{"id":9708,"date":"2024-04-25T13:27:14","date_gmt":"2024-04-25T13:27:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/?p=9708"},"modified":"2025-02-04T11:28:32","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T11:28:32","slug":"top-tips-for-starting-your-creative-project-bossing-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/2024\/04\/25\/top-tips-for-starting-your-creative-project-bossing-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Top tips for starting your creative project \u2013 Bossing It"},"content":{"rendered":"

Creative projects can teach new skills, open new doors, and make quality time for your personal interests. Whether you\u2019re looking to turn a hobby into a career or bring ideas to life in your spare time, a bit of guidance can help you get started. We asked some of our fantastic alumni who have worked on a range of projects \u2013 from magazines to podcasts \u2013 to share their top tips.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Claudia Rutherford (BA 2019)<\/h2>\n

Claudia is the Founding Editor of <\/span>Santes Dwynwen Magazine<\/span><\/a>, a Wales-focused arts and culture publication. While a student, she completed<\/span> Cardiff University’s Undergraduate Research Opportunities Placement, researching media, public, and political reactions to the Grenfell Tower fire. Alongside her studies in Philosophy, she was a producer and presenter on Cardiff Student Media’s Xpress Radio, and regularly contributed to Quench Magazine. She is currently working within education.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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You don\u2019t have to know all the \u2018right\u2019 people before you start<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Creative industries bolster the importance of networking, but this can be inaccessible. <\/span>I\u2019ve worked in caf\u00e9s and supermarkets since I was a teenager. The contacts and skills you build whilst serving people within your community can be more valuable than simply knowing professionals within the industry.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Connecting and empathising with all different types of people, not just those who work in creative fields, will make your work more authentic. As well as developing your communication skills, you gain an understanding of the stories that matter to people \u2013 something I found essential when creating my magazine.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Elinor Terry (BA 2017)\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Elinor<\/span><\/a> is Head of Design & Social at <\/span>Redbricks Media<\/span><\/a>, a digital production company she co-founded in 2023. Redbricks Media specialises in digital film, podcasts, social media, and websites. Prior to this, Elinor spent five years at the BBC, first as a Digital Researcher and later as a Social Media Executive. She worked on BBC Education\u2019s campaign Tiny Happy People, launching its social strategy in conjunction with the Royal Foundation and Kensington Palace. After graduating in 2017, Elinor initially worked as a Tutor part-time, alongside freelancing as a YouTuber and writer.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Create like no one is watching or listening (because they probably aren\u2019t)!<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

I would never have gotten any of the jobs or career opportunities I\u2019ve had without my hodgepodge portfolio of creative projects, often viewed solely by my mum and her Facebook friends. From my Year Abroad blog to a Booktube channel that barely made it to 100 followers, I haven\u2019t created anything that you could say \u2018took off\u2019.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, the skills I learnt along the way are what helped me get my foot in the door at the BBC and go on to start my own digital media company. Skills like speaking confidently on camera, editing video and audio, and optimising SEO were practical examples of my experience which (I hope) made my CV stand out.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the world of digital production, success isn’t always measured by likes or views. You will learn so much by starting a creative project \u2013 so keep going and you never know what will happen. At the very least, it\u2019ll be your stepping stone to something even greater.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ffion Clarke (MA 2020)<\/h2>\n

Ffion<\/span><\/a> is an award-winning freelance audio producer. Her work has spanned multiple genres, including lifestyle, history, sports, and quiz shows, with brand new and experienced broadcasters alike. From 2022, she produced one of the UK\u2019s top body confidence podcasts, Go Love Yourself. Ffion is passionate about audio’s ability to keep people company and creating the best in-person communities possible. She is supported by her Assistant Producer \u2013 her dog and best pal, Maggie.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Know your audience and work back from ther<\/span><\/b>e<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Podcasts have this incredibly unique way of engaging with the listener \u2013 they\u2019re choosing to spend a solid chunk of time with you in their day-to-day life. And you ideally need to utilise this connection and build upon it, so that you\u2019re almost a part of that individual\u2019s identity. You want them to think: \u201cit\u2019s Monday, time to listen to [insert show]\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, when starting a creative project, you need to think: who is this for? Is it filling a gap? How will I engage in a back and forth with my audience? Are there ways I can take this community further (via Facebook groups for example)? Am I providing them with some value, such as actionable takeaways?<\/span><\/p>\n

Kacie Morgan (BA 2010)<\/h2>\n

Kacie<\/span><\/a> is an award-winning food and travel writer. In 2010, she set up her food blog <\/span>The Rare Welsh Bit<\/span><\/a> to develop her writing portfolio after graduating. Today, Kacie works full-time on her blog and social channels, which have been featured by BBC One, BBC Wales, Food 52, and Metro. A member of the Guild of Food Writers, Kacie has also written for various publications, including Visit Wales, Sainsbury\u2019s Magazine, and Co-op Food Mag.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Aim to build a supportive, inspiring community of like-minded creatives<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Taking the time to get to know other creatives could help you to secure more work in your niche, and even meet potential staff to employ in the future. Plus, it means you\u2019ll have a group of friends with similar interests to socialise with too \u2013 which is particularly important if you’ll be working alone, on a freelance basis.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To get started, attend relevant events in your area (<\/span>CreativeMornings<\/span><\/a> is particularly popular), join Facebook and LinkedIn groups to connect with others, and interact with similar accounts on X, Instagram, or TikTok.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Cardiff University community are a helpful bunch, here to help you get ahead in your chosen career. Our Bossing It series brings together advice from alumni contributors in various fields \u2013 tap into their collective wisdom and browse through top tips on a wide range of topics<\/a>.<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ready to connect with fellow Cardiff alumni?\u00a0<\/b>Join our LinkedIn group<\/b><\/a>\u00a0and get networking.<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Creative projects can teach new skills, open new doors, and make quality time for your personal interests. Whether you\u2019re looking to turn a hobby into a career or bring ideas to life in your spare time, a bit of guidance can help you get started. We asked some of our fantastic alumni who have worked on a range of projects \u2013 from magazines to podcasts \u2013 to share their top tips.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0","protected":false},"author":904,"featured_media":9735,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[206,39,99,4,38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bossing-it","category-cardiff-connect","category-careers","category-news","category-our-alumni"],"meta_box":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/904"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9708"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10172,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9708\/revisions\/10172"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9735"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}