Interview with Writer Alice Wilson

1. Have you always been a writer?

 I think I have felt the desire to write like an appetite for food or water for as long as I can remember myself. I don't know if it makes sense for me to say that I am 'inspired' to write, more that I feel wrong when I don't do it and something closer to right when I do do it.

2. When did you realize that maybe writing was actually a "thing" you could do, get published and even sell?

I think once I started selling work as a journalist in 2020. It's a shame that selling writing for money in the marketplace was the defining factor that signalled to me in my own head that I was somehow now more 'real' or legitimate as a writer. 

Now I don't really work as a journalist anymore but still very much consider myself as a writer, thanks in part to glorious magical literary magazines like Livina Press, The Apple Valley Review, ZiN Daily, Idle Ink, and Discretionary Love accepting my work.

3. What was your first sale as a writer and how did it feel to sell your work?

My first sale as a writer was a blog post for a corporate client in the construction business. I sold that shy little piece for £50. Now, three years later I sell packaged content projects to fintech corporations for thousands of dollars. I’ve sold journalism pieces to places like The Guardian, The Independent, The Metro, QueerAF, and Diva. Truly, it still feels too good to be true. I love writing. I am so lucky to be able to get paid to do something that I enjoy so much. 

4. How has writing helped you in other areas of life besides being something you could earn money from?

Writing is one of the most reliable tools I have for staying sane. I always, always feel better after I write in my journal. It is a huge benefit and an even huger relief to have access to something so quick and easy and free which has such an enormous upside for my internal landscape. 

5. What was your biggest accomplishment as a writer?

My biggest accomplishment as a writer is my PhD. I will be handing in my final thesis within the next six months, so I’m not quite there yet. But in total over the last four years I have written close to 200,000 words, as well as several journal articles and blogs for my research website. A great many of those 200,000 word are utter garbage, but I am justifiably proud of the small but stubborn minority of words which are good, and original, and interesting. 

6. Who has inspired you the most in the writing field?

Honestly, everyone who just keeps on going. Writing is a peculiar mixture of not very important at all and very important indeed. It is an odd and perplexing place to reside. I am continually inspired by the people who turn up to reside here, day after day. 

7. What are some of the challenges you have faced as a writer and how did you overcome them?

Please see above. 

8. What is the best writing advice you have ever received and why do you feel it is important?

Pretty much everything that Julia Cameron of The Artist's Way has ever said about writing is the most valuable piece of advice I have ever been given about writing. I couldn't begin to try and justify why her serene and comforting words have been so important to me over the years. Suffice to say that I read and use The Artist’s Way once a year, every year, and have done for the last ten years. 

9. What sort of writing do you do now?

I write my PhD, chapters for edited academic volumes, and journal articles. I write journalistic pieces, like this one for The Independent. I write flash fiction for an assortment of literary magazines, and silly poems to delight my little sister. I also write educational content for fintech companies - this is how I pay my rent. And just very recently I have started a podcast called The Digital Inkwell which looks at the intersection of web3, AI, and writing. This brand new project has me doing a lot of writing to plan interviews and turn conversations into essays and think pieces. It’s in very embryonic stages just now but I am excited about where it might take me. 

10. Where can we find some of your work online?

I am often to be found going on about my writing on Twitter @neither_both and on insta @neither.both I also work as an illustrator and you can see my creepy scribble monsters here. 

11. What advice do you have for other aspiring writers thinking of taking the leap of getting their work published?

The worst that can happen if you try and get published is that you might feel silly. Chances are, you probably feel silly already. You have nothing to lose, and very much to gain. 

12. What are your final thoughts about being a writer?

I like it. 

ABOUT ALICE:

Alice is a pedestrian who lives in Yorkshire. She is writing a PhD on women who live in tiny houses. Her fiction was selected for the Sonder Press Best Short Fiction anthology 2022. You can find her on Twitter talking about web3, AI, and writing @neither_both