ILLUMINATION Writers
Interview with Alison Tennent
Featuring creative writers of ILLUMINATION
In this story, I share with you an interview that I conducted with Besom & Bletherskite (pen name). I met Alison when she joined ILLUMINATION.
It was a serendipitous encounter because we both live in the same country (but in different states), and we met on Medium.
Alison is not only a creative writer but also actively engages and supports other writers on ILLUMINATION. In addition, Alison is one of our editors who spends a considerable amount of time editing and publishing stories on ILLUMINATION.
Let’s explore this talented writer and editor.
Tell us a bit about your background.
My sincere thanks to the good doctor for inviting me to be interviewed (and for all that he does for Illumination). Those of you playing along at home have probably noticed I’m not backward at coming forwards, so I’ll do my best to keep my responses short.
I was born in the bedroom of a council house in Pollokshaws, Glasgow, Scotland. Not a posh part of town. I grew up in the sort of poverty it’s difficult to describe. My upbringing was extremely formative, as, for most of us, I daresay. You cannot understand me without understanding the generosity, the camaraderie, the suffering, the pride, the sorrow, the physical and mental toll that being colonised in the recent past (as a nation) by the English government, and living under the boot of your colonisers, takes upon a people.
I make a point of saying English government, and latterly Westminster, to ensure that nobody thinks I have a personal peeve against the English as a nation. My fiance was born and raised in London, of Irish working-class parents. My best friend in Australia was born and grew up in Surrey. The English are just people, some good, some bad.
The English government however, who, assisted ably by some traitorous Scots, stripped my nation of their sovereignty, outlawed our language, national dress and music and attempted genocide upon my forebears, is altogether another story. A long and challenging one, and too complex to address here.
But poverty, violence, the anguish of my ancestors and my proud Scottish heritage interlinked inextricably to form me. The fighting instinct, the music, the drinking culture, the education, the friendships have all left indelible marks upon me, and permeate every part of my personality and life, from dating, to parenting, to work, to friendships and of course to writing.
I am who I am because of my background. And if I wrote an encyclopedia of the Scottish childhood, I’d be hard pressed to give you much insight. You just had to be there. I realise that I will never touch the sides of my childhood and who I am. If you’d like to know something in particular, please do ask. Meanwhile I just hope sometimes to offer an echo of the world I once knew and my ain folk in my writing.
I left Scotland in 1993, never to return except for a few holidays, though that wasn’t the plan. And though I didn’t realise it at the time this left me forever homeless, without a clan. I lived in England for a year, then moved to the USA, where I spent four and a half years in Southern California. I learned much about our American cousins there but was happy to move on when in 1999 we moved to Queensland, Australia. I took citizenship in 2002, ensuring Australia wouldn’t be deporting me without a fight, and I worked in a few different industries, managing to educate myself somewhat en route.
And I wrote, right throughout my life I have written. I recently found a very old story I had published when I was in Primary School, I wrote it around the age of 8 and the school published it a couple of years later. I was quite distressed that my teacher edited the original to remove a colloquialism, not yet understanding the command to “kill your darlings”.
Looking through some of my older work the other day I was shaking my head in particular over my teenage angst and general lack of writing skill. Still though, to see my handwriting, murmurs from the past, stirs memories. As whispering spirits raise the hairs on the nape of the neck.
Why do you write on Medium?
I think someone on Twitter pointed me in the direction of Medium a few years back. As I recall he wanted me to read his stories, but honestly they were pretty awful, and I hadn’t the heart to tell him that, so I stayed away for a while. I returned occasionally to have a browse around but for years was busily tied up with my own blog and book of short stories. Life also got in the way as I dealt with a psychopathic “friend” and when I split from my ex husband in 2015 and had to work rather hard both in and out of the workforce to keep a roof over my kid’s heads and parent them. Writing fell by the wayside for a wee while. But then one day in February this year I happened upon a Medium story online, and remembered I had an account already, and the rest, as it were, is history.
What are your values as a writer?
Authenticity. I value that over “niceness” and have written about that. Be your own self, whomever that is. Don’t allow anyone to tell you what to write. Bugger niches, just write. If you’re meant for a niche it will reveal itself. Always give attribution to those who act as your muse, it’s just good manners. Reciprocate when you can. Try to build networks if you have time. But most importantly, as the great Bard of Avon once penned via Polonius:
“This above all: to thine own self be true”
What are the top three books affected your life?
I’m sure you hear this regularly, but I’d have to give you at least 50 books to even touch the sides of all the books that have mattered to me. However, the first three which come to mind are:
Pooh Bear’s Box (which is a collection of books, so I’m cheating already) which was given to me by my big brother when I was really young. It has travelled the world with me, and now and then I still dip into it. The poems are clever, quaint and sweetly written, I have read them out loud to my children over the years, and the stories can take me in an instant back through time to Pollokshaws in the 70s. T
he air, frigid, your breath trickling from your mouth like fog in the winter, even inside the flat. Curled up in the contended knowledge that my family were nearby, my feet sapping the heat from a hot water bottle, listening to the banshee wind wail around our grey concrete perch in our little fiefdom. Reading King John’s Christmas by A A Milne is the first time I recall wishing I too could write.
The next book I remember affecting me painfully was Lord of the Flies by William Golding, an English requirement at school. As soon as I met poor Piggy I knew his fate was sealed. Some complained vociferously about being forced to read this book, I was glued to the pages with prescient horror. It confirmed my understanding that the world is a dangerous and unpredictable place, that the darkness I saw and feared was also seen and feared by others much wiser than I.
And I am going to cheat again for my last and name a series of books. The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever, by Stephen Donaldson. As a teenager, those books enthralled me. The relationships, the complexities of which I couldn’t quite grasp, above all the passionate and deeply emotional writing spoke to me. As a wistful teen I used to dream of The Land, a place where love and honesty and truth were valued, where the beauty of the world wasn’t considered just scenery, but unimaginable to live without. A place where people loved with their whole hearts and beyond death, and where goodness might win, even if only in a fable.
What are your hobbies?
Aside from writing? Walking. Gardening (increasingly since the stay at home instructions). I used to make cards, but haven’t for a while. I actually play an online typing game because I am a sad sack who enjoys typing. I enjoy cooking plant based foods and learning new recipes to try out and with which to hopefully tempt those of my family who aren’t plant eaters over the line. I love spending time with my kids, my step kids and one or two close friends. Cherishing my naughty cat and our ridiculous greyhound. I used to be in an a capella singing group and I truly loved it, would like to take it up again some time.
But most of my spare time these days revolves around my fiance, who is “my north, my south, my east, my west, my working week and my Sunday rest”.
How do you connect with your readers?
I read, read, read, as much as I can. I clap generously, and I comment where I can. I look for authenticity and I try to offer it.
Why did you join ILLUMINATION, and how do you find it so far?
I was on the hunt for publications having realised quickly the only way to reach any sort of an audience was either to magically find a large following overnight, or get yourself published. Like all writers, I prefer my work to be read, so I was published in quite a few publications over several weeks. One of my followers was actually a writer for Illumination. I followed her work to the publication and I liked what I saw, the energy, enthusiasm, the genuine connection, the feeling of our own wee tribe.
Who are the top seven writers you follow on ILLUMINATION?
You Dr Mehmet Yildiz — I find your support and encouragement of all the Illumination writers encouraging and very positive.
Terri DelCampo-Nelson— she is authentic, feisty (sorry Terri) and has true grit. And she tells a good tale. I love her work and I like the person she seems to be.
Kevin Buddaeus— always energetic, often writes interesting and unusual offerings, works really hard as an editor for Illumination
Timothy Key — has a great deal of expertise and life experience to offer, also a fabulous hard working editor.
Bill Myers— a logical and clever man who deserves a much wider audience.
Keno Ogbo — has a lovely way with words, and is genuine and real.
There are many more and when I have a few moments I will sit down and add them too.
What are your top five stories you want to share with your audience, and why?
A love letter to libraries: I feel they are undervalued and I wish others could find the same pleasure in them as I do.
Abusers Weren’t Always Victims: We waste precious time trying to figure out the whys instead of just dealing with the consequences of abuse properly.
Authentic Trumps Polite: I’d far rather you were clever, or passionate, or right, or all three, than nice/polite/respectful.
Feminism has specific terms and they don’t include centering men
I am weary to my bones of listening to people who have no idea what women have had to do to gain a few small steps towards sex based human rights telling us that every ridiculous or demeaning thing anyone with xx chromosomes does must be feminist, because choices. Feminism is solely and always the fight to take back the sex based human rights of half the human race. Some things are black and white, there is right and there is wrong and it is far too important to allow people who insist women must be “nice” to obfuscate the reality of feminism.
The harmful mantra of the forgiveness fan club.
It’s damaging and dangerous to insist upon forgiveness. I explain why.
What are the success factors for you as a writer on Medium?
People reading, hopefully also clapping and commenting. That’s it really :)
What do you recommend to the new writers on ILLUMINATION?
Read the tips by the editorial team, it’s really helpful stuff. Reciprocate, read read and read some more, engage when you can and then write write write. Don’t be shy! Allowing yourself to be shy is giving away your opportunities.
As I said elsewhere on Medium: “I used to be shy, sometimes excruciatingly so. I missed golden opportunities through that shyness. As I grew older, shyness and lack of confidence fell away like autumn leaves. But still, there was an unwillingness to risk mockery which held me at bay when I should have been front and centre saying yes please, let me try that.
I tried to give my children, now grown, all the wisdom I had learned on the subject which amounts to this — don’t allow others to steal opportunities from you. So what if they don’t like it or you? Do it anyway.
What are your future plans as a writer?
I will keep writing as much as time permits on Medium. I am working towards another book of short stories. I have a novel I have to write, one way or the other. To write, to write and to write some more.
“Let me live, love, and say it well in good sentences.” — Sylvia Plath
Thank you for your time for this insightful interview Alison. I look forward to reading more stories from your creative pen. Your contribution to our publication as a writer and editor is appreciated by our writers and readers. You are an inspirational writer and editor on ILLUMINATION. We enjoy your engaging, informative, and authentic content.
You may check a fascinating YouTube video created by Alison from the attached story.
And two other great stories supporting our publication…
If you are a writer on ILLUMINATION and would like to be interviewed, please send a request via this link with the title of “Interview Request”.
Other Interviews
You may also check other interviews I conducted with inspiring writers of ILLUMINATION recently. These stories can provide a great opportunity to know more about our creative writers and connect with them.
Timothy Key
Desiree Driesenaar
Holly Jahangiri
Dr John Rose
Ming Qian
P.G. Barnett
Jill Ebstein
Bill Abbate
Terry Mansfield
Ann K Frailey
Woei T
Charles Roast
Julia E Hubbel
Aric D Mayer
Chris Hedges
Paroma Sen
Kevin Buddaeus
You might check more interviews in the attached collection.
You can find inspiring profiles of ILLUMINATION writers from this story.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
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Six Tips to Prevent Brain Atrophy and Lower the Risks of Mental Disorders
What Can We Do About NCDs Killing 41 Million People Yearly?.
Reduce the Risks of Neonatal Disorders to Prevent Infant Mortality.
I also write about valuable nutrients. Here are the links for easy access:
Boron, Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, PQQ, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, and other nutrients that might help to improve metabolism and mental health.
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