Manzer has always been a writer (she wrote her first novel at age ten!), so it only made sense for her to study writing here, at the University of Victoria. It was during her experience working as an arts writer for The Martlet that Manzer realized she could make a living as a journalist. Manzer looked for other ways to get experience on campus and discovered that the co-op program was available for writing students. “Co-op was a logical pursuit,” she reflects, “there is really no substitute for working for real editors under real deadlines and writing stories about real people - that’s what co-op delivers.”

Manzer enrolled in the creative writing co-op program (now known as the Humanities, Fine Arts and Professional Writing Co-op Program) and had a variety of work term positions. She remembers her job as a reporter for a daily newspaper in Prince Rupert as the most exciting of her co-op experiences. It was through this position that Manzer felt she was growing as a journalist – she was even able to cover a major crime story during that summer work term.

Since graduating from UVic, Manzer has worked for Monday Magazine and The Medical Post newspaper in Toronto, as well as freelancing for many magazines including Maclean’s, Chatelaine and Today’s Parent. Her academic training in both fiction and journalism developed into an interest in Creative Non-Fiction, a genre that marries the two.

Her story “The Boy with the Galloping Heart” - a very personal account about health complications surrounding her pregnancy and the birth of her son – was shortlisted this past summer for the CBC Canada Writes Creative Non-Fiction contest. When asked about her reaction to the news that her piece was a contender for the first prize in the contest, Manzer said she was thrilled to have national recognition for her work. “I spend many evenings typing at my computer alone, so it was wonderful to have that encouragement from such an esteemed competition,” she says.

Manzer explains that she felt positive about sharing the story with the Canadian public as she wished there had been a similar story for her to read during that difficult time. Her story connected on a deep level with many readers – one man from Toronto even contacted Manzer to share that he had been through a similar experience with his own son.

We asked Manzer about her writing process to see if she had any helpful tips for current writing students at UVic. When she writes fiction, Manzer aims to write 500 words a day until she has a first draft in order to prevent her inner critic from getting in the way of the creative process. For magazine features, she writes articles immediately after returning from an assignment in order to benefit from the fresh impressions of the experience or interview.

For writing students that have recently graduated from UVic, Manzer has some final advice:

“Read widely. Publish widely. If you are querying editors, get their names correct. Always be receptive to acquiring other skills that will make you easier to hire, whether it’s developing your social media savvy, or your copy editing.”

You can read Manzer’s “The Boy with the Galloping Heart” here.