ALUMNX STORY: Jewell Melisa Morton, 2025 Graphic Design
Design as a Passion Project: Meet GDUSA “Student to Watch” Jewell Melisa Morton
By Karis Rogerson (WCYA ’24)
Jewell Melisa Morton (GD ’25) may have just graduated from VCFA’s MFA in Graphic Design program in January 2025, but she’s already established in the field of Esports design.
In the spring of 2025, Morton was named a GDUSA “Student to Watch” along with two other VCFA Graphic Design community members. “I’ve got impostor syndrome right now,” Morton admitted. “I don’t know what it means for me. I just want to work with people that are really cool and make cool work.”
Currently, Morton is a part-time Creative Director for the Esports organization YFP, which stands for Your Favorite Player, and whose mission involves bringing people together in a shared love of gaming. She’s been there for a little over two years after finding the job on social media.
“The gaming and Esports community attracted me because there are similar qualities [in] the fan base that you see in two specific fandoms: kpop and sports,” Morton shared. “There’s a love and a passion, sometimes burnout or stepping away, but also a level of craze for the organizations and even some of the players.”
Morton, despite her enthusiasm for the work and her dedication to YFP, is clear-eyed about the realities of working in Esports design: “Esports is not profitable,” she said bluntly.
For designers who are passionate about Esports, Morton recommends spending no more than a year or two in a role, and consider it an entry-level internship-style position. She compared esport organizations to “mom-and-pop stores,” and said, “A lot of Esports is run on passion.”
However, even when she finds a full-time day job, Morton has no intention of leaving YFP and Esports behind. “YFP is still my baby,” she said. “I love my friends and staff there, so if I do manage to find a full-time design job, I’m going to still show up to YFP to at least manage their creative tasks and keep those connections alive.”
This ties into Morton’s overall philosophy about design, which is that community is all-important. Her entry into design came around 2012 through an online community of fan fiction lovers who would meet on Skype to learn the basics of design. Morton was intrigued by the posters writers created to advertise their stories, known as “fics,” and knew she wanted to learn more.
“I grew up being a designer in a community that I’m super thankful for,” Morton acknowledged. Today, she offers free doodles from her website, because, “I want to give back.”
In the aim of giving back to other creatives, Morton is also the owner of a sprawling community for designers called Discord Residents, where she and her fellow members share resources and knowledge.
“A lot of designers and people quit when they don’t have a community to go to,” Morton said. “You can’t improve if the only person you’re hearing from is yourself. If you don’t have a community to go to, you can’t grow as a person, as a designer, or an artist. It is really important to hear [from] people who have different backgrounds.”
In that spirit, Morton is using her MFA in Graphic Design from VCFA to teach others. At YFP, she offers classes and workshops for up-and-coming designers, and she aims to continue teaching and putting her knowledge and experience to use.
“Everyone can learn anything and everything: the only thing stopping you is yourself,” she said of her teaching philosophy, adding that she teaches others as a way of “paying forward” the advice and teaching she has received.
Ultimately, design is a passion for Morton, and she believes firmly that there is value in pursuing the projects that feed your passions.
“I think that people just need to put their time and efforts into things they want at the end of the day,” she said. “It may not show big results, but I personally think what matters is the people you helped the most.”
Stay up-to-date with Jewell Melisa Morton at jewellmelisa.com.