Abi Milner, a BA Creative Writing student, has always loved to use words and language in a creative way – to “capture a feeling or an image with words in a way that creates a connection with the reader.” She wrote poetry as a young child and loved to escape into stories, but it was later in life that she decided to take her passion seriously. 

“Starting uni as a mature student with kids came with some internal conflict. Part of me thought I should do something practical and vocational, but for the good of my soul, I couldn't give up on the idea of being a writer.

“What I enjoyed most about the course was how diverse it was. There’s always an element of writing, but you get to explore it through so many different mediums and disciplines – screenwriting, poetry, fiction and non-fiction to name just a few.”

Abi took part in a performance project as part of her Level 5 Poetry and Poetics module, looking at ekphrastic poetry (poems written about works of art). 

The Comes the Flood exhibition at Sheffield’s Millenium Gallery was a reimagining of objects as fragments from fallen cities as a result of climate change. Pieces displayed in the exhibition were written and performed by academics and students across a range of subjects, including acting and performance, creative writing, English and history. The exhibition was part of the Ark Sheffield project, a city-wide conversation about the climate crisis.  

Abi selected a photograph taken after the 1864 Sheffield flood, depicting a group of men standing on a ruined stable that they are rebuilding. 
“I considered how it may feel that their efforts to rebuild their homes, devastated by the floods, were futile in the face of the climate change disaster that now threatens to wash away any memory of their existence, and what they rebuilt.

“One of the best things about the course is that there are so many opportunities to take part in events and projects, such as the Comes the Flood exhibition. They’re fantastic for broadening your learning, as well as building professional connections.

“We workshop all our writing every week which deepens our learning journey and development. We also have regular guest lecturers from various creative industries who run informative workshops and offer relevant professional advice.

“Along the way, there was constant support from careers advisors, which has helped me to feel confident about the next steps that I will take. The course has given me a huge boost in confidence about my abilities but also opened my eyes to the opportunities I did not realise were available to me.

“After completing this course, I plan to go on and study a masters in creative writing. This will give me further opportunities to hone my skills and discover what direction my strengths will take me in.”