Students, alumni, and staff at Carleton University are using social media accounts to stay creative and connected during the COVID-19 pandemic. With social-distancing measures in place, many have found these outlets a fun and easy way to continue building a community with like-minded people.
Online magazines (zines)
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Laura Blanchette, a second-year student in journalism and humanities, created French Press Zine—an online mini-magazine that showcases original paintings, mini-essays, and photos.
Blanchette said zines are usually printed, but her zine can be viewed on Tumblr and people can submit their work through a Google Form.
“I’m a journalism student so writing and creating published content is what I want to do in the future, so I thought this is kind of an opportunity for me to do that,” Blanchette said. “It’s also to encourage people around me who I know are creative to continue creating and sharing and being inspired by each other.”
When Blanchette first started her zine in May, she asked her friends if they would be interested in sharing content, but she recently reached out to other artists on social media.
“I didn’t think it would be a successful way to do it, but I’ve chatted with several creators who do photography or collages or poetry,” Blanchette added. “I think everyone is just looking for channels to get to share their work and stay within that community when we can’t actually see each other face to face.”
Within a couple of months, Blanchette has created a community of artists with her zine.
Video blogging (vlogging) on YouTube
Sophie Price, a second-year journalism student, created a pandemic series on her Youtube channel to vlog activities that she is doing during quarantine.
“It originally started as something to preoccupy my time and something to look back on later,” Price said. “Then, it turned into staying connected with my friends. A lot of my friends told me they enjoyed watching it because they knew what was going on in my day and it became a different way of staying connected throughout COVID-19.”
Price said she also does DIY crafts in the vlogs, including creating shelves out of vinyl records and painting the blades of her ceiling fan, and that her friends would text her and ask how she created them.
“I definitely feel more connected, and I feel like I’m talking to a large group of people when I vlog, which is really nice,” she added.
Fitness accounts
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Alessandra Previte, a French studies alumna who graduated in 2019, has been running a fitness account on Instagram for eight years where she posts workout videos and offers personal training. With social distancing precautions, she has been adapting her services to include one-on-one Zoom training from a distance.
Previte said her interest in fitness started in grade six when she beat her brother in a push-up contest and her dad said she could be the strongest woman ever if she trained every day. By working out and joining sports teams from an early age, Previte realized that fitness was her passion.
“I want to inspire people to have the same passion I do,” she said.
She said beyond helping her clients meet their fitness goals, she also likes being social and making bonds with them.
“I want to get to know [my clients]. Most of my clients at Carleton, I have a bond with,” she added.
Previte said she tries to give her clients a similar experience to in-person classes by expressing herself the same way over Zoom and working out at the same time as her clients.
Though Previte said she misses her co-workers and the regulars at the Carleton gym, she feels a sense of community with her account.
“It’s nice to see people reading long captions and posting comments and people supporting what you do,” she said.
Podcasts
The Carleton Pathways Podcast was created amid the pandemic by Jeremy Whalen, a Carleton alumnus with his Bachelor of Arts in History and communications officer for the office of strategic initiatives (students and enrolment).
Based on Carleton’s website, Pathways to Graduation, the podcast shares the experiences of Carleton alumni and faculty.
“There’s really a variety of ways that you can get from day one or that start phase on campus through your own path, where you’re comfortable and happy, to reach whatever goals that might be whether it’s academic, personal or career goals.”
Connecting virtually with guests has allowed people from all around Canada to be featured on the podcast.
“It really allowed us to bring people in wherever they are and accommodate them because we can record at any time. We don’t have to get them into the studio to get started,” Whalen said.
He added that guests share the episodes on networks such as LinkedIn and have been receiving very positive responses.
“What really means the most to me is seeing the people [who are] getting a positive response from their community as well and sharing that, whether it’s the Carleton community or beyond,” Whalen said.
Creators encourage creators
Many of those who started their own creative social media accounts encourage those interested to try out creating, too.
Previte encourages anyone who wants to start a social media account to do it.
“You can really impact someone’s life by just creating it and showing someone that you’re trying something new,” she said. “I think that’s what quarantine is about.”
Blanchette added that getting started is easy and that finding a community comes easily once an account is started.
“Depending on your goal, it’s so easy to get started and find people who would be interested, even if it’s not a couple thousand. My Instagram is very small and my Tumblr is even smaller, but I already feel there’s a community there.”
To students interested in creating a podcast, Whalen added that a sense of direction is all that is needed.
“As long as you’re being authentic to what you want to do and you have a good sense of who you’re trying to be—if you’re bringing good to a community or telling positive stories—people will come behind you.”
Featured image from French Press Zine on Tumblr.
