A Bachelor's Degree in Creative Writing: The Journey So Far

Writers are expendable.

If you don't believe me, ask the companies that I, and many others like me, worked for in 2020. I thought I achieved success by finding work in my industry even before I left school, yet when issues arose during the Covid-19 pandemic, small time writers and editors like myself were given the boot from marketing and social media teams without a second thought.

A global pandemic seemed more appropriate as the premise for one of my fiction pieces when I graduated with a degree in creative writing in 2020, not what would in reality rob me of all I had worked for up to that point.

Still, I thought I had something to fall back on. Maybe my stories and written works would take off? I'd write a piece and be seen and get the notoriety needed to propel me to Stephen King or Tolkien status. If that sounds all too familiar to many of my fellow struggling writers, then the outcome is probably just as painfully familiar and it goes without saying.

And no success came when I sought jobs in writing either. I had to start from square one. I had to descend into the depths of what I thought was hell at the time for the sake of myself, and the sweet girl I had just married.

The only way I can describe my search for full time work in the aftermath of the covid-19 pandemic is that of an emotional roller coaster. Or maybe something more akin to Its A Small World, because I felt completely locked in and subjected to a hellaciously repetetive ride, that ride being the pursuit of success.

First came the job I hated, one where the company looks at every employee as expendable. Just bodies to fill spots on the conveyor belt. Then I got the job I felt I had always wanted, one using my writing skills, one where I thought I knew I was succeeding because I was using my skills as a writer.

Yet, as had happened previously, I was reminded that writers are expendable and was given a much more painful boot than before. Fired from the one place I felt held the assurance that I was succeeding as a writer and in life.

Success is a fickle mistress. She is particular about the way in which she arrives, and refuses to do so in anyone else's time than her own. She takes time, and not without constant, steady, and consistent effort does she choose to even give a glimpse of her beauty.

Success is a worn and dirty carpet, and I didn't learn what it takes to make it shine through until I wound up becoming a custodian. It takes the right chemicals, and properly balanced Ph levels. It takes scrubbing, aggitating, and extracting. And by the time its done, you can finally see it so clearly that it looks almost completely different than when you started.

Therfore, let this serve as the backdrop for my aspirations in 2024, both on Vocal, and in life. In essence, my thesis if you wish to call it such, is that as I have worked at my writing constantly, steadily, and consistently, I've glimpsed the beauty of true success, and it looks a bit different than when I started.

I originally began my time on Vocal when I first started to see their writing challenges on my social media feeds. My first thought was, of course it would be easy to win, but I'd also be honing my writing skills with any challenge I participated in.

One of those thoughts turned out to be true. As for the other, it is still one goal of mine heading into 2024 to win one Vocal writing challenge. Regardless, as I have entered the challenges, and created work that I feel is my best at the time, I have seen myself grow as a writer. I have been able to create work that has stretched and challenged me, and most importantly, allowed me to just have fun writing it.

It wasn't until just recently that over the course of writing a book, I submitted one of my unused poems to Vocal. And though it did not win a challenge, it did make top story in October of 2023. You can read that poem here:

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I couldn't have been happier to see this happen, but as my perspective on success has changed, I knew I still needed to stay consistent and persistent in writing and expressing myself.

As mentioned, I am currently working on a book, and as part of my goals on Vocal, I have wanted to share selections and poems from it to 1) build anticipation 2) build my audience, and 3) express my feelings and challenges in hopes they will resonate with others.

In 2023 I published one of these excerpt poems from my book on Vocal. It is one I am pleased with for how it captures my challenges and experiences through the lense of another passion of mine which is martial arts. I hope others will enjoy and look for the symbolism and lessons I tucked away in its words, and maybe those they find tucked away. Either way, I'd love to hear what you feel when reading, because thats where the magic really is.

As I worked on these pieces, all the while cleaning carpets as a custodian, it all caused me to reflect on past works. Amid my reflection, I looked back at a web comic I had published 3 years ago. An old carpet if you will. And wouldn't you know it, it needed a good cleaning!

With the consistent work I had been putting out on Vocal and in writing my book I recognized past mistakes and shortcomings I could go back and actually improve upon, and thats just what I did. I have to say that it is the work I am most pleased with of 2023, but its release came just a few days earlier this year.

Not only can you read my latest version, but you can also compare and contrast it with the first iteration I created 3 years prior. Call it an observation in how much improvement can come with 3 years of consistent, steady effort.

In custodial cleaning and writing, your perspective changes the longer you work at it. What starts as an unclean, or uneditted mess, can with time and constant effort become something clean, concise, and beautiful. You can not only see something you didn't see before, but see more of whats around you than before, like finding those who share your same interests. People like Shamona Pretz.

As 2024 rolls on I hope to find more creators like Shamona, who I am happy to see have a similar passion not only for Mario Party and retro gaming, but for capturing the crucial "Why" behind the love for it. Her work speaks volumes about wearing who you are on your sleeve, and being true to yourself. I look forward to discovering hers and other creators work like hers in the coming year.

My journey to 2023 has been one of learning and growth. One that was steady, albeit a bit bumpy, and one wherein my perception of the world and my success in it has broadened. I hope that this broadening only continues in 2024.

As I look ahead to whats in store for me on Vocal in 2024, its more stories, both mine and those written by others. My goals on Vocal are to broaden my perspective, and consistently build up my body of work. Sharing what I write and building an audience not measured in numbers, but in how those individuals in my audience resonate with what I share.

I look forward to sharing my stories with a growing audience. I look forward to experiencing others' stories on Vocal. In 2024 my success will be defined not by the approval and recognition of others, but it will be defined as what it always has, steady effort and sharing what's in my heart.

To the world, writers may be expendable, but the work we create should not be viewed that way. We deliver works that come from within, extracting pieces of our very soul to display to the world and to be accepted or rejected. We temper, edit, and refine it to reflect what is in our heart to resonate with the hearts of others. We work constantly, steadily, and consistently to deliver a finished piece, like a custodian delivers a clean carpet.

And custodians will never be expendable.