24th April 2023

WRITESPACE STUDIO 24th April 2023

Please introduce yourself by telling us where you live (country, city/state/region) and what kind of writing you do.

Lynne: I'm Lynne, a linguist in Brighton, England, who writes about language for both academic and non-academic audiences.

Hussain: Hi I am Hussain joining from Indonesia. I am currently editing a Farsi short story.

Stephanie: Hi I'm Stephanie, joining from unceded Gadigal country (Sydney, Australia). Writing my art history PhD on 14thC images of the Grim Reaper in Italy.

Marie: Marie, Austin, TX, USA. Mostly academic writing. Currently writing a book.

Vicky: morning, Vicky in Essex, UK -- currently writing a book about lodgers in Victorian England (just back from my morning run, lovely and sunny here!)

Ramón: Hello, Ramón Menéndez here, from Melbourne (Wurundjeri land), Australia. Doing academic sociological writing.

James: James, Stockport, Uk – I write about design education and its people (students and academics), places (studios, the art schools, policies, and corridors), and things (curricula, materials, and dialogues).

Eva: Hi, I am Eva, based in Germany and writing about (higher) education.

Bring our voices into the room: Symbolic animals!

Stephanie: "Symbolism of animals at the feet of recumbent statues in Saint-Denis Basilica" https://shorturl.at/hjwZ8

Vicky: it's to do when they followed foraging wild boar -- disturbing the worms

Eva: I looked it up. I meant a firebug…, maybe not as beautiful as a ladybird, but still exciting.

Vicky: ferrets are popular pets in the UK

Stephanie: They're banned in a lot of Australian states so not very normal to see!

Creative warm up: What is your biggest goal right now, and what would it look like to achieve it?

Vicky: finishing my book (I created an image rather than words)

Lynne: Goal: to be more mindful about how I’m using my time. One thing it would look like: healthier

Marie: Insight from this exercise: I like writing, and I want to create space to continue doing more of it

Eva: Balancing working/ writing with family while being away/ present.

Ramón: Finish at least one of the three papers I have started and be happy or content about it, even before anybody tells me they like it, which would probably be my goal.

Hussain: My biggest goal at the moment is resettling in NZ. But it is not something I personally control it. So something I would control it would self-publishing my essay collection.

Stephanie: Goal (beyond PhD) to foster community with friends and neighbours. It might look like mutual aid and sharing resources.

James: Useful prompt – I had three or four big ones, then I had to see if I could prioritise them, realising some would lead to others. All involve taking a risk, feeling uncomfortable and being creative. Three things to embrace.

Lynne: outlining last section of (reimagined) paper and starting to write it

Pre-pomodoro: What do you plan to work on?

Vicky: my image is of me crossing a race finishing line, a slog but done

Marie: Drafting a paragraph

Stephanie: I would love to get the first paragraph of this section written

Hussain: I will read short story in Farsi then note what type of editing comments I can give.

Ramón: I had some idea that I jotted down before I came to this meeting, so I am going to try to decipher my own handwriting and put it in the word document.

Eva: Structuring a journal article

Vicky: I'm going to write up some of a chapter that is currently in a notebook

James: Feels like grunt writing – but is actually grant writing.

Post-pomodoro: Please tell us one thing that you accomplished

Stephanie: Got most of the way through my paragraph

Vicky: getting words typed up on the page 🙂

Marie: Drafted a paragraph

Hussain: I found some parts in the story for improvement

James: Rewrote a "timetable of activities”

Ramón: I have rewrote and deleted some sections in one of my papers.

Eva: I drafted two paragraphs based on conference notes.

Lynne: Outlined, wrote intro to section, started first subsection. Yay!

Post-WINDOWs: How did that go for you?  Please tell us one thing that you discussed, noticed, or learned

Vicky: I think Hussain and I could have chatted all day about his piece

Hussain: Thanks Vicky I felt the same

Vicky: connection -- to people and writing

Eva: paying attention to the momentum of writing and publishing

Marie: We discussed the usefulness of momentum

Ramón: Language matters

Lynne: We talked about authenticity (as a topic we’re both interested in) and showing professional confidence

Hussain: Footnote as to show statistic in my stories.

Stephanie: James asked the perfect question which reminded me to include a key piece of my research

James: That the church (Middle Ages in Italy)  was a site of contemporary music, art, politics and discourse.

Stephanie: I wonder if there's any way to have an online space where we could organise our own catch ups with each other

Lynne: i think the poor attendance periods often match up with university breaks

Stephanie: Blackboard?

Vicky: slack?

Stephanie: https://eu.bbcollab.com/collab/ui/scheduler/

James: I’m definitely up for trying the new model. I have noticed that as my jobs returns increasingly to pre-pandemic mode, it is harder to protect my time. The idea of a deliberate and intentional block of time appeals.

Stephanie: Discord is also a possibility

Marie: I like the idea of the 6-week model. It might be good to foster an embodiment of regular practice.

Vicky: it will certainly help with planning my runs if they were on a 6-week model 🙂 realised I was 3km from home at 8.30 this morning

One word poem:

Sharp: firebug momentum design goal tent symbol ball