Philcia is a graduate from the MLitt Creative Writing programme...

Tell us a little bit about your background...

Ever since nursery, when a friend read me a story and I felt completely absorbed by it, I’ve wanted to be a storyteller. I couldn’t tell you the title now – I just remember feeling enthralled. That’s the feeling I want to evoke in others. Over time I realised I didn’t want to be limited to written words alone. It would be the foundation, yes, but only the beginning. So I taught myself coding, improved my art skills and began exploring how stories can live across different media, and that’s how I went from being the wee kid listening to stories to someone now trying to build them.

What drew you towards undertaking this degree?

I originally wanted to be a journalist but my real dream was to write my novel and build a media company. The University of Strathclyde’s BA Honours in Journalism and English & Creative Writing was the perfect fit because it didn’t force me to choose. I could learn first, decide later. Doing an MLitt in Creative Writing felt like the natural next step. During my undergraduate degree, my interests shifted from media and journalism to the creative development process behind written works, music, webcomics, and podcasts. Strathclyde encouraged that exploration and my dream stopped feeling like just an idea and it instead became an attainable goal.

What was a typical week like on the programme?

In the first semester we got to speak to industry professionals, understand their own motives for their career path, the successes they had achieved, how they stumbled along the way and reminders of just how important connections and community were. We had groups where we’d share our works in progress, meeting in the library or sometimes a restaurant, café or bar before, after and between lectures. A few of our lectures were geared towards researching our final projects so we could develop our work, truly understand it, and prepare in advance.

The second semester had a similar structure but the guest segments were replaced by delving into formatting, video, art – whatever way you felt would bring a new perspective to your creations.

The third semester was definitely my favourite as it became more self-directed. I spent that entire time writing my novel or going to events with authors and scriptwriters and book fairs and poetry nights.

Tell us about your final project...

I decided to write the next few chapters of my novel for my final project – a continuation of my undergraduate dissertation. I made more progress in my novel than I had in a year of procrastination and I just kept writing after that. Working one-on-one with a mentor was invaluable as he taught me tricks to view my work with a fresh pair of eyes – plan, write, step back, edit. One chapter flowed out of me so naturally that I was thrilled when my mentor said that same energy came through in my writing. If I have any regrets it would be that I didn’t ask more questions. I honestly thought I had it all figured out, but looking back, I realised I missed opportunities to learn even more from his expertise.

Where are you working now?

I currently work freelance editing content, training AI and designing marketing material. Freelancing gives me the flexibility to dedicate time to developing my app for creatives, which is my main focus outside of work. It’s called the ANNXD Hub. One side is a platform where writers, musicians, podcasters and artists can collaborate across media and grow an audience. The other side is a studio that upskills creators and helps with professional development and production. It’s the middle step between congested independent platforms and the high barriers of traditional publishing – basically everything I wished existed when I was starting out. The platform is currently in development with a working prototype already built and I’m aiming towards a more polished beta version over the coming months. Eventually I’d love to work on it full-time, but for now I’m happy just making steady progress between client projects.

You have created an app that aims to support creatives. Tell us a little bit about how you have used the skills gained from the course during the creation phase...

I remember format and editing always cropping up in every class. We even had a full day dedicated just to editing. When I started working on the content side of my app, I realised just how right they were. Workshop critiques taught me that good feedback is specific, kind, and actionable – so that’s exactly how I’m designing the collaboration tools on ANNXD.

Guest lectures from industry pros showed me how valuable direct access to professionals can be, so I've built roles for them into the app. The communities will have tutorials, community posts, resources to navigate the app, and managers to help navigate creative careers. Beta reading and listening will come with structured feedback templates that offer clear, signposted advice for development.

All tied together by a gamified creator achievements system that encourages showing up to events, joining discussions, and helping other creators – exactly the kind of community participation that made my own degree so valuable.

What advice would you give to someone considering applying for this course?

Be social. Even if you are the most introverted introvert that has ever lived – explore, attend events, get to know your lecturers (they can become your peers!), and make friends. If you register for an event and then don’t go, don’t dwell on it. Just show up next time. The people you meet, the connections you make – it’s a community ready to welcome you. Just be brave and take the first step.