What have you been up to these last couple of months? Share freely any publication news you may have, and please include any links you’d like us to include.
I have had a great start to the year with five acceptances so far. I have been focusing on trying new things, and was pleased to get an acceptance from Streetcake Magazine for Issue 94 – a strange little beasty that I have fallen in love with, and also from JAKE for a hybrid piece that uses collated news articles, letters, fake business cards etc. to form a story. A little bit different from my usual poetic offerings, but I wanted to branch out and see what else I have up my literary sleeve. On top of that, I am working on several novels (I wish I could focus on just one at a time!) and will probably draw a few of the characters at some point, so please do check out my X account (or Bluesky) to keep up to date with all my latest work. I feel like I am in a good place with my writing at the moment, and want to keep riding that wave as I know only too well how suddenly things can change.
What are your long-term creative plans? Are you working on something big and secret or taking it day by day?
Oh, I think I answered a bit of this one in the last question. I’d like to get some more completed novels under my belt (wouldn’t we all!), but the big fingers crossed at the moment is my entry into the Northern Writers Award for Fiction and Narrative Non Fiction 2025. For those who don’t know me well, I’m from Sheffield, which is in the north of England, UK. I love living here, it’s a green and vibrant city and I honestly wouldn’t want to move anywhere else. I would love to win the prize, but won’t find out for some time. This would be huge for me, and although I don’t think I stand much of a chance, I knew I would kick myself if I didn’t give it a try. I only started submitting my work three years ago, at the age of 39, so there’s definitely some demons there saying I’ve missed the boat, but I’m still going, and would absolutely love to publish my first pamphlet or chapbook at some point – either later this year or next. I haven’t got a clue how to start or what I’d want it to be about, but that’s tomorrow Zoe’s problem 😉 I think, for now, I’ll just keep writing poetry when the mood takes me, work on some of those longer stories that have been languishing, part finished in my to do folder, and most of all just try to enjoy the journey.
What’s the status of your mental health these days? It’s in all ways prosaic to say that we live in trying times. How is the zeitgeist responsible? What are some actionable ways in which you’re taking steps to quiet the void, if any? (If it’s a glass of wine and an episode of Mad Men at the day’s end, that counts, please know that).
It’s been a rough year, I can’t lie. I was struck with anxiety and chronic pain out of the blue around February 24 and went to a very dark place indeed. I have caring responsibilities and I think everything just got too much for me. I always try to put a brave face on things, but cracks started to appear in the mask I’d been wearing and it’s been a long and difficult journey to get back to a happier, more peaceful place. I was having a lot of symptoms that also pointed towards early menopause, so have started HRT, which was something else to come to terms with. Learning to live with pain every day has been hard and sometimes I just want to go back to a time I remember not having it and then get generally angry knowing I can’t—it’s a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, but I am mostly enjoying life again now, and some days are better than others. One of the things that kept me going was my writing. At my worst, all I wanted was to be able to sit at the computer and write something down again, a short story, a poem, anything. It might sound corny but that desire to be able to write, to put my thoughts on paper and share them with others again, really was my inspiration to fight every day. I empathise deeply with anyone else out there who has similar struggles, whether they are mental, physical or of some other nature. We must all be gentle with ourselves, find joy in the small things and support each other.
What is something you’d like readers to take away from your work in regards to mental health advocacy, discussion, or criticism?
Some of my work is very personal, I have written a lot about anxiety, and that for me has been really hard, as I went from someone who had never experienced it and had no understanding of it, to living it 24/7. I would say, I hope that my work inspires others to also heal through words, to get them out, whether that’s rage, frustration, pain, hope, or anything in between, expressing what’s inside can be so cathartic. I also hope that someone might recognise themselves in my work and go ‘oh, that’s me, I feel seen’. The idea that we aren’t alone is so important, and I think that’s one of the core things for me—conveying that to others and giving them strength (or occasionally a laugh in some of my sillier stories).
Why do you create, still, despite the climate and political current and pervasive doubt we’re made slaves to?
Self expression is powerful. It is a kind of rebellion and maintaining that voice in an ever changing world is vital. To read alternating perspectives from different people widens that knowledge and by getting to know other people’s lived experiences is key to being connected. The literary community is so strong and brings together so many voices. I still create because I believe my voice is important and deserves to stand and shout and stamp its feet- as does everyone’s. I might have started late as a writer, but I don’t think that should hold me back and I would love to represent the older writers out there just starting out on this journey.
When was the last time you told your psychiatrist or therapist something you were afraid to disclose? In your own words, how do you feel about going up against the stigma?
I sadly had a very poor experience of therapy, one of the most damaging sessions I had being told I was a doormat, which is something that has always stuck with me and has taken some time to actually heal from. I see myself as kind, caring and empathetic, not someone who is willingly there for others to walk over. I will always fight against stigma and unfairness, and fought for years to get someone close to me the correct diagnosis when doctors just wouldn’t believe them, and would rather medicate than deal with the actual problem. I see now that I have strength and resilience, but it has taken a long time to get there. I find it hard to open up sometimes, certainly publicly, which was one of the reasons why I wanted to do this interview. I thought I don’t want to bother anyone and that no one would care about the person behind the writing, but that’s a very negative headspace to be in, and I have met so many lovely people in the literary community who I would love to get to know more and support and cheerlead for, so why shouldn’t that be the same for me? I am happy to chat to anyone, and will always, always listen if anyone is struggling or having a hard time. A problem shared is a problem halved.
Anything else you’d like to share or for us to share on your behalf?
I think I’d just like to reiterate my earlier point that everyone is going through their own struggles and for some, every day can feel like a real battle. Some days we might want to write, other days we might not be able to get out of bed, and that’s fine. I always felt guilty when I wasn’t doing something productive, like I was wasting the time I had, but sometimes we have to know when to slow down, to take a moment for ourselves and look inwards rather than outwards. If you are caring for others you have to be especially careful that you care for yourself too, and put yourself first sometimes. I know that can be incredibly hard but we must try, and finding happiness in those little things really matters. I went and planted some seeds at my allotment today, I also made up some Lego (yay, Lego!) although I did have to unpick it twice and got my hair caught in the bricks! I’m going to cook up a huge bowl of pasta after I finish writing this and tuck in while reading Spy x Family in my quokka-print Oddie. That, to me, is self care. Be kind to yourselves, and as I said, if anyone ever wants to talk, it’s never a bother, you know where you can find me.
🙂 Hugs to all. Zoe
losing our grip on purpose 