Looking After Your Brain and Heart, While Making Art
When I tell people I’m a writer they'll often say something like
“That must be a cathartic way to get out your emotions”
And in a way it is. Being an artist has definitely gotten me through some of the worst times in my life. It sometimes feels like your creativity is looking out for you, helping to give perspective. Reading over my work I’ll realise I’ve written the same thing over and over in different words, like my subconscious is screaming at me
“PAY ATTENTION TO THIS YOU IDIOT!”
And the ability to turn something negative into a poem or story people want to read has always felt like magic to me.
But one thing I mention to my writing students is you want to be careful what you decide to share with the world. Especially if what you’re writing about is quite fresh. By all means, create art about it, but before you share it take a second to think;
“How am I going to feel when my mum or my workmate or the annoying dickhead from down the road sees/hears this”
I find there’s a tendency for people to always gravitate to big life events when it comes to making art. Which makes sense. Often it’s the heartbreak or the traumatic time in our lives that inspires us. But there’s nothing worse than being on stage or having some work published and suddenly feeling really exposed and vulnerable. Don’t be afraid to sit on your work for a while or even just share it with people close to you. Putting emotionally loaded art out into public is something that takes a lot of skill, so if you’re early in your creative practice don't be in a rush.
Another thing to watch out for is making art about painful or traumatic events over and over that just ends up reopening the wound. At first, digging into your pain can create really powerful work. But past a certain point all the healing and creativity is drained out of an event and it’s important to move onto something new.
I find it can be helpful to distinguish between work that is for my mental health or venting and work that is for public consumption. More often than not the lines blur, which is fine, but I think giving yourself permission to create without thinking “who’s going to see this” is really important.
When you’re trying to get your thoughts and feelings out you don’t want to be second-guessing yourself or holding back. Keep in mind if you’re making art for mental health reasons, don’t feel like you need to be a master of whatever artform you’re using. Or even if you are, it’s ok to let go of craft if it’s going to serve you in making something that's going to benefit your wellbeing.
Again, creativity can be amazing for your mental health. And I’m certainly not saying don’t write about the difficult shit life throws at us. But just look after yourself (and your audience) when deciding if and when to share your work with the world.
By Dominic Hoey
