It is common knowledge that studying literature is closely related to studying influential literary works. Exposure to these works equips students studying literature with skills to both write the literary works themselves or become a story-teller of the works. In addition, to hone their skills in writing, students are given assignments that require them to actively engage in various fields of writing, mainly creative writing. 

Within the FIB UNAIR itself, there are both alumni and students who are active in the field of creative writing. One of them is Vema Novitasari, an alumnus of the 2008 English Language and Literature class. Vema is the creator behind the Instagram account @weeklywelly, a light-hearted comic strip that tells stories related to everyday life issues with a comedic touch, with a main character called Welly si Terwelu (a kind of rabbit). Her focus is more on writing creatively by looking at a closer lens in every single thing that possibly happens on a daily basis.   

The selection of everyday issues, said Vema, was motivated by a desire to capture a reality that is not always perfect.  “I also feel that, finally, there is content that is funny but still relevant,” said Vema. The sense of humor that she puts on the comic is to draw more readers’ attention to encourage them to live life with gratitude despite its challenges. 

In addition to using social media as a platform for her works, Vema's creations have also been published and collected in a book titled “Hidup Gini-Gini Aja, Nggak Apa-Apa” (“Life Is Just Like This, It's Okay”), published by Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia or KPG Publishers. 

Looking back, Vema explained that she started creating Welly si Terwelu during the COVID-19 pandemic and posted her works the first time on Twitter. “Yeah, it got really popular, right? I could only make comics, like... what... 8 panels? Then, like... 2 tweets, and those got around 10,000 likes or something overnight. I woke up the next day thinking, “What just happened?”” explained Vema.

Now, Vema has also expanded her opportunities by turning her works into a variety of merchandise. This merchandise includes stickers, calendars, etc., which are marketed both through online shops and at events, such as Car Free Day or bazaars. Vema said that the idea to turn Welly si Terwelu into merchandise originated from a whim to upload stickers that were initially created just for her friends.

“I uploaded the stickers on Twitter for fun, and then, many people wanted me to make merchandise out of it once I made stickers. “I want to buy some”, they said. So, I said, “Okay. I’ll make it for only 100 thousand rupiah,”” said Vema.

However, Vema's daily activities are not solely focused on her comic and merchandise. She, in fact, also works as a corporate secretary at a state-owned enterprise (BUMN). The woman, who has been working for more than ten years, explained that her job as a corporate secretary is to assist the directors in supervising the work in each division and then report it. “I create a task list for my colleagues, organized by division. I list the tasks, their status, who is in charge, the current progress, whether the status is ongoing or has not yet started, and then I request links to the deliverable documents,” she said.

Vema further stated that what she gained in college has brought such positive impacts on her current career. According to her, there are a lot of beneficial skills that she actually acquired while doing an undergraduate education at UNAIR, and she later implemented those skills to apply to her current job. 

“So, maybe, in reading, there are inferences, right? Inferences are conclusions that we can draw after reading something, and we learn it in English Literature; reading between the lines to make conclusions. So, from data like this, it can be concluded like this, and it is displayed visually. You can really learn a lot from literature major,” she concluded.