JP Seabright, mum and writer, answers some questions

JP Seabright writes, reads and listens to a lot of records. Their work can be found in Babel Tower Notice Board, Fugitives & Futurists, Full House, Untitled Voices and elsewhere, as well as published in three anthologies. Allegedly, JP is still trying to complete novel-length fiction and non-fiction that has been work in progress for longer than most marriages. In 2018 they set themselves the task of listening to every LP in their record collection and writing a blog about it. Three years later, they’re not even halfway, but refuse to give it up. This tells you as much about JP’s stubbornness, as it does their love of music. https://randomrecordreview.wordpress.com

​Who and what inspires you?

I’m inspired by everything and anything. Other writing – nonfiction as much as fiction, a great deal by music, visual art, people I pass in the street, things I overhear, my own life and experiences. It tends to strike at random and frequently inconvenient moments, and often in the middle of the night when I’m trying to get to sleep.

How do you find time to write as a parent?

With difficulty, some guilt (though I’m working on that), and a certain amount of sacrifice or at least brutal prioritisation. I am the ‘other mother’, my partner is the birth mother so she’s done all the really hard work, though we share all other parenting duties. She could only get 6 months maternity leave, unpaid, so I was the breadwinner for most of last year, despite only working part-time due to health constraints. So there was really no time or energy to write during that first year. Our daughter is now 16 months and in nursery, so I have a few hours each week to write when I’m not working. But it is an ongoing struggle to carve out time, and it’s never enough!

Which writing activities kickstart your writing when you're struggling?

​I’m not suffering from writer’s block currently – quite the opposite. Perhaps due to not being able to write for a while, there’s now a backlog of ideas and projects to work on so I often feel mentally deluged. This can be just as much of a blocker: what to spend your creative time on when you have so little of it? As a result, I’ve gone back to poetry and flash fiction and reworking a lot of older pieces with a fresh perspective. I keep lists and have endless ideas and phrases in Notes on my phone. If I’m not able to pick up a longer writing project, I might work on something shorter, often more experimental. Being able to actually finish something, in the short bursts of time available, is very satisfying creatively.

Find JP on twitter: https://twitter.com/errormessage
Or read more on their site:
https://jpseabright.wordpress.com/

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