Fan Favourite
Earlier this week, I celebrated in a thousand words the music of singer-songwriter, Bess Atwell. Writing that article also helped me to better understand how to succeed at creative writing.
When my wife & I attended an interview with Graham Norton at Stratford Literary Festival last year, he remarked that he wrote about the contents of kitchen cupboards in households in Co. Cork (or words to that effect) because that was a world he knew.
In the autumn of 2025, I attended a series of creative writing workshops, and I will do so again from February. I have a story idea and 5,000 words. I lamented earlier this week that, although I was an experienced storyteller on LinkedIn, sharing content something close to life writing, I was finding it a challenge to hear my voice in my novice fiction.
I tell you folks, it’s harder than it looks, as Bon Scott once sang.
Continuing the musical theme, a thousand words of mine were published very recently on top ten music website, Toppermost:
Bess Atwell is one of my favourite singer-songwriters. I was delighted to have the opportunity to celebrate her music, and to tell the story of how I came to discover and enjoy her songs.
When I reflect upon my Bess Atwell article, I hear my voice.
I can life write authentically on LinkedIn because I’m drawing on a deep well of experiences. Elsewhere, I can write onto the glass in my own language and style that Bess Atwell is one of the UK’s pre-eminent folk-pop artists and that crowds of people must find out, because I’m a fervent music fan and she’s one of my favourites.
I thought at first that my imagination alone would unlock the door to creative writing. Now, I’m sensing a hierarchy of needs of sorts, with my memories, passions and emotions forming the base layer.
As Graham Norton might say, open up the kitchen cupboards, and let your voice escape.