See in my adventures of writing for Her Campus, I realized that no one had thought to delve into the lives of our very own writers! This week’s profile features our very own Editor-in-Chief, writer extraordinaire, elite gamer, and resident self-proclaimed “smol sleepy human” – Stephanie Wilcox.
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Name: Stephanie Wilcox
Age: 19
Major and Specialization: Professional Writing – Book Publishing and Institutional Writing
Expected Graduation Year: 2018
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Tell me about your dream job?
See, this is a hard one. My dream job has changed about five times since I began my degree. First, I wanted to be a farmer (Guelph was my dream uni, I only went to York because my parents wanted me to), then for the next few years, I would dream of becoming a publisher or editor. Now? I would be happy being a youth/children’s librarian or being an editor/publisher that focused primarily on children’s and young adult’s literature. If I’m being completely honest, I’m mainly considering going into TechComm because I want to provide a stable future for myself and whatever family I wind up having.
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What are your plans for post-graduation?
Currently, I’m considering three different routes: heading to the University of Toronto for a Masters in Library and Information Sciences, taking the Ryerson Certificate in Publishing, or picking up Seneca’s Certificate in Technical Communications. I may even combine two of those! Honestly, the only definite plan right now is moving out (hopefully into Toronto).
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Hobbies?
I spend a large amount of my free time on my trampoline, it’s how I clear my head and get away from everything. Other than that, I watch Korean dramas (and rapper competitions #UnprettyRapstar), whatever thing on Netflix that tickles my fancy, and I read as much YA lit. as I can!
Non-Academic Activities:
I am currently a Junior Editor at York’s student-run literary journal, Existere! As a JE, I read submissions to the journal, write short reviews on them, and later help copy-edit those chosen for publication. I am also Her Campus – YorkU’s Editor-in-Chief! I read and edit all articles submitted for posting and manage the administration side of the group. Finally, I am a member of Hallyu Dongari, York’s Korean culture club! They do a ton of themed events based off of popular Korean TV shows, bands, foods, and I also attend Language Exchange to learn Korean when I can.
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On an average day at York, where can you be found if not in class?
I can often be found hunched over some tea and my laptop in Central Square or napping and hanging out in Vari Hall! Sometimes if I have a long period between classes, I wander the campus and just listen to music and think. If I’m not doing any of those, I’m probably in line for Thai Express or pizza.
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What does doing well in school mean to you?
Maintaining good grades while actually learning things you can apply to your non-academic life. However, if you’ve hit the point where you’re having mental breakdowns, maybe you need to regroup and find a different way of succeeding or reducing your workload.
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Could you describe an ideal day to me?
Sleeping in (but not too late) and spending the day alternating between listening to music outside and cuddling inside with people you love under a fuzzy blanket and watching movies. Add some Mario Party or Halo to that and you’ve got a solid day! Also pasta. It is not a perfect day if you have not had pasta. Pasta is love, pasta is life.
(This writer would like to add pasta with copious amounts of cheese is love and life.)
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I’ve heard that you enjoy gaming. Could you tell us about some of your favourite games and why?
Alright, this is a tricky one. I’m a big Nintendo fangirl so bear with me here. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess holds a really really special place in my heart. It ultimately cemented my love for the series, and provided a safe and exciting world I could immerse myself into when the high-school years got too lonely. That and the Midna plotline wrecked me. I was an emotional mess at the end of that game.
Another favourite is a tie between a few Harvest Moon games: Another Wonderful Life and Tree of Tranquility/Animal Parade. As someone who grew up surrounded by farmers, but never really fit in with them, Harvest Moon games were what I used as a child to feed my obsession with farming (and romance) and wind down after long days. I can remember renting (yes – renting) them for weeks upon weeks and staying up late for many nights in a row, desperately farming more crops, unlock different varieties of cows, and ultimately win the heart of the local carpenter’s son, Luke (be still, my twelve-year-old-heart).
These games ultimately had huge roles in who I am today, and the worlds those games exist in are still the places I run to when everything gets too hard or too tiring. I hold onto them very tightly, and anxiously await each new installation in their respective series, although nothing will ever compare to what they were while I was growing up.
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One more question, before I let you get back to studying Korean – if you had one piece of advice (general, relationship, etc.) you could give to anyone, what would it be?
Allow yourself to reach out to people, and allow yourself to be there for other people. Life can really really suck sometimes, and ultimately we all need other people to pick us up when we can’t do it ourselves, and we need to be that person for other people. I might not be the best at taking said advice, but it’s been proven time and time again that we need each other and shouldn’t have to make it alone.
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