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Print Futures Graduate: John Vigna

     
 
   
Print Futures Student Print Futures Student
Print Futures Student Print Futures Student
  
   

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John Vigna Writer/Editor, John Vigna Ink - Class of 2001

John Vigna didn't want to be one of those struggling writers who does the odd magazine piece while writing the great Canadian novel. He wanted to be a handsomely-compensated freelance copywriter and editor who does the odd magazine piece while writing the great Canadian novel.

To do this, he needed to go back to school, but it wouldn't be just any school.

After meticulously examining every journalism and writing program across Canada, Vigna chose the Print Futures: Professional Writing Program at Douglas College. "Print Futures was real-world driven," he says. "There's not another program in Canada like it. It covered everything: research, writing, editing, design and production. And it was a great way to tap into the Vancouver writing community."

Print Futures Coordinator Maureen Nicholson says the Program creates highly-skilled writers and editors with design and production skills to match. "We don't just teach," she says. "We encourage our students to be proactive about opportunities. Right from the get-go, we urge them to keep their eye focused firmly on what they are going to do when they graduate."

Students do on-the-job practicums to gain work experience. Vigna, along with another Print Futures student and Instructor Jerome Ryckborst, earned a Distinguished Technical Communication award from the Society for Technical Communication, for the on-line help system they developed for Gemcom Software.

Vigna didn't stop there. "I really loaded my plate," he says. He made cold calls to determine the needs of companies and volunteered as a writer/editor for the Society for Technical Communication (STC), the Vancouver Art Gallery and Adbusters magazine. After a month at Adbusters, they started to pay him. "It didn't seem like working 16 to 18 hours a day doing school and work," he says. "It was all about stretching my skills as a writer."

Now Vigna runs his own business, John Vigna Ink, with names like Mercedes-Benz, the BC Cancer Agency and Paul Masson winery on the client list. Other gigs have seen him jetsetting off to Mexico to write about a new resort or handling a flurry of publicity on high-profile, confidential media campaigns in Vancouver.

In 2002, he earned an Entrepreneur of the Year Award from Lower Mainland Self-employment Programs, sponsored by Business in Vancouver, BizSmart and VanCity Savings. He also teaches writing at Vancouver Community College.

"The future for writing and communications is huge," says Vigna. "The spinoff from the Olympics could be amazing. The baby boomers are retiring. And there's always room for very skilled communicators. The key for graduates is to do market research and know what they are worth."

Vigna and Nicholson will be on hand for a free information session about the Print Futures Program on Monday, April 7 at 5pm in Room 1614 at the New Westminster Campus (700 Royal Avenue). For more information, call Nicholson, the Print Futures: Professional Writing Program Coordinator, at 604-527-5292.

Also, Print Futures students are hosting their annual portfolio show on April 9 from 4 to 6pm in the Amelia Douglas Gallery at the New Westminster Campus. For more information, visit the portfolio Web site at http://www.douglas.bc.ca/pf/2003show/

Visit the Print Futures Web site