Sheila on writing …

Some of us know where we come from. Others like me have different notions of what belonging means. I regard Enfield, North London as my home as I spent some of my early school years there. However I am of Irish heritage on my maternal side and my soul harks back to the Gaelic in me. I suppose I have gained further ‘cultural impact’ having moved many times, including of course living in Bermuda, Australia and on the Wirral. These constant moves throughout my life have given me perspective and a strange grounding.

We are all shaped by circumstance: our upbringing, our domestic life, our education, our friendships, But what story in my writing do I share of myself? What passions, what poisons, what joys? What do I leave out, put in?

John Steinbeck wrote, “We have only one story, all novels, all poetry, are built on the never ending contest in ourselves of good and evil.”

How much of my story comes through in my writing, what do I have to say about good and evil in my life? My own poetry, varied in topic and content, reflects my view of family, nature, politics and the world as I see it. I write of love and loss and the darker reaches of humanity.