Like a lot of people who convocate with a Bachelor’s degree, the biggest question is “Now what?”
In 1996, I had an expensive English degree, a specialization in creative writing, and not a lot of other options. (The other big question you get asked, especially with an English degree is: “Are you going to be a teacher?” Answer: “No, I’m not going to be a teacher…maybe?”)
After struggling to find work (including turning down a door-to-door sales job because I would have to wear a tie!), I got accepted to a work placement program through the University for unemployed/underemployed Arts Grads (which I always refer to as being like a “co-op program for Arts students”.)
The program gave us one month of job training on skills that I may have needed (tips for interviewing and having a professional review our resumes and cover letters) and things I probably didn’t (the basics of using a computer!) As part of the program, they also offered funding for a three month work placement via a coordinator who interviewed you and would try to find work in an area of interest.
I said that with an English degree, I was interested in areas like publishing, media, marketing. They came back with two placements that I was interested in – helping to research a book and an organization called the Saskatchewan Publishers Group which I didn’t know much about but which worked with the province’s book publishers.
I applied for and was offered both jobs but then had to make a tough decision. The appeal of having my name anywhere near a book, even as a researcher, appealed greatly but I remember thinking that working with a bunch of book publishers would probably increase my chances of getting a book of my own published even more. (Er, spoiler alert: twenty years later and still no book-length publication to my name!) 😉
I went to work for the Sask Publishers Group designing their first web site for two-thirds of my time and I spent 1/3 of my time working with another non-profit down the hall, the Saskatchewan Library Association, updating and improving their existing web site. During this contract, I was given opportunities to do so much more than the web site work – everything from learning about board meetings to the basics of bookkeeping to writing newsletters and more.
My term was coming to an end but my boss (who I still consider one of the best bosses I ever had) was a wizard at writing grants and finding funding. She got a grant from the Cultural Human Resources Council to keep me on for another six months where I did a lot of work including designing web sites for some of our member publishers and even hung out my shingle briefly offering freelance web design services to other cultural non-profits and publishers outside the province I’d met through my SPG connections. After that, she found another grant. Then my funding ran out but due to my work at the SPG, I got a summer contract with SPG’s sister organization, the Saskatchewan Motion Picture Industry Association (SMPIA). Then there may have been one-two other short contracts with other cultural non-profits I’m forgetting (maybe this is when I ended up doing a lot more freelance web design work plus some editing and writing projects?) but ultimately, the SPG (which had two co-Executive Directors with only one other contract employee on a different work placement program) had one executive director leave which allowed them to restructure leaving my favourite boss of all-time and a newly created position of “Marketing and Technology Officer” (and, typical of non-profit world, I think I even had a hand in creating the title of a position that was basically created for me!)
I stayed at the SPG for about four years and learned so much about so much – since it was a small, grant-dependent organization without a lot of staffing or resources, you had to do it all yourself. You were the Marketing department. You were the Maintenance department. You were the IT department. You were the HR department (whenever we hired, my boss let me sit in on interviews recognizing that being able to do the job was only 50% of hiring while “fitting in with existing team” was also 50% of hiring – one of many philosophies I learned at the SPG that I’ve carried with me to this day.)
When Shea graduated from her nursing program and wanted to work in Alberta, the thought of leaving the SPG almost led to us breaking up (I enjoyed the job that much!) but the SPG, which spoiled me with some of the best perks and benefits I’ve ever enjoyed, agreed to a non-binding one-year leave of absence – I could choose to return after a year but if things worked out in Calgary, I wouldn’t be required to come back.
I went to Calgary and after looking for work for a while, I lucked into work with a very similar organization, the Writers Guild of Alberta where I did many of the same things I did for the SPG – just serving writers instead of publishers. And instead of returning to the SPG, I stayed with the WGA for three and a half years.
In all, I spent nearly a decade in the cultural non-profit sector and had so many amazing experiences, met so many fascinating people (name drop – who else has Giller Award winner, Will Ferguson, pop in their office to drop off a special Australian edition of one of his books for a contest you’re running?) and learned so much useful information.
I often wonder how my life would’ve been different if I’d chosen a different path or went to library school earlier or even if I’d become a teacher. But every time I do, I have very few regrets about the career path (and really, the life path – I’m still involved in publishing to this day as a board member for Coteau books) I chose.
