People, Student Profile

How a double major degree helped Cole Mash research yesteryear’s literature and writing treasures

March 5, 2024

AFTER A FEW WINTERS INSTALLING HEATING systems in the Yukon’s “glorious winter,” Cole Mash started rethinking his passions: books, writing and literature.  

Although a college professor inspired his direction in the arts, it was Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies (FCCS) Associate Professor Karis Shearer who created the undergraduate research opportunities that helped Mash to professionalize his approach to English and creative writing. 

“Dr. Shearer has been a huge supporter,” says Mash. “She’s given me many opportunities and only asked that I work hard. She changed how I looked at literature and showed me there’s an exciting career to be had talking about books. And she taught me a magic trick: how to turn five sentences into one.” 

POSTCARDS FROM HISTORY 

Mash received a UBC Undergraduate Student Research Award to write a biographical study, The Poetics of Teaching, on former UBC Vancouver English professor Warren Tallman. “The experience changed how I viewed academia,” Mash says. 

He made several trips to Simon Fraser University’s archives to research the project, reading old letters and postcards by the writers he reveres, including Tallman, Robert Creeley and Allen Ginsberg.  

Mash discovered their essential authenticity and was inspired. “Like the rest of us, these writers had flat tires, and couldn’t write inside the lines,” says Mash. “I discovered a side of writing and literature that I never saw before.” 

Mash says researching Tallman’s work “was my big chance to show off all my detective skills that I learned from Batman, and I got to do it in a room that smelled like old books of poetry. It ruled.” 

His success led to his work with another UBC Okanagan professor to write XML search code for a digital edition of the Devonshire Manuscript. This miscellany of verse, compiled by Anne Boleyn’s circle in the 1530s, is the first sustained community writing venture written by both English men and women. 

FINDING HIS PASSION IN CREATIVE WRITING 

From heating systems and restaurant cooking to studying at UBC Okanagan, Mash noticed a landmark change in his work ethic. The first series of university electives was challenging, but he found his groove in English and creative writing: “I finally felt like I was doing what I loved, and I started working much harder. 

“Through writing and books, I’m fulfilling my passion to an extent I never thought possible,” he says.  

Mash has published several poems, an academic article and has experience reviewing two literary magazines: OK Magpie and The Coastal Spectator.  

“I have a job where they send me free books. I read and review them, and get paid for it!” 

BEING A PROFESSIONAL WRITER 

“At first, I used to hate it when people would refer to themselves as ‘writers’ when they were in a first-year course,” says Mash. “Maybe I was just jealous because I wanted to be a writer, too, but at that point, I hadn’t earned the right to call myself one. 

“Now when people ask me what I do, I mostly say ‘go to school’—but every so often, I say, ‘writer,’ and I can’t help but smile. UBC Okanagan gave me that smile.” 

Mash has already completed his Master of Arts at UBC Okanagan and is now in the midst of finishing his doctorate. Titled Words Go Past There: Reading Mediatized Spoken Word Poetry, his dissertation explores how, despite a decades-long increase in global popularity, Spoken Word poetry has failed to integrate into classrooms and the critical canon.  

“Through my research I’ve found that literary studies is ill-equipped to interpret Spoken Word poetry because of the complex interplay of print text, audio text and visual text, all of which put forth a new method for reading the mode across mediums.” 

In addition to teaching English at Okanagan College, Mash also leads the local initiative Inspired Word Café (IWC), a volunteer-run, not-for-profit that provides literary programming in the Okanagan.  

Looking back upon his journey, Mash says he’s been creative in terms of how he has transferred his skills, experience and degrees into a viable and fulfilling career.  

 “Academia is just one small piece of the pie of what I’ve been able to do with my post-secondary education. With IWC, I think we’ve built an important part of Kelowna’s cultural activities. This contribution to the community is the thing I’m most proud of.”