the artist's toolkit: Recent Episodes
Nicole Acquah
The podcast for writers, actors and makers alike. Each episode drops a nugget of wisdom, be it through interviews with writers and actors or personal reflections from the host & storyteller Nicole Acquah. The podcast is designed to offer an eclectic approach to making, offering listeners different tools they may add to their own toolkit. So let's discuss making art together!
“I just want to stay in this industry. I just want to stay…that’s what I want…forever. I’ll probably never get to retire if I do that but that’s okay so we’ll say forever.”
Vocal Coach Eleanor Manners on her process, working on IS GOD IS and Talawa Theatre’s RUN IT BACK
Eleanor Manners works as a facilitator, voice and dialect coach and Theatre Maker across the UK.
She has also worked as voice coach on Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner and is currently assisting Hazel Holder in her research for Get Up Stand Up.
As a Theatre Maker she has worked as the Associate Director on large scale musical The Wizard of Oz at Leeds Playhouse and has assisted on Searching for the Heart of Leeds.
Welcome to the artist’s toolkit. Today I’m chatting with author Douglas Cowie!
Douglas Cowie was born in Elmhurst, Illinois, USA, and since 1999 has lived either in England or in Germany. He currently lives in London. He the author of two novels, Owen Noone and the Marauder, and Noon in Paris, Eight In Chicago, and two linked novellas, Sing for Life: Tin Pan Alley and Sing for Life: Away, You Rolling River. He is a Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London. He hosts a monthly podcast about contemporary American fiction called NovelRomAntics.
This interview took place 19th April 2021
LINKS TO DOUGLAS’ BOOKS
Noon in Paris, Eight in Chicago: Noon in Paris, Eight in Chicago | Myriad (myriadeditions.com)
Owen Noone and the Marauder: Owen Noone and the Marauder: Amazon.co.uk: Cowie, Douglas: 9781841956930: Books
Sing for Life: Tin Pan Alley: Sing for Life: Tin Pan Alley (Contemporary American Novellas): Cowie, Douglas: 9780615884189: Amazon.com: Books
Sing for Life: Away You Rolling River: Sing for Life: Away, You Rolling River (Contemporary American Novellas): Amazon.co.uk: Cowie, Douglas: 9780615931999: Books
DOUG’S PODCAST ON CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN FICTION
Novel RomAntics podcast: The Trans-Atlanticist - Podcast (podigee.io)
MY FAVOURITE QUOTES IN THIS EPISODE
“Epiphanies are just the result of process.”
You’re reading it (the book) for x, y, z but w is coming along for the ride”
“If the process itself isn’t the most important thing, then why bother?”
“The process is everything”
“There’s a notion worth fighting against I think, of if you don’t do these things you’re not a writer, or if you do do these things you are a writer.”
(on plotting) “Everything else is so frightening that not knowing what I want to achieve from a basic plot point of view would be a mess for me.”
“The world isn’t holding its breath waiting for your novel. And that’s kind of depressing but at the same time it frees you up to do what you want.”
“POV is the most important decision a fiction writer ever makes about their work of fiction”
“You can always say it a different way”
“To me that’s what matters so much about literary language is that it does things, and a literary writer writes something that no one else could do…”
Watch Video: INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR DOUGLAS COWIE: “EPIPHANIES ARE THE RESULT OF PROCESS” | the artist's toolkit - YouTube
Hello and welcome to the inaugural episode of the artist’s toolkit, the podcast for writers, actors and makers alike. Today we're talking with playwright, director and teacher Poppy Corbett.
Poppy is a playwright, who is currently on the Old Vic 12 scheme, as well as a Teaching Fellow in Playwriting and Screenwriting at Royal Holloway University. In 2015 her play It’s my Party won the ‘First Draft’ Lambeth Playwriting competition and in 2013, her play Hatchling won Masterclass at the Theatre Royal Haymarket’s inaugural ‘Pitch Your Play’ competition.
IMPORTANT NOTE
This interview took place on 26th March 2021. Some references - particularly covid-19 related - may only be specific to that particular point in time.
RECOMMENDATIONS BY POPPY:
Royal Court – Introduction to Playwriting course - https://royalcourttheatre.com/playwriting/writers-groups/introductory-groups/
London Writers’ Salon - https://londonwriterssalon.com/
MY FAVOURITE QUOTES
“I want to be the Blue Peter presenter of creativity”.
“Who are the people who need to populate this world?”
“Start from what you know. Start from that scene because you’re obviously excited by that scene.”
“The only thing in writing is writing.”
“You need to know how to swim the mini pool before you try and cross the channel.”
“I’m very passionate about wanting access to theatre to be broadened and to be for everyone.”
“I love directing because it’s when you’re at the centre of lots of different creative conversations.”
“Get some writer friends…it kind of doesn’t matter who they are; cause if they’re different to you and write different things to you, and if you don’t know them really well, that’s really exciting.”
“There are actually lots of opportunities for young writers; loads of different theatres have programmes that you can apply for, and if you can get onto one of them, that’s a good place to find people, and then just cling on to them.”
Thank you Poppy for your insight and wisdom x