Victoria Fraser
Why did you choose your program at UBC and what did you enjoy most about it?
Ever since I was a kid I wanted to be a writer.
When it came to post-secondary, Creative Writing was a natural first choice for me. I started my academic career trying out different courses and found that Psychology was another one of my passions, and declared that as my major with Creative Writing as a minor.
Still, I decided to apply to the BFA for Creative Writing while doing my Psychology degree. Truthfully, I never even expected to get in as I had heard it was so competitive. When I did get accepted, I realized I now had to do both majors and despite the extra effort, I don’t regret it.
Psychology pushed me to understand how the mind works and gave me experience in a lab and writing academic papers. Creative Writing allowed me to push my boundaries as a writer and experiment in new genres that I fell in love with, from comics to podcasts.
Both majors pushed me as an individual and I learned a lot about my own potential.
What were some of your most meaningful experiences at UBC?
One of my greatest struggles at UBC was making friends, but luckily I had great professors that helped me combat this.
In the department of Psychology, there were tons of students so it felt like I was drowning in a sea of acquaintances. Luckily, I pushed myself to create a few good friends despite the massive lecture sizes. I also had great professors like Lillian May who often encouraged discussions. I remember her first class was so refreshing because she had every single student introduce themselves in an auditorium of 300. It helped me so much.
In Creative Writing, two of my favourite professors, Sarah Leavitt and Sheryda Warrener, created a space where I felt safe in exposing my vulnerability as a writer and I made good friends in my comics and poetry workshops.
What choices did you make at UBC that contributed to your career success / journey?
I’ve always followed my interests and thankfully UBC has a club for everything you can imagine.
UBC Slam Poetry has contributed immensely to my current career path. In my fourth year, I was the Treasurer and learned a lot about finance. I even made a newsletter which I now have as a portfolio piece as a copywriter. Once a week I joined the Wargamers drop-in boardgame nights and found so many great new games. Now, that experience has contributed to the expansive boardgame knowledge that helped me land a client who needed help with a Kickstarter website.
What was your first job after graduation and what other jobs did you have before your current position?
After I graduated UBC, I had no idea where to go. In the three years since then, my path has been far from linear. I worked as a bartender, receptionist, and even a 911 operator. None of them felt like the right fit.
Finally, after leaving my last job, I was unemployed at the worst time possible. COVID-19 was keeping everyone at home and I had no idea what career path to try next. Luckily, I had a close friend who knew I had a degree in writing and told me to try freelancing.
Why not? I decided to give it a try working for myself and from home. So here I am now. Successfully doing what I love. After hopping from one path to the next, I’m not just using my degree, but following my dream.
Is your current career path as you originally intended? What challenges did you face in launching your career?
In some ways, this has been my goal since I was five years old. I have always loved writing and telling stories. No one ever told me I could make money doing it. In fact, many people told me it just wasn’t viable.
While it’s difficult writing poetry and making money, writing web content for strangers sure isn’t! As long as I’m writing, it counts as a win to me.
It was difficult getting the first few clients, but in the first two months, I managed three steady clients who asked me to do everything from writing short stories for a blog to editing their PowerPoint presentations.
What do you like about your current job and what do you find challenging? How does it relate to your degree?
The most difficult part for me is waking up in the morning! I’ve never been able to function well before 9am, but luckily, since my clients are around the world, the time zones mean I am often staying up late instead.
As a freelance writer, I get to bring a creative flair to a boring blog post and give a human voice to a website that sounds robotic. With my psychology knowledge, I even know basic marketing tactics that help make my writing more engaging.
From your experience, what has been the value of having an Arts degree?
My Arts degree gives me credibility and proves that I had the dedication to complete a degree when many don’t. In my career as a freelance writer where many people are applying to gigs, it helps me stand out. Another benefit that helped me land clients was UBC’s reputation across Canada. One client hired me as a fellow Canadian when he saw my UBC degree, despite my minimal experience.
Without my Arts degree, I’m sure I would have a much more difficult time. All the late hours in the library writing stories and research articles were worth it!
What advice would you give to students and alumni interested in breaking into your industry?
Start now. Don’t wait until you’ve read a bunch of books or blogs on how to write online. You write your path to success, and reading everyone else’s path is just delaying you from starting your own. I love to research things before I dive in, but the truth is you will never know everything. Admit you’re a beginner and keen to learn, and you’ll be surprised how many companies will hire you for that alone.
Think you’re not qualified? There’s a reason so many writing jobs pay so little – it’s because they want an entry-level writer. The best way for you to start a portfolio is to get paid to do it.
What advice would you give to your first-year self?
I would tell myself so many things but it boils down to three words: follow your whims.
Apply to jobs you don’t qualify for and celebrate when you get them. Leave the places that don’t make you happy until you find ones that do. Make mistakes and forgive yourself for it because we are all only human.
Every whim I went after gave me the experiences that are relevant to what I do today. You will find a path and you won’t want to change a thing.
Victoria Fraser
Why did you choose your program at UBC and what did you enjoy most about it?
Ever since I was a kid I wanted to be a writer.
When it came to post-secondary, Creative Writing was a natural first choice for me. I started my academic career trying out different courses and found that Psychology was another one of my passions, and declared that as my major with Creative Writing as a minor.
Still, I decided to apply to the BFA for Creative Writing while doing my Psychology degree. Truthfully, I never even expected to get in as I had heard it was so competitive. When I did get accepted, I realized I now had to do both majors and despite the extra effort, I don’t regret it.
Psychology pushed me to understand how the mind works and gave me experience in a lab and writing academic papers. Creative Writing allowed me to push my boundaries as a writer and experiment in new genres that I fell in love with, from comics to podcasts.
Both majors pushed me as an individual and I learned a lot about my own potential.
What were some of your most meaningful experiences at UBC?
One of my greatest struggles at UBC was making friends, but luckily I had great professors that helped me combat this.
In the department of Psychology, there were tons of students so it felt like I was drowning in a sea of acquaintances. Luckily, I pushed myself to create a few good friends despite the massive lecture sizes. I also had great professors like Lillian May who often encouraged discussions. I remember her first class was so refreshing because she had every single student introduce themselves in an auditorium of 300. It helped me so much.
In Creative Writing, two of my favourite professors, Sarah Leavitt and Sheryda Warrener, created a space where I felt safe in exposing my vulnerability as a writer and I made good friends in my comics and poetry workshops.
What choices did you make at UBC that contributed to your career success / journey?
I’ve always followed my interests and thankfully UBC has a club for everything you can imagine.
UBC Slam Poetry has contributed immensely to my current career path. In my fourth year, I was the Treasurer and learned a lot about finance. I even made a newsletter which I now have as a portfolio piece as a copywriter. Once a week I joined the Wargamers drop-in boardgame nights and found so many great new games. Now, that experience has contributed to the expansive boardgame knowledge that helped me land a client who needed help with a Kickstarter website.
What was your first job after graduation and what other jobs did you have before your current position?
After I graduated UBC, I had no idea where to go. In the three years since then, my path has been far from linear. I worked as a bartender, receptionist, and even a 911 operator. None of them felt like the right fit.
Finally, after leaving my last job, I was unemployed at the worst time possible. COVID-19 was keeping everyone at home and I had no idea what career path to try next. Luckily, I had a close friend who knew I had a degree in writing and told me to try freelancing.
Why not? I decided to give it a try working for myself and from home. So here I am now. Successfully doing what I love. After hopping from one path to the next, I’m not just using my degree, but following my dream.
Is your current career path as you originally intended? What challenges did you face in launching your career?
In some ways, this has been my goal since I was five years old. I have always loved writing and telling stories. No one ever told me I could make money doing it. In fact, many people told me it just wasn’t viable.
While it’s difficult writing poetry and making money, writing web content for strangers sure isn’t! As long as I’m writing, it counts as a win to me.
It was difficult getting the first few clients, but in the first two months, I managed three steady clients who asked me to do everything from writing short stories for a blog to editing their PowerPoint presentations.
What do you like about your current job and what do you find challenging? How does it relate to your degree?
The most difficult part for me is waking up in the morning! I’ve never been able to function well before 9am, but luckily, since my clients are around the world, the time zones mean I am often staying up late instead.
As a freelance writer, I get to bring a creative flair to a boring blog post and give a human voice to a website that sounds robotic. With my psychology knowledge, I even know basic marketing tactics that help make my writing more engaging.
From your experience, what has been the value of having an Arts degree?
My Arts degree gives me credibility and proves that I had the dedication to complete a degree when many don’t. In my career as a freelance writer where many people are applying to gigs, it helps me stand out. Another benefit that helped me land clients was UBC’s reputation across Canada. One client hired me as a fellow Canadian when he saw my UBC degree, despite my minimal experience.
Without my Arts degree, I’m sure I would have a much more difficult time. All the late hours in the library writing stories and research articles were worth it!
What advice would you give to students and alumni interested in breaking into your industry?
Start now. Don’t wait until you’ve read a bunch of books or blogs on how to write online. You write your path to success, and reading everyone else’s path is just delaying you from starting your own. I love to research things before I dive in, but the truth is you will never know everything. Admit you’re a beginner and keen to learn, and you’ll be surprised how many companies will hire you for that alone.
Think you’re not qualified? There’s a reason so many writing jobs pay so little – it’s because they want an entry-level writer. The best way for you to start a portfolio is to get paid to do it.
What advice would you give to your first-year self?
I would tell myself so many things but it boils down to three words: follow your whims.
Apply to jobs you don’t qualify for and celebrate when you get them. Leave the places that don’t make you happy until you find ones that do. Make mistakes and forgive yourself for it because we are all only human.
Every whim I went after gave me the experiences that are relevant to what I do today. You will find a path and you won’t want to change a thing.
