“I write because I believe it’s my way of adding goodness and love to the world. So I know I can’t stop, not even if I tried,” said Ernestia Fraser ‘07 in talking about her writing career. From an English student at Messiah College to a literature teacher in the Bahamas and publisher of several works, Fraser has paid ceaseless effort in pursuing her passion for writing and literature. When she was at Messiah, Fraser double majored in English with a writing concentration and communication with a film concentration. After her graduation, Fraser went on to receive higher education at Chatham University where she received a M.F.A. in Creative Writing: Screenwriting. After graduation, she returned to the Bahamas with the hope to give back to the educational system. Now, Fraser is an English Language and Literature teacher at a high school in the Bahamas. She is also currently working on a new screenplay called “Field of Angels” and a short story collection called “Adventures of Shelbie Mott.” Fraser has published a creative nonfiction book called “Carnival of Love: A Tale of a Bahamian Family” along with over twenty poems published in various international literary journals, including St. Somewhere Journal, Quiddity, Emerge Literary Journal, The Caribbean Writer, Caribbean Quarterly, Tongues of the Ocean, and New York Dreaming. Fraser credited her achievements to her education at Messiah and faculty in the Department of English. She said Messiah provided her with a plethora of experiences that helped aligned her with her purpose and calling. “Messiah had a huge impact on my life,” said Fraser. “I grew so much spiritually, creatively and personally. Messiah was the place where I fell in love with God, inspired to relentlessly pursue His Love and values.” Talking about the downside of her career, Fraser expressed that, like many other creative writers, writing can take a lot of time that could have been spent socializing with others or enjoying a hobby. She said that a person can get easily exhausted and even discouraged during the process of writing. Plus, most of the times, people won’t understand the habits of a writer. “They will wonder why you need to separate yourself for such an activity, but writing necessitates time, quiet and isolation,” said Fraser. “It’s really a lot of hard work, not to be taken for granted.” Writing can be an “isolating work” as it also places a strong demand on the mind and body. However, the best thing about writing that appeals many people is that it can be a very good way of not only changing the world, but also leaving a part of oneself behind. “Writing allows you to be yourself,” said Fraser. “It allows you to form and imagine new possibilities. It allows you to share and teach, granted that someone will be reading what you write.” If a person is going to be a writer, screenwriter or filmmaker, he or she will need passion and persistence. The person will need to love what he or she does and will need to be able to rise up after a fall. Creative writing is, according to Fraser, really one of the most challenging industries out there. “Firstly, you will need the faith to even begin a writing project,” said Fraser. “You will then need faith to complete a creative work and then you will need faith to put it out there. And so, it will take a lot of courage and hope, especially if you trying to become a full-time writer.” However, writing is an art that worth pursuing and any person can master it provided that he or she has passion and a gift for it. “The form of writing is something anyone can master with practice, but the heart of writing is something that already exists in a person, waiting to be discovered through experience, testing and inspiration,” said Fraser. “In writing, you will be tested and if you truly love it, you will always write. If you really want to become a professional writer, find someone in your field that did what you are now trying to do.” -My Nguyen ‘17