Dahl had a routine to make his work happen. He would sequester himself for 7 hours a day, evidence not only of his commitment but also his privilege. I don’t disagree, I think however creativity, whether writing, painting, whatever needs to be far more opportunistic for most people. I’m thinking here of JK Rowling who wrote while the baby slept, while the dishes sat unwashed, who wrote in cafes as it was too cold at home. I have little bags of kit that I have with me all the time so that if I have a spare moment, I’m ready. Why? Because few of us have that sort of privilege, especially women ..read more

Who inspires me? Alison Moyet for one! I was lucky enough to see her at #GlastonburyFestival a few years ago. I was right near the front… very important for a short ass like me. She was amazing and her performance of this song was electric . Loved her voice since Yazoo all that power and emotion. This is a great song – Right as Rain love the lyrics, her voice, the synths all of it. And I wish I could write songs that you can dance to, but I don’t, yet. If you can’t find peace in my arms Find dis-ease in my arms As you please in my arms ..read more

And you and I from Close To The Edge is one of my all time favourites. It’s an epic song from the days when bands wrote songs that lasted more than 3 minutes and you listen to the all the way through cos they’re flipping epic! This one is not only a great song it’s one that my Dad set to some old cine footage of my mum and my sister and I. Mum died when we were very young and this song has worn a groove in my heart ..read more

Me at the end of every month: omg I can’t believe it’s [insert month here] already. But really I can’t believe it’s August tomorrow. And pretty much every month review this last year or so has gone ‘This has been such a hard month…..’ and then I go list every thing I’ve done; I have pushed so hard and achieved so much and the reflective process of journaling affirms this time and again. So yeah, Go Me!!!! That’s why I’m leaving August blank if only for a few hours and sit here in the library, listening to the lady cut decorations for the next promo and watching the lovely one read. Seriously ..read more

Are we? See how the story unfolds here ..read more

I’m so proud of myself. This is one of the videos for my body of work, EXHIBITIONIST If you like it why not show your support … click on Help Me Grow or up on the menu bar ..read more

This is some of the fantastic work my husband did for my song, ‘what if you knew’. We’ve been rehearsing it today and I can’t wait to share it but…. patience, it has to be right. I’ve been really busy pulling everything together and I’m amazed at how much work has gone into my new collection , Exhibitionist. When you’re in the middle of it all you don’t see it. Anyway, best crack on ..read more

I was planning to do the study in water colour pencils but in the end the oil pastels won out – the colours are so vibrant and tactile. It was so lovely working outside in the woods and the light changing under the leaf canopy gives a real sense or time passing. The strangest thing though is writing about it afterwards…. Nobody: What’ve you been up to today Lou? Me: Well, funny you should ask, I’ve been working on a Time Lapse study for Sweeter Now. Nobody:….. Me: it’s one of my songs Nobody: ah, ok. What’s it about? Me: Being a mum, loving being a mum. But also being a mum who sometim ..read more

Today’s been a beach day went in the sea, built sand kingdoms, watched the tide come in and take them away – oh and I got burned as I was a bit slapdash with the sun screen missing half my legs and entirely forgetting that the back of my top was MESH doh ! Back in the cool of the woods my burn is, well burning so exiting these cool green time lapse videos have been quite soothing. I’ve been playing with the speed of the time lapse to play with the whole passing of time and I’m pretty pleased with the results so far As I have aphantasia I have no idea how things are going to turn out – jus ..read more

It’s been a busy day! This morning my husband and I were with a group of yr6 students. We were getting them to create soundscapes with sounds from a mix of natural and man made objects. The kids had not used BandLab before but took to it Luke sucks to water. I like BandLab over GarageBand as it’s accessible to people on both Apple and Android and so is more inclusive. They made some great recordings and put together some really interesting soundscapes . We were really impressed with their engagement and focus, as well as the soundscapes they created. After a lovely coffee in the sun with ..read more