My motherʼs grandma was gypsy and my fatherʼs family were blacksmiths and I grew up in a farming community. I learned the lie of the land from the back of a horse.
I worked with horses for a good many years. In 2008 I started training as a copywriter with www.dark-angels.org.uk. Iʼve subbed for Greenpeace “Connect” magazine; managed community engagement and launch of a new long-distance walking trail across Wales and written commercial copy for the launch of a hydrogen fuel cell car.
Four years ago my mum was diagnosed with Alzheimers. I took her into our home and have looked after her, pretty much single-handedly ever since. This meant giving up a lot of my old life and learning to live with and look after somebody who used to be an extremely able woman. Writing is more essential to me than ever … it’s my creative escape.
I have witnessed our collective difficulties in addressing climate change over the past twenty years. We talk about our fears and the science, but rarely of our hopes and dreams for the future. I think we need to find ways to express transformation in art and story, to create the support structure for the practical and cultural and systemic changes that will enable humans to survive.
