What attracted you most about studying at the Paris School of Arts and Culture?
Undertaking the MA in Creative Writing was a huge change for me. My undergraduate degree is in Accounting and Finance and I had a successful career in finance before coming to Kent. A common question I was asked was “why don’t you keep your job in finance and write after work and on weekends?” I knew I would be doing myself an injustice if I didn’t enrol in a programme that allowed me to dedicate a significant amount of time to my dream.
I had the opportunity to study at another, equally prestigious school but what swayed my decision was the course structure at the Paris School of Arts and Culture. The most important thing was for me to able to create and work on a novel idea. Kent’s programme has allowed me the headspace to explore my new city, perform research, and play with new genres. I had to ensure that if I was going to take one of the biggest risks in my life, it would be at a place like Kent, where I knew my ideas would be nurtured and my boundaries pushed.
How has the course influenced your writing practice?
A lecturer I worked with during the autumn term gave me the support to polish my pieces but also enter them into as many competitions as I could. During my time in Paris, I have had sections of my novel published in literary magazines and read out loud at numerous events. And I was recently shortlisted for a Penguin Random House competition!
As I worked away at my career in finance, I knew that what I needed the most was time. Time to push myself, which is what the Paris School offered me. I owe much of my success to the course structure, which allowed me the breathing room to not only develop my ideas but also put pen to paper.
What was your favourite module?
Identity, Trauma and Sexuality in 20th and 21st Century Narratives was my favourite. It appealed to the part of me that loves books. Every week I was able to pick up a new text, which covered some really hard hitting material. After every text, I felt myself getting smarter and my view on the world shifted and became more textured. Certainly, a module I would recommend!
Describe your cohort.
We were thrown together initially but soon I found we had so much in common. On the first day, I heard people laugh over a pub they both visited in Birmingham as another group squeezed together to look at photos of someone’s hometown in Italy. There are some stars who burn blinding bright and some quieter types who brood mysteriously out of windows, but everyone has a place. We are all so willing to support each other whether it’s sharing recipes, a place to stay or bringing over a specific brand of all-purpose seasoning from England. We’re a family.
What has been your most memorable Paris moment?
It has to be at one the first house parties I went to in Paris, hosted by a fellow student. I sat by a window, clutching a glass of wine as I spoke with violent passion about that day’s metro experience, and I laughed. I laughed because I finally felt settled in a city where I didn’t speak the language and where six weeks before, I knew absolutely nobody.
Either that or the day I learnt the correct terms to order a perfectly baked baguette from the boulangerie: pas trop cuite!
You’re from London. What was the transition from London to Paris like?
I stand firm in my belief that London is the capital of the world. I can, however, entertain conversations around New York or Paris also being the capital of the world. So, in my mind, I was moving from one world capital to another. This allowed for the ease of certain things, such as using a metro system and the mechanism of the economy. However, in other places I had less surefootedness. For example, the etiquette around payments and phone calls and the slower nature in which things run in Paris was an adjustment for me, but I did adjust.
What advice would you give to incoming students?
As a creative writing student, I found that myself and other students who had an idea of what they wanted – to spend the year writing – took more away from the course. I was able to ask targeted questions about my work and propel myself towards my goal. Modules such as Fiction and Psychogeography allowed for exploration of new forms, genres and styles which ultimately only strengthened my core focus, my novel. The idea you come with doesn’t need to (and in fact shouldn’t) be set in stone but knowing what you want to leave the year with will ensure you are not simply being blown by the wind.
Paris is a city that must be approached with adaptability. Even if you’re from a huge city, or you’ve visited Paris before, living here is wildly different. The ability to adapt will make it easier to thrive. Things occur unexpectedly but that’s what makes things exciting and the more willing you are to bend, the more fruitful your time here will be.
What are your post-graduation plans?
I am moving to Medellin, Colombia after graduation to embark on other life changing adventures. I’ll also be trying to get my book over the finish line with the help of all the tools I gathered this year!
Alongside her studies, Lauretta works as a barista in Paris’ 3rd arrondissement.