The changing tides

The end of the year is a convenient time for us to reflect on the journey our lives have taken over recent months, and this year I'm looking back at a lot of significant changes. My situation has gotten me thinking about how when life throws you a curveball it can be so helpful to be able to write about it, or through it. I can remember often retreating to the written word to process difficult emotions, whether they derive from communal tragedy like the earthquakes that hit Ōtautahi Christchurch in the early 2010s or from my own personal angst over my love life going awry.

I also started thinking about how the changes in our lives also change our writing, the way we wield it and the topics we choose. I know that, for instance, the ideas and stories I want to write about have changed a lot over the last decade or so as I've figured out who I am as a person. Embracing my place within the queer and neurodivergent communities has been an important part of my development, and my work certainly reflects that. On a different note, I also noticed that I became less and less motivated to write for theatre as I became less involved with the local theatre community. I expect that as my life changes again and I start reconnecting with the stage I'll probably pick up my half-finished scripts again—I certainly hope that's the case.