four-day event that occurs every other year in Newark. The festival is the largest of its kind in North America.

Authors featured at the festival included Sandra Cisneros, author of “The House On Mango Street” and Sapphire, author of “Push” and “The Kid.”

This year, 17 students attended the trip, chosen based on their involvement in Lit Mag, said technology teacher and Literary Magazine adviser Laura Gesin.

“You had to be active in Lit Mag” Gesin said. “If you’ve given to Literary Magazine, this is our way of giving back.”

Gesin said the event was beneficial to students because it exposed them to professional writers.

“Even your teachers can’t explain to you what it means to be a writer because we are not full-time writers,” Gesin said.

Senior and Lit Mag Co-Editor-in-Chief Vivian DeRosa of Ocean said she had a positive experience at the event.

“[We] went to multiple lectures by different poets who have really award-winning, famous names,” DeRosa said. “It was really exciting to hear their insight. Best day of my entire life.”

Students also had the opportunity to gain perspectives from artists of varying cultures and ethnicities.

“[The event] is very diverse,” Gesin said. “It’s really good for our students to find out what it is like to be in a different situation.”

Sophomore Steven Ostrom of Lincroft said he enjoyed the opportunity to hear from those who shared a similar passion.

“It was really cool to see how many people gathered in one spot to just see these people speak,” Ostrom said. “I would 100 percent attend again.”