Get Booked – INS Creative Writing Group 190721

Hello, this is Get Booked for women's and men's radio station. I'm Hazel Butterfield and I love doing this show, talking to authors, chatting about anything and everything, books related and all the joy, enlightenment and escape that good books can provide. Sit back, let us entertain you with a different author each week, sharing who they are, what they do and what inspires them. Today I must say I am very excited to be chatting to the INS lockdown writing group. The INS which stands for Integrated Neurological Services Difference is a person centered long term approach that considers the holistic and integrated needs of clients and carers. The difference enables INS clients to remain independent for longer, need less acute care and empowers the clients, not the diagnosis. INS makes the difference between a life devastated by severe illness and a life that makes the most of the opportunities still available. It's all about expanding horizons and realising what is possible. At ins, they treat the person, not the diagnosis, they consider the needs of carers and they aim to meet the client and carers identified needs with a holistic approach that is not tolerated time limited. This attitude enables rather than disables, respects individual differences and promotes independence. They find that INS can be the difference between living or just surviving with a long term neurological condition. Now I'm joined today by the INS Lockdown writing group and I've been reading their essays and I cannot wait to see the finalized book due to be released on the 21st of June. So. So I'm going to make sure that the link is up and running on all my socials, so go and check that out. The concept of this book is to share the work from the INS run creative writing group with the aim to express the creative side and the experiences of lockdown while living with a neurological condition. Right then, let's get to know everybody, shall we? I'm Kate, I've got multiple sclerosis. I'm 49. I have been involved with INS for a few years but I live out of area so I've used and dipped into their physiotherapy service and then with Lockdown and Covid I joined the zoom groups, loads of the zoom groups and it's been brilliant. It's been, it's bizarre. I've said this before that it's almost with Lockdown, I've benefited from COVID because it's given me opportunities I didn't have before. I used to work. I worked from home for 11 years, made redundant in 2016 and since then I've been bored to death. I was really busy with my career. So I know it sounds a bit cheesy but INS has really provided me with just a get, you know, an escapism really with creative writing, mindfulness, music therapy, general chat groups, young persons groups. So that's me. So I'm Jo, Jo Down. I've. I've got a. I had a very complicated brain bleed so I have a ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, hydrocephalus and cognitive challenges. I've been involved with INS for. I'm not certain but a few years I've started. I've done a whole range of activities with them from seated exercise through to bowling through to sailing and creative writing. So they've been very, very helpful. It's enabled me to get back to things I loved like sailing after my injury. And I'm. I used to work in the finance world but I'm medically retired now, sadly, tragically. And despite lockdown I seem to be uber busy. Like coming out of lockdown. I feel like I need a rest whereas everyone else is thinking I haven't been doing much but I've just been very busy in lockdown. Kate said, you know, creative writing was almost created by lockdown and so for me it's just something I've never ever done before or contemplate. I didn't even understand what it was, but effectively was self taught within this group. I learned by people sharing their pieces what creative writing was. I think it's very cathartic, isn't it? Being able to write down what you've got going on in your head and just put in pen to paper. I mean it's. I love the thought of. I mean you can do creative writing and it doesn't have to actually necessarily mean that it's to going. Going somewhere. Sometimes it can just be for you to order your thoughts and just the receptors that are kind of pinging around when you're being creative I think is absolutely remarkable. Thank you, Jo. I'm Jan. I had a. I think you'll have read it anyway a brain tumour when I was 41 and then two cerebral hemorrhages when I was 43. So was paralyzed initially down the right hand side. I've also got epilepsy. I am extremely nervous talking this morning. Writing means an awful lot to me. I. In my late 40s and it's. I've written about it anyway in these pieces wrote two books and then was so unwell actually in my 50s with epilepsy which was. My epilepsy was really bad That I didn't touch writing and I sort of gave up on it. And I knew about this creative writing group, but it took me one year to have the courage to actually join. And when I did, we were in lockdown. And it has been amazing for me. There's something about this group and the chemistry in this group and the fact. You know, Jo, I've never actually met you in person yet I look forward to the day when I do. There's only one person here that I physically have met. But there's a kind of closeness between us that is indescribable, that has developed through, I think, sharing. Writing is a very personal thing to do. And so to be able to do it, it certainly took me a lot of courage, has been a brilliant experience for me. And INS is just a fabulous organization that has offered so many opportunities in lockdown. And in general, I could wobble on a lot more because there's a lot more in my heart. But I can't actually say it at the moment out of my mouth because too nervous. But it has made me start writing again, this creative writing group, which is fantastic. Sorry, I was just saying I get nervous quite often and I say some of the things that I say on live radio are absolutely hilarious. So please just. I know it's hard sometimes when you are nervous. One thing I did one to say is that the pieces that I've written that are going to be in this book, two of them I've written actually to help other people. So when they read them and if they've had a stroke and paralyzed and they think, oh, well, if she could, maybe I could. And then the other part, piece about memory loss, I mean, anybody could think, oh, well, I'm in my 50s. I'm just getting old, I'm losing my memory now. That's not the case for me. I was losing it because I was having multiple seizures. And so really I want these pieces to go out for epileptics so that they read them and if this is happening to them, they might have the chance to go and get the help and understanding that I did. So I haven't written it as self, whatever. I've written it for other people, if you understand me. Yeah, I think that's fantastic. I would add to Jen. I only met, I think, one, two, three people in the group. So I look forward to meeting everyone who I haven't met. But about my JJ. I was 44 when I had my injury and that was about seven years ago. I spent a year in hospitals had four brain operations. Oh, can I say that it's my birthday today. Happy birthday. Oh, yes, of course. Yes. John, do you want to go next? Yeah. Creative writing. When we first put this together, I think it was probably about eight years ago. We've had three or four staff that come through that have sadly come and gone, and we've managed to keep it going. I think he hit a dip, and then he's really picked up again. I think it's picked up because of you guys. You know, the work that you do is phenomenal. I take a lot from it because since being at INS, I've been. I've had Parkinson's for 11 years, but I've been coming here for about eight. And you kind of lose that communication. You know, when you try to talk to people on the phone. I can feel my voice go now. And you become very. What's the word? Conscious of it. And I think with this group, people have come together. It's the same with some of the other groups that I do. We've been out walking. I've met people for the first time since. Well, since ever, you know, and you realize what INS is actually doing for people and for us to all come together with these stories and finally make it into a book. For me, it's just fantastic. And your words, Jan, just then just had me in tears, which I had to hold back. So I congratulate all of you. I think you're fantastic. So thank you. John, do you want to tell Hayes a little bit about your background? Okay. I didn't want to bore you. I'm from a military. Military background. I did 15 years in the Army Air Corps. I became a signals instructor in my last two years, teaching at Middle Wallop, where I teach class 32 ones. And instructors and potential pilots. Voice procedure. I've worked on the rebroadcasts. Yeah. Done loads and loads of work, really, with the Army Air Corps. And then I. When I came out in 2001, I went into telecoms and built the 3 network, which went live on the 3rd of March, 2003. And that was quite a challenge. And then I went into Tidal Energy, earning really good money running the office. And then suddenly one day woke up and I had Parkinson's. And that was. That hit me like a ton of bricks. But I'm one of those people that's never down until you're down. And I try to come up with different ways of raising money that goes off every week. Karen, do you want to go next? Okay. I always find it Very humbling. When was that awful man? It was a newspaper man. Most humblest day of his life. No, when I talked to. When I listened to the group or anybody at ins. Everybody's been struck so badly and yet continued. And the way people form a group without being so. My husband's just walking by now. He'll start putting faces up. But when we should collectively pull them back. Yeah, it is so humbling because everybody here has had the most awful knocks in their lives, but instead of going down with them, they fought against it and they've come up through the surface of the water. You know, they're not drowned, but they're coming up and they come up even better than they were before now. Not better for themselves, but better for everybody else. It is just so incredible how people have coped and made something positive out of it, even though they still will have the symptoms and the problems that go with their difficulty and come even better people than they were before. Perhaps. I wish I could do that, but, I mean, I had. I was. I was just. I was gonna say normal, but I was just normal. But I suddenly had, about 22 years ago, a spinal cord stroke, which is quite unusual, apparently, if you're a GP for 100 years, which, God forbid, you only see one person who had it. And so it took quite a while to analyze what was going on with me. And it was at Liberal T10, the block supplied. The nervous supply to the rest of my body was just gone. And so I couldn't stand, I couldn't control. But when I went to the loo, I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything from here downwards. And it was very, very, very frightening. And also it was more frightening as well, because they couldn't. I couldn't work out what it was. I couldn't diagnose it. And I was told that I would be in a. I'd never be able to get out of bed ever again. And there are people here who are much nearer at that stage now. I've been so lucky. I've been able to fight my way through this whining, horrible thing and do quite a lot, and I've certainly surpassed whatever they said. But it goes on and on and on. It rears its head as I go along. It says, you thought you got rid of me. And then it comes up with something else. Various symptoms. It's not interesting, but I'm going to have an. In fact, I'm now going to have an operation on the lower part of my spinal cord. It seems I'm getting hospital for that. And it does make me feel really ill all over. But people here, all of you, amazing, you come up with something better out of it. It's almost like. Acts like a fertilizer with you and you produce these fantastic, wonderful things and these images of other people and opinions and feelings and empathies and sympathies for other people which are far outside your own problems. It's too minor a word. Outside your own difficulties. So I'm just so glad to be part of this. I'm sorry I haven't been able to come along for the Zooms for a long time that I haven't been at all well over the last few months. It means so much to me to come to this and be part of this and to. Well, to witness what other people can do and be inspired by it. And that helps. It's like medicine. It helps me keep going. So thank you so much. Hello. Hello, Hazel? Hi, Imelda. I'm Imelda o'. Shaughnessy. I had a heart attack and a stroke in September 19th. I'm living on my own with support of family and friends. Ian, do you want to go next? Yeah, okay. Sorry, but there was a phone call in the middle of something like Zoom. What can I say? Well, my name is Ian. I'm 73 years of age, retired live my wife and two cats I love very much, including the wife. Can she hear you at least? You got that one. Yeah. Actually, I'm 15 years post diagnosis with Parkinson's and that's come a bit of a blow to me because I've always been so active athletically. I've never smoked. I hadn't occasional beer or whiskey over the years. But the Parkinson's lately become a pain in the butt and. I see. But main thing is involved with INS giving me such an outlet in the day times. The things I really enjoyed like working with the student groups together at INS and let them know how it was. Living with Parkinson's, I mean, it definitely brought me out writing side I think is writing an art a side I never thought would be possible. The only thing I think of is all these years as a policeman writing reports and summaries and stuff has helped to engender putting pen to paper and perhaps that's why. Anyway, that's me. Any questions? That's George Foster. Hazel. And George has Parkinson's. Great. Nice to meet you, George. And we've also got Imelda, finally. Imelda, do you want to say a quick hi and then we'll open. Hazel has questions to ask of everybody. Sorry about that. Hello. Hello. Well, we've heard. We did hear a little bit about you earlier when we were doing a makeshift kind of entrance onto the Zoom. But, yeah, no. So we know a little bit about you. We are going to ask some questions shortly. Are we all ready for some questions? Yes. I mean, a couple of the questions that we were going to ask, you've kind of already answered in your introduction. I mean, I wanted to know what it was like, like being part of a creative group in lockdown, considering most of you haven't ever met, as Jan was saying as well. So that must have been nice to have a way to kind of come together and also in such a kind of creative, collaborative way as well, with an end goal. How did that feel for everybody who would like to offer an answer? Well, can I just say that one thing I. And I've written this before, but not. I thought it was too rude, actually, is that I think that sharing writing for me has always felt like taking all your clothes off in public. It's really difficult to do so. Except that when I was in this writing group, I didn't feel like that. I felt safe because of the connection between. And that's the first time ever that I actually feel none. Not judged and safe. And it was all right to say what. What I'd written. Well, that's down to you, John, as well, I do believe. So. Hats off to you. I would like to say when you are going down the creative writing process, yes, you do lay yourself out there. But I read something fantastic once, and it was to do with a woman who was talking about how she had struggled with certain issues. She'd had scoliosis, and there was a friend of hers that had alopecia. And they said it's a gift because it means that they can then use that to help other people feel more comfortable and open the conversation. And I think what you're all doing is you're opening up the conversation. You're laying yourself bare and helping other people to realize what they can do, no matter what challenges that all of us have to face. And I think that is fantastic. So you should all feel incredibly proud of what you've been doing in lockdown and really kind of harnessing what you're capable of doing. I mean, as you were saying, one of you was saying before that you've never been so busy in lockdown. This is the beauty of what places like Inside have been creating with these Zoom courses. It makes Life so much more accessible than before. So some people have actually thrived in lockdown. And I've loved reading your essays, especially the poem that you wrote, George, on Precipitation. I thought that was absolutely stunning. You must have enjoyed writing that one. And so does anybody else would like to chat about what it's been like for you in a creative writing group. Just going to say one thing. I've always avoided any groups to do with neurological problems since I've been diagnosed with Ms. I've never been a member of any Ms. Group. I've never wanted to ask for help from groups because I've always just carried on working from home and just avoided being ill, if that makes sense. So this was the first time I'd ever joined a group that was tailored for people with issues, if we're putting it. But I don't think in the group we do. I don't think we focus on being ill a lot, to be honest. Yes. Some people's writings we haven't actually. We don't know what everybody's writings have gone into the book. So it may be that everybody's talking about being ill, but I don't think so. And that's what's, that's what's been unusual. We're a group of people with were got, you know, common problems but it didn't feel like the group was anything to do with being ill. I think that's what comes across in the writing because it's a part of you, it's not all of you. Yeah. And so John, he would give us either themes or sentences or. And then we take it in turns to have ideas. But I don't think we ever dwelt on the fact that we were ill. It was never about that. And that's good. Brought us together. I felt it sort of tapped into part of my creative side of my brain that had been dormant all these years. Never really done anything creative. And so it. Yeah, it sort of. It woke up a part of my creative side that was because I'm. I'm very heavily left side brain, analytical, big thinker. And so doing something creative was new for me. And yeah, I got, yeah, it's. I got a lot out of it and had no idea what it was but loved it. Yeah. So do you think many of you would have produced any creative writing on your own or do you think it's all just down to what. Because I've been a part of the INS creative writing group, I'm a clear no on that. Yeah. No, I wouldn't I'm a no. Yeah. I've been creative in the past, but I didn't realise I could still write and I wouldn't have done that without the group. I think I watched an interview with Billy Connolly last year. I get another one. Even Arthur Parkinson, who he's learned since been diagnosed with Parkinson's. He's doing more sketches and drawings and stuff, but artistic side, to sit down most every day for cutlers doing that work. And I think must be something cleanser of any brain thing, Mississippi or anything like that. It obviously gets parts of the brain working that would normally be a bit dormant and pick up. And Kate, you said it, but that when they're part of a group, I find out with the Parkinson's support group up and running, a lot of people, oh, can't be bothered with that. You go to the group, there may be others under conditioning. You are and you don't like what you see. A bit of that. You know, I actually had given up on writing altogether and unless I joined this group, I wouldn't have written another word. And so it's a real gift to me to be able to start to write again. And the other. Sorry. The other thing is I can't use my hands anymore, so I can't write. So everything I do is voice recognition into my phone and then I spend a long time just using the fingers, my thumb that I can use spelling, you know, correcting the spelling or the words. That's why I didn't write as well anymore. So. Yes. So, Kate, you wrote about the empty carriage, didn't you? Yeah, I was. I thoroughly loved it. And just at the end, I just suddenly. It kind of took my breath away, just at the end. And I was just. I didn't guess. I raised my mummy. She guessed it within about two lines. It's going to be a ghost. I said, thanks. Did she? I didn't. I didn't. Probably because we're of the same. I don't know, maybe because she's my mum. Yeah. She knows you. She knows which way. Which direction you're going to go in. No, I loved it. And I've got to say, I mean, I sent about eight essays beforehand and they're all so varied as well. And I love that in a book because people don't know what they're going to get next. And I think that is absolutely. Well, that's the process. That's that element of being creative, isn't it? I mean, did any of you actually have. Were there any other struggles? Obviously Kate, you've just said that. Obviously it has to be in voice recognition. Were there any other challenges for anybody else writing? I think. John, you have something to say, John? Yeah, I was going to say that coming out of the army, there's a lot of technical things, being a communication specialist, talking to aircraft and whatever. And when you come out of the army, you go into Civil street, you suddenly leave all that behind. But although you leave the physical side of using that, you still got it going on in your mind. So for me, it was using that kind of information that still wallows around in there with some of these stories. So I come up with a couple of stories at the beginning of starting all this, and one of them is when I fell from a helicopter abseilian at 200ft. And I just, you know, I just. I don't believe I should be here, but I just. Things. Things happen. It's life and you've got to get over it. There was a reason I was saying this. Mind blank. The subject was anyone who had challenges in the writing. The physical challenge. Yeah. Yeah, that's it. Thanks, Jo. So putting it pen to paper and getting your story out was fine enough for me. I then started learning Dutch. I thought if I could change my mindset and learn Dutch, which I've been doing for about five years, and it's really tough, but it keeps my mind going, then I can use that concept, if you like, to. To keep going physically and mentally through this illness. And I feel like I'm doing that. And if I. If I ended up doing this on my own, I'd give up. I wouldn't do it. Sophie, old John Eyre, you know, you people help me. I was just going to point out that George has said that Parkinson impedes his writing because he can't read his own handwriting, and his typing has become very slow and erratic. The range of vocabulary is still good, but it can feel quite waning, especially under lockdown when you don't get the chance to converse much. He listens to a lot of Bob Dylan because he and Gerald Manley Hopkins need to be listened to rather than read like that. Yeah. So it is interesting. And I think the fact that there are all these challenges, it just shows, you know, that how much is possible when you really try. And also, it's just. I'm very thankful that you've shared everything and you shared your creative writing experiences. And I think people who read the book, who buy the book, will get that from it as well. It's very heartwarming. And thank You, George, for sharing that. And that I can imagine that's quite frustrating when you know what you want to say, but actually writing it or typing is. It's not kind of keeping up with what you want. I mean, I know what I'm like. If I don't write something down, I forget quite quickly. But thank you for sharing that, George. Ruhi, back to you. I think Imelda wanted to say something. Imelda? Yes, I'm afraid I forget as quick as I remember, but I've written a couple of things down. For me, post stroke, it was the inability to read normally and to maintain focus while writing and then forgetting mid sentence, my thoughts will be all over the place. It's like surfing or leading to utter frustration. So being able to join this group and come back into doing some creative writing, which is what I used to do, I worked in school as a higher level teaching assistant and I held groups of creative writing and journaling for children. And then I did it at home with friends because I was caring for my husband before he died, which was just a year before my stroke. And it just meant that I didn't have to leave him alone. And I brought people into the home to do groups so that he had company and we had fun. The creative writing I find emotionally challenging and I can't remember who said, I do have difficulty reading it back, but that's also part of recovery. I find this all to be to be rehabilitating. And I do believe that creative writing is about giving way to your inner voices. But it's to have the physical and mental capacity to do it after one of these disabling conditions that we've experienced. So I've just remembered one of the challenges I have through my injury. I have what's called dyspraxia. So sequencing things like dressing are a big challenge. But sometimes if I would be reading back my work to the group, occasionally I might struggle to find where I'd written it. So that was one of my struggles because of the dyspraxia, finding the article I wanted to read out. I suppose that's something that's quite beneficial being part of a group like this because you all understand that you might not have the same challenges, but you know, it encourages more of a patience. But it means that you're not going to be as nervous when you might struggle to find where you were or articulating what it is that you wanted to say because you've all been there. I think that I would say that for me, I Lost my memory through bad seizures in my 50s, which was a invisible. What I call an invisible disability. And I agree with Jo that for me, with no memory and having trouble, not like Jo's, but I can't now. I'm. Again, this is a perfect example of what's wrong with me because I now can't string together what I want to say. But it has helped me to be able to think right, Jan, okay, that happened to you in your 50s. It's not over. You can manage this memory damage that I've now got. And in the same way that I thought right jam when I was paralyzed, I'm not having this. It's given me the confidence. I really. You can see it in me trying to articulate this. I can sound very articulate and confident, but actually, you know, I've got quite a lot of brain damage. And this group has helped me to. And accepted me. I think sort of what Hazel was. Without using the word Hazel, I think you were sort of saying, in a group like this, you don't feel judged, and that gives you more confidence to express. That's what I was trying to say, Jo. That's what I was trying to say, Jo. Not judged. Can I just make a point? Yes. Yeah. Creative writing, when it first started, was around a table here at ins. So there was no such thing as Zoom back then. And I don't know whether people found or would have found that more challenging to sit around a table. But the thing is, there was. You were able to speak to each other while you were working. That's slightly different with Zoom. So what do you think on that? Did you think Zoom? I mean, I personally think Zoom has saved it because we could have quite easily, you know, so we can't do this and just gone on to other things that we haven't. We've cracked on with it and proved that it does work as far as I'm concerned. So what do other people think about that? If you don't mind me asking that as a question? I think it's a. It's an interesting question. I've reflected on this, and I actually think what we produced is probably better than if we were in person just because of the structure of how it worked. We had time to write. We had time to read out and get comments. My inclination is that Zoom actually increased the quality in total of what we did. I agree. I was going to say we have to be mindful. We don't want to increase. Increase the share price of Zoom. Yeah. I was stunned to read the guy who. The guy who set it up is a billionaire. He already is. Yeah. We don't want to make him a trillionaire then. Shall we say when we. When we first start. When I first started the group, we would be given the theme on the day and we would then really would say, right, we've got 20 minutes, and we'd write something. And then I don't know how it changed, but I said, you know, it'd be nice if we could have the theme before. So you had time to think. And I think that's when the pieces got better, because you had more days to think about it. One thing I find now, I don't know if other people do, and it's driving me mad, is that whether we've got a theme for the following week or I'm just thinking generally about writing, but I'm constantly thinking about things I could write and what I could do. And if I'm awake in the middle of the night and I can't sleep, I'm starting to think of things I could write. And then. It's driving me insane. And I think once you start, you know, you want to expand on what you've written. For me, it just keeps creeping into everything. Oh, completely. I was going to say, one of the things that I hugely missed in lockdown is I am a writer. I love writing. And I always used to go, on a Wednesday afternoon, I'd go and sit in a cafe or a nice little bar somewhere in Covent Garden and I would just have a little drink on my own and I would write for about an hour. Obviously, that was impossible and I couldn't do it anymore, and I really missed what I got from the creative process. So once it's ignited, you really want to keep it going. I was actually going to ask you all if you're going to continue with the Greek, but pretty certain it's going to be a resounding yes, isn't it? Yeah. Yes, quite all right, Karen, Is the cat going to come back onto the Zoom or. She might do. She left us. She's around here. She doesn't really approve of my going elsewhere at all, really. But my dog doesn't approve of Zoom if she thinks it's work related. Oh, yeah. She's like, oh, get off. Come back, Mummy. And if. If it's social, if it's a bit of a social thing, she's like, yeah, I've got this. This beagle going. Hi, everyone. I'm a beagle. You know me, my mommy cat, Nola, she's for some reason she's been around briefly today. Normally she sits in the lap on the computer. A zoom session. She's there and all you see Hazel, is this tail, a black tail. Quite spooky actually. I did have. There was at one point my cat and my dog were both on me and I had like a dog's face here and like the cat's tail was coming around the side. And I think I read somewhere about six months ago that everyone was so bored of zooms in terms of work calls and constantly there. It's just here. And all people were doing was having a look at their kitchen or getting excited about seeing a random cat or dog. And the highlight of people's day was whether somebody had an animal. I mean if they had like a lizard or something like that, then your week was made, wasn't it? Our dog doesn't like the camera but unfortunately he's with the vet because he's suffering extreme pain. He was crying through the night. What's your dog's name, Joe? Buster. He's a chocolate Labrador. One of my first ever rescue dogs was called. Buster wasn't a chocolate Labrador. He's more of a Heinz 57. But you know, I've got quite a few friends who are chocolate Labradors. I have more dog friends than I have human friends. I quite like dogs. They're less judgy. My cat's very outdoor travel with us from Australia. Oh wow. I like a well traveled dog as well. And Karen, you're right, cats are very, very judgy. They are the complete opposite of dogs, which is, you know, I can't fence it without feeling. I walk into a room and I can almost feel it's tangible, the disdain with which she's holding me that day. And I thought, and I can't see. There she is. It was real after all. Yes, she was. Have you done my dinner yet? Yes. Filthy stuff you gave me last night with bits in it. That's brilliant. Does anybody have any questions for me? I have. You may already mentioned it when, if I don't know how many you've read of the stories we. I think you kind of did say I. Were you surprised by them? Have you, did you think, my God, were they what you were expecting? You were told it was a group of people with neurological problems. So that's obviously might have made you judge, you know, have an impression of what stories and the pose might have been like. Are they what you expected or not? But you kind of said they're varied. They're not what I expected. I didn't really know what to expect, to be honest, because I knew that you're all quite a varied group. Um, and I was. I haven't read something from a creative writing group in a while and it's kind of ignited the fact that I need to be doing it quite a bit more. A lot of them, they just really made me think. I've got to say, one of them I am, which is by John. I just thought that was stunning. I'd love to steal that and put that on my blog, but it's going to be going. Getting published anyway. But. But I love just the difference. It's kind of like you feel like you're going through a journey because they're not all about the same thing. And it's just something. You can tell that it's just something that's come into your head and you've gone with it and you've just written about something that mattered to you at that particular moment. Definitely George's poem as well. I love that. To pieces. Springtime, you know, some of it's about reining in on our consciousness and trying to get us to think about, you know, what's going on in the world and how we need to make sure that we look out for spring. I think. Yeah. Hugely varied and I need to. I'm actually quite keen to get started in the creative writing group because I think possibly my writing has been dictated a bit too much by social pressures. Whereas this felt completely free. And I think that's what people are going to absolutely love about the book when it's released. That comes from being isolated. Well, we'll have to do a little voting next week to see whether we will consider having you in a group, Hazel. How's that? Can I just add for a second? I promise I won't speak at all that we struggle in terms of how many pieces per contributor. So we're only down to three because it's the first time we self publishing. But, you know, they've done some. You know, the group's done some amazing work and I think I'm just going to get all the. All the. It all goes to INS as a charity anyway. But I think what impressed me when we started collect collating it, I didn't know which ones to leave out and obviously then the group selected themselves the three they wanted in. But the quality is superb and some are informed by neurological challenges and some aren't. And it's just, as you said, it's just you get an Array of things. And yeah, I think the variety is fantastic. Have any of you written. I mean, because they're all. They're all. Roughly, the ones that I've got aren't more than 600 words. Have any of you suddenly thought, I want to write something a little bit longer? And you going down that route of possibly throwing a book out. Has anybody thought about that? I dream about it. Oh, really? Do you? Is it just going to stay in your dreams, Imelda, or are you actually going to take it further? I'd like to think that I'm going to realize my dreams because that's the way forward. I think I know in what I wrote. I've already written two books in my late 40s, a fantasy for children, one about what had happened to me. So what I really want to do is finish this book about my life as a stroke survivor and then with epilepsy. And I want to publish. You know, as I said, that's my real aim and that's what this group has given me, the confidence to make the decision to go ahead and do it. That's fantastic to hear. You must do it. You've got to. I'd like to write more. I quite like it. Like writing short stories and poems and ideas. And I've had my boyfriend and Rui harassing me saying, you must write more. My boyfriend actually is. He has made me a website. I haven't told Ruby this and he's put all my stories on there. It's not. It's not launched yet or anything. I know. And they're all on there. But yes, I just. Just have him the confidence to do. But because you can self publish on Amazon, it's quite easy to do if you want to. I value creative writing for the chance to look at pd. Michael J. Fox said, I may have Parkinson's, but Parkinson's hasn't got me. Do you know what? Some of the programs I've watched with Michael J. Fox where he's actually playing somebody who has Parkinson's and he kind of uses it for evil and he kind of uses it as his tool intentionally in the program. I think Michael J. Fox is fantastic. Some of the things that he's got come out with are hilarious. And I really think he's kind of changing the narrative. I'm quite mindful of the time, Hazel. Ah, yes. Oh, but I've got so many more questions. Why don't you do it, Hazel? Well, do you know what? There's two questions that I always ask my guests and the ones that the one that I really want to go for is if we go through all of you and ask if you can give me an answer, who out there in the public eye at the moment do you admire? It doesn't need to be on social media. It can be somebody in politics. Good luck. It could be just somebody who you just think they're talking sense, there's somebody to look out for and they make you, make you feel like they're enriching your life. What about UK? I reckon you've got about 12 people. No, I can't think of anybody I'm gonna. With regards to Covid. This is really boring. Debbie Schweder. Oh, okay. That's just with regards to Kobe, because she says it how it is and she should be running the country, not Boris. Come back to me about other people. I can't think of anybody. I need to say somebody that's really life affirming and I can't think of anyone. So come back to me. Do you know what somebody who I interviewed very recently said? Jane? Dame Judi Dench. Sorry, I'm a little bit tongue tied. And I was like, yes. She is smashing life out the park. She says her two best friends are the two people she'd like to spend time with are champagne and trees. And I'm like, I'm on board with that. I like that. What about you, Jan? Oh, well, this is. Sounds dreadful. Good. Bring it on. No, it sounds creepy. Oh, God, that one from Normal People again. No, no, not the man from Normal People. So she's got a crush on him. But we won't make these guys know I've got a crush on the man from Normal People. The guy from Normal paper who just won the. No, I was going to say the man who's writing the preface, I think, to our book, which is he. He writes that. Fantastic. And with my useless memory. Is it Line of Line of Duty, Is that it? Right, yeah. Now, I love Line of Duty and I've just found out, correct me if I'm wrong, that he's based that last series on a real life situation. I think I watched that on the news this morning. But correct me, I could be. I could be wrong, but I think he's fantastic. When you're in lockdown. I mean, it's just something to really look forward to because he's ever so good psychologically. That program is clever. I'm inspired by two people. One is very ordinary. This one is David Attenborough, who I decided when I was seven. I was Going to marry eventually. And the other one is that footballer, Marcus Rashford. Yeah. Yes. Who is doing so much to help certain strata of people and make us think a bit. Makes me think anyway. David Attenborough. I mean, even I'd marry him right now. And I just. And I struggle with sleeping and I just say, oh, David, can you just talk me to sleep, please? Yes. And then he would talk to me afterwards. Yeah. Yes. But I was trying to write to him, proposed marriage when I was seven. I never got got round to it, so it serves me right. I was gonna say they gave me a terrible time about the guy who's the actor in Light in Normal People. So I'm not going to talk about him. Right. Hey, we'll just leave it there. I need to go. I've got another lesson. Thanks for everything, John. Thank you, John. Thanks for joining us. John. John. Thank you, John. You lovely people. Brilliant you are. John, do you know, have you got somebody that inspires you before you go? Yeah. Every soldier, airman, navy, whatever, that have served or is still serving because they never give up with whatever challenge they're hit with. Same with the police force, whatever. Never give up. That's it. That's fantastic. Thank you. See you all later. I love you all. Thanks. Yeah, I love you too. I think that's our philosophy, though, that we never give up. Tell you who doesn't inspire me. Meghan Markle. But that's just not inspiring. We don't. We've complain about Meghan Markle on this group, the we don't like Meghan Markle group. You kind of re. I do. Brilliant. I do want to go over to Imelda and Joe as well. And Ruhi. Yeah. Hi. So do you have somebody you'd like to add as well? Oh, me gosh. David Attenborough. Yes. I actually stalk his house. I know his lovely blue house in Richmond Hill. I think he was at Glastonbury a couple of years ago. Oh. He was the number one person. Oh, my God. I mean, you know, for that generation to inspire such a young generation, the teens, I think that is commendable. Yes. Because, you know, otherwise you reach a certain age, 20 or 30 above your whole. Right. So none of the teenagers are going to even think or hear what you're saying. So I think. And I've read both his books, the latest book as well, so there's a lot to be said, but that's one end. And then I've got young girl, Greta Thunberg. That's quite amazing, but not to sound very, very Slurpee here. But I can say everybody in this group has really inspired me, you know, And I think when I started this group, when I joined the group, I should say I wasn't quite sure we were going with it. But, you know, it's been a year. It's a very intimate group. It's the year of actually knowing everybody so intimately. And it's just the strength that comes up from each individual with each personality. It is really inspiring. And I do think inspiration comes from everyday people we meet, and the lessons are tremendous. I think that's going to shine through in the book, and I hope that it is as successful for you all. And especially because of the fact that all the proceeds are going to go to ins. I know that we're running out of time. So, Jo, do you have somebody. I'd love to hear who you admire. I got a few things. Just. I'll try and be quick. I think the variety of the articles is because of the sort of evolution as we went through the periods that the topics were selected and then some topics were ideas of the group. But in terms of people who inspire me, I think I'm going to steal David Attenborough and Greta Thunberg. But also there's a lady in Australia called Sarah Wilson who champions climate change, but also healthy lifestyle and eating. And then finally, there's a group called Claddag, which is Campaign for. It's a cladding campaign run by a disability group. And I listened to a little bit of their meeting yesterday, and they're just incredibly inspirational and just on a plug. My wife and I were on Channel 4 news tonight talking about that issue. Yeah, fantastic. Marvellous. And Imelda, we want. We. Don't worry. We're definitely going to find out. Shall I go now? Yes, please. Okay. Well, Billy Connolly. Absolutely. For all he's done and all he's doing and for a sense of humor all the way. And of course, Michaela Cole, who I think is absolute genius and will keep going and going. And I'd just like to quickly say that we are all very different individuals in this group, that, you know, that there will be some group agreement, but that we have some group disagreement, too, which I think is very healthy, and that we're not always all on the same page. Certainly, with regards to royals. The same page. Well, we don't. Oh, that's lovely, Karen. Thank you. Yes. Well, thank you so much, everybody, for taking the time to chat to me. And I've loved hearing about your experiences in the Creative writing group and I look forward to getting the finalized book. And so it's very, it's very soon, isn't it? It's going to be happening in no time whatsoever. And thank you for sharing your experiences and I'm sure that everybody that reads the book will have so much to take from, from what you've got to offer and yeah, I hope you're all enjoying the sunshine. Okie Smokey. The INS writing group have very kindly said that I keep read out a couple of their pieces. So the first one that I've picked is called I Am by John Grant macpherson. They say that too many eyes down the left side of a CV will lose the reader's interest. From the very beginning, I am not in agreement with that statement. It's what follows the I am that really matters. It just means that the reader cannot be bothered. I say it's the reader's loss. The statement is not necessarily all about you, but it shows your true qualities and what you could do for them. I am light. I am born. I am human. I am one or the other. I am a boy. I am gorgeous. I am cute. I am loved. I am Jonathan. But for now, I am John John. I'm cared for. I am cute. Did I say cute? I thought I was John John. Make your minds up. I'm learning. I am cunning. I am starting to get things. If I cry, a cuddle, some food. Oh, this is good. I'm good. According to my dad. How would he know? He's a fireman. He's never around. I'm a good looking kid, according to my Auntie Pam. That's nice, I thought as I continued to smile. He's a good sleeper, says my dad. I am crying. You're a fireman. How would you know? I am now five. I am brother to a sister. I'm going to antagonize her. Why? Because I can. So I am. As I pass through time 51 years, I have never thought about I am. Everything is summed up into other words. Yeah, no, okay, all right, whatever, no worries, good, etc. The imagination is never stretched past the I am. So the reader takes one look at your cv, looks at his watch and says all things. You have two minutes to sell yourself. I am warm, strong, silly, blessed, kind, special, lucky, sincere, happy, sad, loving, mischievous, responsible, generous, emotional, honest, humorous, passionate, loyal. A father, a Grootweder. Yes, I speak Dutch. An uncle, a brother, a nephew, a cousin, a husband, a soldier trained to kill. I was always a lover, ready to thrill but now with Parkinson's, that makes me ill. So that's me in a nutshell. Short, sharp and straight to the point. I am not one to give up. I am a fighter, a survivor. I am me. John. John. I mean, Johnny. Johnny Mac. I am a one off. I absolutely love that one. Now I would like to read another one. Now, this one is by George Foster and it's a poem and it's entitled Precipitation. If I were a cloud, I'd be a thunderhead blocking the sun, getting in the way. A lonely wanderer shaped like an anvil swept up in a hot summer sky into the stratosphere where cool air can condense my vapor into raindrops which keep falling on the heads below. My head would get lighter and rise even higher and higher, creating cooling convection currents in which my ever icier raindrops would circulate, transformed into hailstones, freezing and growing until their weight and mass caused them to plummet on the people below, ruining their Sunday afternoon with my pitta and my patter. But it really doesn't matter to me. After all, I am a cloud and that is what we do. Isn't that worth the song Joni? As I mentioned, that was by George Foster, one of the creative writing group at ins. So their book is now available for you to purchase and all proceeds go towards supporting the INS group. Now you can pop onto ins.org.uk to go and purchase this app store. Absolutely fabulous collection of writings from the creative writing group. I've thoroughly enjoyed chatting to them today. I hope you've enjoyed listening in and it's such a fantastic course, such an inspirational bunch of people. Please do go and give yourself a little bit of a treat. Go buy the book and help support a fantastic cause in the process. And that's just quick reminder ins.org UK, thanks for listening to today's get booked here at women's and men's radio station.