Why I’m Starting This Blog (Finally)

I’ve decided to start a blog — something I’ve been wanting (and meaning) to do for years. It’s going to be a short, personal, biweekly blog about creativity, and all of its challenges and joys. This is me in my painting clothes.

There are three main reasons I’ve always wanted to write a blog, and one reason that put me off — until now.

The first reason is that I’m dyslexic. I think deeply about things and have a lot I want to express, but I often can’t get my thoughts out clearly in conversation. I get muddled. A blog feels like a more patient place — somewhere I can take my time.

The second reason is that I can treat it like a journal of ideas — something to look back on later in life, a record of how I was thinking and feeling at different moments.

The third reason is that writing genuinely inspires my creativity. Even though my artwork isn’t conceptual in a literal sense, and there isn’t always an obvious link between my thoughts and what I make, my paintings are formed around deep, often spiritual ideas and a guiding intuition. That intuition comes from what I’m reading, thinking about, and quietly absorbing at the time.

So why now?

Because I can write in a dyslexic way — and ChatGPT can help me with the grammar and flow. It speeds up what is otherwise an extremely slow process for me, without taking away my authenticity. I don’t have a subscription, so I can’t use it endlessly, but it helps — and I imagine it helps many dyslexic people express themselves more clearly through language.

Words are extremely important to me, even though I’m a visual artist. That’s why I give my paintings very particular titles — it’s a big part of my artistic process.

And this painting to your left is one I made in 2021, after lockdown. It’s called, ‘What You See Is What You Get’. I think it captures vulnerability in some way.

I’m definitely someone who doesn’t hide much of myself from others. That has its positives and its negative sides, but I can’t help expressing how I feel. I am, however, slowly learning to keep some things to myself — with great difficulty. 😂

I feel great that I have started this - I’m over the biggest hurdle of all.