Tag: Art

My Writing

Theatre feature in the Guardian

Caroline Butterwick

Happy New Year! I hope you had a restful, enjoyable time over the Christmas break. I met up with family, spent time cosying up with books and magazines, and – importantly – gave myself a few days’ break from work. It’s left me feeling refreshed and excited about 2022.

And I’m really happy to have started this year with a feature published by the Guardian – which you can read here. The piece is on my experience of watching a play – A Chorus Line, at Curve theatre in Leicester – with audio description, and attending a pre-show talk for visually impaired people beforehand. For years, I’ve struggled with theatre as a partially sighted person. I find it hard to follow the action on stage, and find myself getting frustrated as I lose track of what’s happening. I’ve been curious about trying an accessible performance for a while, so this was a really interesting commission.

Photo shows a row of people wearing gold costumes on a dark stage
A Chorus Line at Curve Leicester – photo by Marc Brenner

In the feature, I talk about the experience of the pre-show talk and audio description, and how it helped me truly enjoy theatre for the first time. I hope this article helps highlight to others that options like this are available, and also the importance of accessibility for disabled audiences. I’ve had a really lovely response to the feature from readers, which makes it all so worthwhile.

I’m hoping that this positive start to 2022 is a sign of how things will continue! I’m excited to be working on other commissions at the moment, as well as nervously waiting on news on some big projects (and trying not to obsessively check my emails hoping for updates…!). And, of course, I have plenty of PhD work, with lots to do as I write my memoir, as well as research around disability and life writing.

I’m feeling very fortunate to have so many lovely things to work on at the moment. I’m not a big winter person, so having lots of writing to focus on definitely helps me through the darker months of the year. I hope that 2022 is a good year for us all.

My Writing, PhD

End of another year

Caroline Butterwick

The Christmas tree is up, I’ve already eaten plenty of mince pies, and I have presents to wrap – all while keeping an anxious eye on the news. I’m sure most of us are feeling stressed and exhausted by it all, just hoping that things work out okay and that we can enjoy a safe Christmas with our loved ones.

It’s been a while since I’ve updated this blog, so I thought I’d do a post as we approach the end of another strange year for everyone.

Photo shows a Christmas tree

I’m lucky that I’ve had a range of articles published over the last couple of months since I last posted. This includes my first time writing for Psychologies, which is a magazine I’ve wanted to write for for a long time, so I’m really proud to be able to add them to my portfolio. The feature is on how we can rekindle friendships that we’ve let drift – something that seems particularly relevant with how the pandemic disrupted many of our relationships.

A lot of my article ideas come about when I ask myself a question. In this case, I was meeting up with a friend I’d lost touch with, and wondering why friendships sometimes slip and what we can do to reach out. I realised that this could be a scenario that others find themselves in, and so started developing a pitch for an article around it. It’s a useful way of coming up with ideas. I’m also due to have another feature published by Psychologies soon, which I’m really looking forward to seeing.

I’ve also had features in Happiful, who are one of my main clients and who I love writing for, and a travel feature in Motability Lifestyle magazine, on ideas for city breaks in the UK this winter, from Christmas markets to festive plays.

I love community arts, and so was really happy to have a feature published in Planet Mindful magazine about how we can all share our creative skills with others. I spoke about my experience and about the fantastic arts scene we have in my adopted home town of Stoke-on-Trent. It was lovely to speak to local artists Gabriella Gay and Penny Vincent about how they share their love of art with the community, whether being a poet in residence at a car boot sale or leading singing sessions for anyone to join. I hope the piece inspires others to get involved.

Photo shows a magazine that is open on an article called Sharing Creative Skills

I’ve also been doing lot of PhD work. There’s a lot of reading to do – I’m often very conscious of the weight of all the books I haven’t had a chance to read yet! It’s enjoyable reading though. I’ve been researching disability theory and disability life writing, as well as reading memoirs.

Yesterday I finished reading Letters to my Weird Sisters by Joanne Limburg, which is a beautiful book on autism and feminism. Limburg weaves her own experiences of being autistic into letters she’s written to four women from history, combining elements of biography with explorations of disability and feminist history and theory with Limburg’s memoir. It’s a really wonderful read, and it’s also helped me think through how experimental forms and structures can be used in life writing and creative nonfiction.

As we approach Christmas, I’m hoping to use the festive season as a chance to plan writing ideas for the year ahead. But I’m also planning to rest. It’s been another difficult year for us all, and while I’m very fortunate that I’ve had some great writing to work on, I need to take some time to relax and unwind, ready to go into the new year. I hope that 2022 is a kinder year to us all.

My Writing, PhD

Sunshine, writing, and reading

Caroline Butterwick

It’s the kind of weather this week where I don’t know whether to be celebrating the sunshine or desperately hoping for it to cool down!

I’ve had two more articles published in the past couple of weeks. The first is on mental health support at work, and is available to read on the Stylist website. I interviewed two experts for advice on what our rights are at work if we have a mental health condition, and the article covers everything from deciding to disclose to your boss to what reasonable adjustments you can get and what to do if you face discrimination.

Having a mental health condition myself, I know that navigating this at work can be a challenge. It was a really interesting piece to research, and I hope that this article helps others get the support they need and deserve.

Photo shows the front cover of Oh magazine, with an illustration of a bird and a vibrant summer garden, with a pink and orange sky in the background.

The other piece is a feature in the always lovely Oh magazine. It’s on the disability arts movement, and how art can be used to explore and celebrate our lives and challenge ideas about what it means to be disabled.

I was lucky enough to speak to two talented artists, Anahita Harding and Nina Thomas, for the article to share their insights. I also reflected on my own experience of writing about disability – how writing allows me to, quite literally, take authorship of my experiences. I love how the feature is illustrated in the magazine with photos of Anahita and Nina and their artwork.

Photo shows an open magazine showing an article. The article is called Every Body. There is a photo in the magazine of a woman in a wheelchair sticking the wheelchair symbol onto a wall.

I’ve also been focusing on getting more reading done for my PhD this week. I’m currently reading The Wounded Storyteller by Arthur Frank, on life writing and illness. I’m only a couple of chapters in, but already I have pages and pages of notes on his work.

Focusing on anything for too long is hard in this heat, but I’m glad to have been making progress and having exciting projects to work on.  

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Artist one-to-one session with Appetite

Caroline Butterwick

Earlier this week I had a really useful 1:1 session over Zoom with Kat, the Producer for Appetite. Appetite is an arts programme, funded by Arts Council England, that aims to get more people in Stoke-on-Trent and the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme to experience and be inspired by the arts. Over the past eight years they’ve led a host of cultural events, from vibrant street performances in the city centre to the current Familiar Faces project that was created to capture the familiar faces and the unique welcome of Newcastle town centre through the power of photography.

Photo of someone typing on a laptop

Appetite are currently offering 1:1 artist support sessions with local creatives as an opportunity for us to talk about our ideas and get guidance on next steps around making cultural projects happen in our communities.

We had so much to talk about in the hour-long session. I chatted about my creative career so far, and what my hopes are going forward. Kat gave some really great guidance on how to think about community engagement, and we talked through some rough ideas I have for projects. I’d like to build on my experience of running community writing workshops, and I left the session buzzing with ideas, my notebook full of thoughts to develop further.

I’d really recommend other artists in Stoke or Newcastle-under-Lyme to get in touch with Appetite for a 1:1 session. Whether you’re just starting out and want to get a better sense of the local arts scene and how you can get involved, or already have an idea for a cultural project that you’d like some specific advice on, it’s well worth getting in touch. You can find out more about the artist 1:1s here.

My Writing, PhD

Winter thoughts

Caroline Butterwick

Like much of the country, there has been snow here in Staffordshire the past couple of days. But despite the cold, there are signs of spring emerging. I’m lucky to be getting out for a daily walk around my neighbourhood, enjoying the daylight and the frosted trees, looking out for snowdrops peeking through the frozen grass.

Photo of snowdrops in the grass

I’m fortunate that I’ve had a lot of writing to keep me busy over the past few weeks. The main focus in January was preparing for the mid-year review for my PhD, which involved submitting a sample of my writing and a research statement outlining my project so far and how I hope for it to progress. Thankfully I got that all submitted in time for the 1st February deadline. In a few weeks’ time I’ll have a mini viva interview to assess my work so far and check I’m on track. I find talking about my research can be really interesting, but I still feel at the stage where articulating it all feels challenging! But I am enjoying my PhD, and have been doing some really interesting reading for it this past week, exploring published mental health memoirs, as well as doing my own creative work. I feel very lucky to have this opportunity to focus on something I’m so passionate about.

I’ve also had a few articles to work on recently, as well as seeing ones that were commissioned towards the end of last year being published. My feature “Art in the Everyday” is in the current issue of the absolutely gorgeous Oh magazine. I love the front cover of vibrant daffodils – I can almost feel the spring warmth and scent of flowers just looking at it! My piece is about how we can all make art and poetry out of the items we’re surrounded with, drawing on the idea of found object art and movements like surrealism and dadaism. It was a fascinating feature to write, and I’m so pleased to have it published in such a wonderful magazine.

Photo shows front cover of Oh magazine with an illustration of daffodils

There are a few more articles of mine due to be published in the coming months which I’m excited to share. I also submitted a draft of my new novel to my literary agent recently, and I’m nervously waiting to hear her thoughts. She really gets my writing and always has valuable insights into how to make it better, so I’m confident that her feedback will be so useful.

I hope that you’re doing okay in this difficult winter lockdown, finding ways to get through. I can’t wait until the evenings are light again so I can go on an after dinner walk. And, of course, I can’t wait until things are safer and lockdown can start to ease. I hope things will get brighter soon.

Books

What I’m reading

Caroline Butterwick

I read pretty much every day. I think it’s one of the best things a writer can do – read as often as you can, and read widely. Over the strangeness of the past half year, my reading routine has been a bit off. Sometimes I’ve lacked the energy or focus, but fortunately I’ve still regularly found myself lost in other worlds for blissful hours.

Here’s some of what I’ve been reading recently.

books

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

More novella than novel, this is one of my all time favourite books, and earlier this year I decided to reread it. Which is a rare thing for me – I’m not a big re-reader and it takes some real passion to delve back into a book I’ve already read. I kind of have the mentality of there are so many books out there to read, I can’t keep rereading when there’s so many I haven’t read yet!

I love the effortless gothic writing of Shirley Jackson, and how instantly you’re grabbed by her characters. We Have Always Lived in the Castle is told from the point of view of a young woman called Merricat, and there is instant intrigue into her life in a small New England town in the 1950s. Why does Merricat hate the townspeople so much? Why does she live such an isolated life with her sister and uncle? What’s the story behind the death of the rest of her family?

Reading it for a second time, I picked up on details and hints that I didn’t before, and loved being drawn back into Merricat’s strange and alluring story.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

The first book in the seven that make up Maya Angelou’s autobiography, this memoir explores her life growing up as a black woman in 1930s southern America. Angelou’s writing is so evocative of her childhood in Arkansas and I got such a strong sense of the people in her life, her family, the places she lives, all told in beautiful, engaging prose. Her experiences of racism are shocking, and the historical and political context of her work makes this a particularly vital read.

The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman

Confession: I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this book. I’ve read Northern Lights and The Subtle Knife over the past couple of years and… they didn’t grab me. I could tell they were good, but I didn’t feel the love for His Dark Materials that I knew others do.

Taking the final novel of the trilogy off the shelf, I almost felt I was reading The Amber Spyglass because, well, I’d read the first two, it’s such a famous series, etc. etc…. It almost felt like an obligation, which is not a good way to feel before you read a book. But soon I was up late engrossed in Lyra and Will’s story. Perhaps it was how the many threads of the narrative were coming together and the sense of satisfaction that brought, perhaps it was I just found the events in this last story in the series more interesting – whatever it was, it clicked, and I finished The Amber Spyglass a Pullman convert.

Dear Life by Alice Munro

I love short stories – writing them and reading them. Despite this, I’ve rarely read a collection of stories by a single author cover to cover, instead just dipping in, but decided to give it a go with Dear Life by renowned Canadian short story writer Alice Munro. Some of the stories were wonderful, and I was grabbed by how Munro tells of the small extraordinariness of ordinary people, beautifully observed. “Gravel”, “Train”, and “Night” in particular stayed in my head for a while after, which I think is a sign of good writing, where you find yourself mulling over a character or detail or just the overall ambience long after you’ve put the book down.

Just Kids by Patti Smithpatti smith

After enjoying rereading We Have Always Lived in the Castle so much, I’m currently rediscovering another book: Just Kids by Patti Smith. I first read this memoir when I was working a job I wasn’t particularly enjoying, and my bus would often get me there way before my start time, so I’d get a coffee and sit and read for half an hour, which became something to look forward to when my alarm went off each morning.

Just Kids is one of the books I read during that time, and it made me imagine another life, the life of artists in New York City, and I got a vicarious enjoyment and also a wistful pining as I read, and then I’d look at the time and realise I needed to finish the page I was on, slip the book into my bag, and walk the five minutes to the office. I’m only about 50 pages in so far, but already I’m remembering why I loved Just Kids so much the first time around.

What books have you been enjoying?

My Writing

Creative ways to stay in touch

Caroline Butterwick

The lovely Happiful have published my article “Creative ways to stay in touch” today – take a read here. It’s also in the June issue of the magazine.

I’ve always loved connecting with people creatively, and now more than ever, when we find ourselves separated from so many we care about, it’s a great way to reach out.

postcards
When writing the piece, I thought especially about how I’ve stayed in touch with a close friend who now lives in a different country. She’s a visual artist, and naturally we’re both drawn to creative ways to connect – though we do still embrace WhatsApp and Skype. I love it when a postcard from her lands on my doormat, or when I spend time handwriting her a card.

One of the ways I explore is through crafting handmade zines – something I’ve written about on this blog before. There are also suggestions for putting together a playlist, sending a gift box or penning a poem.

How do you like to stay in touch with people? What’s helping you right now?

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Getting through

Caroline Butterwick

Who’d have known, as we watched the New Year’s fireworks bringing in 2020 and thought to the year ahead, that we’d soon be living in such a different world, where phrases like “self-isolation” and “lockdown” dominate our newsfeeds and conversations?

I very much hope that you are keeping safe and well. My husband and I have been self-isolating for four weeks now (we started a week before lockdown officially began due to health conditions). The first week was undoubtably the hardest so far, filled with so much anxiety and fear and heartbreak and hopelessness at what was happening. While I’m still – as so many are – struggling with these feelings, I am at least a bit more settled now. I’m finding my coping mechanisms, from Skyping family, to not constantly checking the news, to reading every day, and these are making things more manageable.

Placeholder Image

One thing I’ve not done a great deal of is writing. It’s not that I don’t have projects to work on, or ideas to develop, but my focus and energy hasn’t been there. When we started self-isolating, I thought, “Well, at least I’ll get to be really productive…”. But, bar the work I’ve done for my part-time copywriting job (that I’m very fortunate to have been able to do from home), that hasn’t happened.

I’m not the only one. Scrolling through Twitter, where I follow lots of other writers, it seems a common theme. I spoke to my agent on the phone a couple of weeks ago about my novel edits, and she told me how so many of her writers are struggling to focus on their work right now – and that there was no pressure to rush, that it was okay to not be feeling it right now, which was reassuring to hear. Usually, if I have writing to work on, I love to get started as soon as I can, and yet I haven’t touched my manuscript since that conversation.

I have found, though, over the past few days that I’m feeling calmer and less drained. My thoughts are starting to turn towards writing again, with more clarity and enthusiasm. I’m feeling – hoping – that getting stuck into my own writing might give me the positive distraction I need.

In ordinary times, I regularly make myself lists of writing aims for the coming week or so, but I haven’t done that for a month now. So that’s where I’m going to start. Not setting myself deadlines, not telling myself I’m going to produce a great body of work, but ideas of what to focus on. And, for the first time in weeks, I’m excited about starting to tackle my novel edits. I’m looking forward to planning some new article ideas too.

I’m also planning to add more content to this blog. A few months ago I posted a piece about finding inspiration for articles. Over the next few days or so I’m going to work on a follow up post with tips on how to research and analyse magazines, then later another about how to pitch articles to editors. The world of writing can be confusing to navigate, and I hope this series will help demystify the process of getting an article published. I’m also thinking ahead to what other advice and resources I can share on here – let me know if you have any thoughts on topics to cover, I love to talk writing!

While I’m glad to be feeling some level of creative energy again, I’m not going to push myself. I’ve seen a few posts on social media encouraging people to use this strange time to learn a new skill or to dedicate to a creative interest. If you have the energy and the focus, then by all means go for it. But remember that now is not the time to unfairly pressure yourself and feel guilty about not researching your business plan, writing a poetry collection, or learning to play the guitar.

Yes, I’m now hoping to get back into my writing over the coming weeks. I’m feeling in the right headspace for it. But that initial, “Well, at least lockdown will give me time to fully plot out and write my next novel” thought I had a few weeks ago is definitely not my approach now. It’s not about word counts or the number of pitches I send – it’s about enjoying it, about the little bit of hope I feel when I write, about getting, however briefly, lost in something I love.

Take care, and stay safe.

My Writing

Flash fiction in Ellipsis Zine

Caroline Butterwick

Today I have a flash fiction story, “Two Weeks After The World Ended”, published by the wonderful Ellipsis Zine.

An earlier version of the story was long listed for the Flash 500 award at the start of the year, and I’m glad the story’s now found a home.

Take a read of it (and great stories by other writers) on the Ellipsis Zine website.

My Writing

Arvon article in Planet Mindful

Caroline Butterwick

It’s been a busy few weeks for me. I’ve started a new job that involves lots of copywriting (yay!), which I’m really enjoying. I’ve also been working on editing my novel that’s been my work in progress for a while now, as well as pitching and writing articles, and working on short stories too.

planet mindful.jpgI’m very happy to share that I have a feature in the current issue of the gorgeous magazine Planet Mindful. The article is about my experience of attending a residential writing course at the magical Arvon centre The Hurst earlier this year. Planet Mindful is a wonderful wellbeing magazine that I’ve enjoyed reading for a while, so it’s great to be published by them.