"Storying the Self" - Interview with Jess Moriarty: Writing & Thriving for Visionary Writers

Written By Sally-Shakti Willow

In this lively conversation about writing, Sally-Shakti Willow and Jess Moriarty explore storytelling, memoir, myth and creative nonfiction.

.

Weaving in and out between writing for wellbeing and retelling fables and fairytales as a means of contemporary creative self-expression, we dive into the tricky business of how to write about oneself.

.

If you've ever wondered - like I have - what's really the difference between memoir, autobiography, and autoethnography, Jess is here to help us find our way with words.

.

.

.

About Dr Jess Moriarty:
Jess's research focuses on Creative Writing pedagogy, offering ideas for supporting writers' confidence with writing and engagement with community projects including working with archives, interviewing people in care homes, and promoting diversity in education and writing.

.

Jess has published extensively on autoethnography and collaborative autoethnography, working with survivors of domestic abuse, artists and with academics from a wide range of disciplines including fine art, film, media and education.

.

She is Principal Lecturer in Creative Writing and Course Leader for the Creative Writing MA at the University of Brighton, co-director of the Centre for Arts and Wellbeing and on the board of directors for Lapidus International.

Sally-Shakti Willow

Writing my PhD in Utopian Poetics showed me what it means to be a writer. I wrote four books of poetry and a 50,000 word thesis, and I started journaling as a way to ground and heal myself.

While I was studying, I also wrote and maintained the Contemporary Small Press website, writing regular reviews of new fiction and poetry published by small presses. I was on the judging panel for the 2018 Republic of Consciousness Prize for literary fiction from the small presses. So I was reading a lot of great writing too. And I co-developed and taught a series of workshops called WELLBEING WHILE WRITING for doctoral researchers at the University of Westminster.

WELLBEING WHILE WRITING used practical techniques from Creative Writing pedagogy to support PhD students of all disciplines with the work of WRITING their thesis. I also used my knowledge and experience of yoga and meditation to provide MOVING & BREATHING FOR WELLBEING workshops to graduate students at the University.

I’ve been teaching English since 2004 and I’ve been teaching Creative Writing at the University of Westminster since 2017.

https://www.writingthriving.com
Previous

Writing & Thriving for Visionary Writers: Scott Thurston Interview
Next

"Writing Starts in the Body"