Writing As A Form Of Therapy

Hi again @Silenus, that makes sense to me about characters being believable and internally consistent, even if by being inconsistent. The creative spaces seem paradoxical to me.

I come to a finished form in videos by not knowing what I'm doing, as in no plan, just video making as it's happening (with lots of revision). Only at the end does it really make full sense.

Inhabiting your characters sounds a bit like method acting. I was an actor for a while when younger and I remember getting very intensely into inhabiting characters even when not on stage (I did mostly theatre). It involved a bit of madness. These days I adopt a approach that's not quite so intense, being kind of in and out of what I'm doing at the same time. If that makes any sense.

I'm kind of comparing two very different forms of creativity: writing and video making. But I find creative processes cross over different modes of expression.

Once I met a man on a train.

He had cigarette burns on his arms.

An agitated spirit in his movements.

The restless man sat next to me.

He spoke in torment about good and evil.

I complained they're always at war.

Later I reflected on religion.

My mother's Catholic beliefs took me as a child.

Raging Atheism on my father's side.

This conflict is within me.

As it was with the man on the train.

I cover my scars in calm costume.

Now I speak to be seen.

The Times

I'm afraid of housing

as I get older.

Rents are skyrocketing,

people becoming homeless.

More than one warning message

in the news

about older women

being especially vulnerable.

Living on a pension,

I spend 10 grand a year on rent.

Sharing accommodation with

a friend and companion.

In a little flat with a mini kitchen.

I am one of the lucky ones.

My single friend aged 54,

living alone,

weeks from exiting the building,

forced to leave for redevelopment,

is looking at almost twice that amount.

That's if she's lucky enough to find a place

in a market with only 1% availability,

and if she's lucky enough to win

the lottery of applications

to real estate agents,

with just a pension and a little savings

to her name.

What is to become of us

in a future based on

this time?

This has been in the forefront of my thinking lately too @Mazarita. My only hope is that enough stories will be told that get the ball rolling with really adressing this. I too maybe in this position once my kids leave which is pretty likely to be in the next few years. It scares me too. It appears to be a rapidly growing situation which needs to be addressed urgently. Well that’s my soap box talk for today 🤔☺️💜

Hi @Teej ox 🙂

Good to hear from you. Sorry to know you may face this too. It's impossible to get public housing where I am. Luckily we have just signed another years lease on our private rental through onsite agents. There needs to be something done about this by government. The housing of the community is a disaster when totally in the hands of the free market. There needs to be more checks and balances and some form of rent control. It is galloping out of the reaches of too many people now. End of soapbox rave here.

when trust is broken

and you're already born

with a maladaptive penchant

when it happens very early

and you wake to a world

that seems hostile

then that's all you know

deep down in that void

that may be your self

solitude seems to be

your friend and enemy

I have bipolar disorder and write poetry to help me cope and understand my experiences. Here is one from my recent book.

Frail Bird

Frail and flapping
its weak wings
trying to fly
away from the

black storm and
the rain comes
in torrents but
the wispy wings

grow stronger
and the bird’s
long flight finds
sunlight streaming

in my window
washing away my
trail of tears
smiling at my

pools of pain
and the frail
bird and I
fly on