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On The Table Read, “the best creativity magazine in the UK“, poet Clare O’Brien talks about her love of David Bowie, and being inspired to write her new book, Who Am I Supposed To Be Driving?
Written by JJ Barnes
I interviewed Clare O’Brien about her life and career, being inspired by David Bowie, and the creative work that went into her latest poetry collection, Who Am I Supposed To Be Driving?
Tell me a bit about who you are.
I’m a 64-year-old mother-of-two living in the Scottish Highlands, by the sea. I’ve lived here for 23 years, although I was born in south London, not far from where David Bowie grew up – in fact one of my schoolfriend’s big sisters used to babysit for him!
I’ve worked as a schoolteacher, a journalist, PA to the Director of Music at King’s College Cambridge, PR to a Scottish politician, and virtual assistant to an American rock star. Now my children have grown up, I live with my husband Alasdair, my Irish wolfhound Hamish and my black cat Daisy.
When did you first WANT to write poetry?
I‘ve always loved poetry and I dabbled a bit in my twenties after leaving university, but most of what I wrote back then was pretty bad!
When did you take a step to start writing poetry?
After a long time when I was busy with child-rearing and work, I started writing seriously again in my 50s. It all gathered pace after a friend committed suicide. After that, I found writing a great help with dealing with the grief and shock.
How long did it take you to complete your first book from the first idea to release?
This collection actually came together quite quickly. I wanted to write something about Bowie in the year he would have been 75, and then I saw a call for submissions from Hedgehog Poetry Press for 13 poems – a “baker’s dozen” – on a single theme. That spurred me into action! I chose 13 albums of Bowie’s which I thought I could write about, sat down with each one in turn, and immersed myself in the music and lyrics. In less than a month, I had the draft of the collection.
Focusing on your latest release. What made you want to write Who Am I Supposed To Be Driving??
I’ve loved the work of David Bowie since I was about 14. Although I haven’t loved every single album he’s made over the years, he’s always been there in the background of my life, and sometimes in the foreground too. He’s always fascinated me as an artist and as a human being – how well he survived setbacks and challenges, how he kept his art fresh, how he adapted and changed in reaction to changing times. I am very drawn to ekphrastic poetry, and although most of the ekphrastic poems I’ve written have been in response to something visual like a painting or a photograph, I wanted to try the same approach with music.
What were your biggest challenges with writing Who Am I Supposed To Be Driving??
Just fixing on a tone and an approach. I didn’t want the poems to sound like reviews or descriptions or commentaries. I wanted to try to get inside the world they created and respond with something original.
Do you keep to a theme with your poems, or just go where the mood strikes?
I don’t have a theme I consciously keep to, although some topics keep recurring! Looking at my poems I do seem to write a lot about the natural world, about technology, and about death.
What is your favourite poem in Who Am I Supposed To Be Driving? about and what inspired it?
That’s like choosing between children!! For personal reasons I’m very fond of ‘Electric Blue’, which is my response to the album ‘Low’. It’s about recovery. The album came after a particularly difficult period in Bowie’s life and it seems like he’s remaking himself after leaving the US for Europe. It’s a tender poem.
Does music help you write or is it a distraction?
For this collection it wasn’t just a help, it was a necessity! I needed the music playing to get inside the worlds Bowie was creating. But that’s unusual – when I’m writing on other subjects, I prefer silence and no distractions.
Did you get support with editing, and how much editing did Who Am I Supposed To Be Driving? need?
Not really. I don’t think my editor at Hedgehog Poetry Press changed anything.
What is the first piece of writing advice you would give to anyone inspired to write poetry?
Do it for its own sake – almost nobody makes a living from poetry, and in spite of all the recent interest in performance poetry, for most people it’s more of a labour of love than a career move. If you feel moved to go out and perform your work, though, do – join a Zoom group, turn up at open mic sessions, accept any invitations you get to read on or off the internet. It’s very rewarding to see an audience appreciating your work up close, in real time.
Can you give me a hint about any further books you’re planning to write?
I’m working on a second poetry collection now. It’s a full-length collection, called Huginn & Muninn after Odin’s ravens. Their names mean ‘thought’ and ‘memory’. It draws on mythology, but also on the way that’s reflected in everyday life, and the loss and trauma we all go through.
The poems in it were written at various points over the last five years, but I’ve only been trying to fit them into a collection for the last year or so. It still needs more content, and I’m taking it slowly because I want it to be good. On the back burner currently is a novel called Light Switch – it focuses on technology and the alienation it can create. I’ve written about half of that so far.
And, finally, are your proud of your accomplishment? Was it worth the effort?
Yes. And especially because I got to collaborate with my son, Ruairdhri, who’s an artist in his 20s. He’s a lifelong Bowie fan, too, and he designed the fantastic front cover.
Pop all your book, website and social media links here so the readers can find you:
Author website (where you can order signed copies!) http://clarevobrien.weebly.com/
Buy from publisher: https://www.hedgehogpress.co.uk/product-category/for-sale/hoglets/clare-obrien/
Buy from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3KSS1AN
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClareOBrien
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clareobrienwriter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insturbances/
Who am I supposed to be driving? by Clare O’Brien is available now
ISBN: 978 191349 912 9 Paperback Hedgehog Poetry Press 2022 RRP: £7.99
Available through booksellers, the publisher & clareobrien.weebly.com.
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