from Kirstyn I was pretty psyched to get connected with Rita and to start working on an event that we could run together: her in her Another Helping guise, and me in my Marbles guise. It’s so nice to meet someone you instantly click with – and I think the day we realised we were cool with each other was when we were at a local watering hole discussing what kind of food we could potentially serve at our Dear Diary event. We talked about different kinds of chips – cheesy chips, peri peri chips, poutine, bacon chips, chips and mushy peas, chips and gravy - for so long, we got too hungry to focus and, somewhat sheepishly, admitted that we really just fancied calling it a day and ordering some chips. Which we did. I always like to base friendships and working relationships around carbs. I also enjoy how positive and focused Rita has been about Dear Diary, and how enthusiastic she has been about Marbles. Marbles is my (not so) little side project: an independent print magazine-centred around mental health. The goal is to explore, dissect and explode the stigma that still exists around talking about mental health, by allowing people to tell their own stories in their own words and cut through the untruths and bullshit that exists around mental health. The first issue came out in May, and the reception it received has been pretty staggering. What I thought I was doing was creating a magazine that I wished existed, and the feedback has been that other people are also happy it’s been created, too. Which is great. In our first issue, we had such genuinely incredible contributors: from 404 Ink’s Heather McDaid interviewing Ruby Tandoh (off the Great British Bake Off) and her partner Leah Pritchard, to Leo Condie (from Scottish disco punks WHITE) talking – in a moving and humorous way – about living with anosmia. There are also interviews with Scottish musician RM Hubbert about the peaks and troughs he’s experienced in his career due to his mental health; with activist and ex-porn star Michelle Maren about her diagnoses over the years; with US rapper Archie Green about the relationship between hip hop and mental health; with children’s author Debbie Gliori about her latest book which helps children to think about mental health. Shameless plug alert: there are still issues available in the Marbles online store: here. The next issue should be another proper good ‘un. I’m so happy to have returning writers who’re happy to keep on spreading the good word. Writers like multiple-award winner Arusa Qureshi, who interviewed Archie Green last issue and like Esther Beadle who writes so candidly and relatably about living with Borderline Personality Disorder. And some amazing new faces I’m really happy to welcome to the Marbles fold, like Claire Sawers, who’s interviewing illustrator / comic maker Julia Scheele, and Eris Young, who has penned a personal essay on insomnia.
On top of that, we’re going face-to-face with some pretty cool interviewees – think Marie Collins from Scottish art poppers The Vegan Leather and Scottish rapper and writer Loki. Only thing left to do is to put the damn thing together. Right after I’ve had some chips.
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