Vicky Sievey – "I have learnt so much about myself, my writing, and what limitless possibilities there are"

Having previously undertaken a combined BA (Hons) degree, I was confident I would be able to timetable my schedule to complete coursework. My previous study was undertaken alongside working almost full-time and raising a (then) young family, in addition to travelling to and from a university 30 miles away. The pressures to engage with all things were not inconsiderate. This online delivery seemed so much more accessible. By early January 2025, I had been accepted and begun.

What has been a real bonus about being online are no travel costs, and no travelling time. There is no lugging books to and from home as a full library of all the required and complementary texts is available to me online. I have physically visited the AUB Library, which is well-stocked, but as my books are all provided online, I can only browse the library at the AUB building and not actually borrow. But it is an additional workspace I can utilise, and there are lots of resources I can access while I am there.

Not exclusively, but historically I have studied in a physical group, so it was a different arrangement, but the weekly seminars and online forums ensure peer contact and support.

The earlier units were a little more challenging as I got back into study, with some unfamiliar themes (Transmedia Storytelling and Writing in the Anthropocene), but being open to engage with new material has helped towards the bigger picture of creating story worlds for my future writing.

I highly recommend the optional summer residential weekend as fodder for creative ideas, intermingling and some restorative space. I am booked onto the next one as I found last year’s valuable, both immediately and retrospectively.

Tutors are easily accessible via email for queries or to arrange tutorials. If you need any guidance, they will help. I have found the Programme Leader to be exceptional in terms of engagement, knowledge and enthusiasm.

I would recommend this course to anyone wanting to understand more about the creative writing process across different genres and mediums. The course has an overarching theme of ‘Future Ecologies’, which signalled that the content should strongly represent aspects of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which AUB and Bournemouth University are signed up to.

In year one, I engaged with a ‘Publishing in the 21^st Century’ unit, working as part of the design faction (of three factions) to help produce an anthology of stories we had written. Other factions were editors and proofreaders and marketers – although there was cross-pollination between the different factions. I will be reading from this anthology on Earth Day at AUB as part of the launch for the anthology Tendrils – an anthology on nature, growth and identity. A collection of 21 short pieces by three cohorts of students all engaged in the Creative Writing carousel. I am looking forward to doing this alongside several peers who are coming from far and wide for the occasion and to read their work.

As I enter my second year, time is whizzing by. I have learnt so much about myself, my writing, and what limitless possibilities there are. My career in healthcare is an inspiration for a lot of my themes. It is a full-on course, but one that reaps rewards as new authors are delightfully uncovered and discovered. I have bookmarked so many of the texts to return to and enjoyed encountering writers I would never have previously considered.

My top tips:

1. Set yourself up with an online referencing tool before you start – saves so much time and most are free e.g. Zotero. There are tutorials online or in the AUB student resources.
2. Read as much as possible and then some!
3. Be prepared to give feedback to others in addition to receiving it.
4. Complete as many of the weekly discussion and learning opportunity tasks as you can, to help shape your work.
5. Read and refer to your course manual.