Nurture
courage for the journey
nurturing creativity
As a disabled artist I know something about the difficulties of keeping creative when illness threatens to overwhelm. I'm bipolar and whilst that can yield bursts of intense creativity followed by prolonged periods of despair, its been a long learning to find sustainable ways of creating in a more kindly manner. I'm a big fan of slow writing - taking longer to do something but in a way you can contribute to every day. Or most days. I'm passionate about helping others to find tools and tricks that work for their context and producing work they can be proud of without being destroyed in the process.
Lived experience of mental health
I’m delighted to be working with DANC (Disabled Artist’s Networking Community) on industry guidelines for supporting mental wellbeing. A focus group of creatives with lived experience of mental health have been working on the guidance and my role as writer to the group is to shape, structure and streamline their suggestions into a living document. This can then be used by organisations and individuals interested in improving support and encouragement for those whose mental health can be challenging.
I'm also advising Sonic Bothy and the Scottish Music Centre on their Resound project to create an inclusive music collection for Scotland. It's a great project developing a truly inclusive music archive and as such there are lot's of things to think through and plan for to make it a success.
Slow Writing
So often, creative folk are expected to come up with the goods in a hurry. Some folk love that but it doesn't suit everyone. Or me. I like taking my time. letting an idea compost, turning your back on it and letting time get to work. Writing a small amount regularly is how I finish things. Writing a huge amount in one go is how I scunner myself and lose interest in the idea. And it changes the nature of the work. I think there's a quality that comes through slow writing that is really appealling because it is unhurried. Rich and yet easy to digest, like a good casserole.
