The Wind Thieved Hat

“The book already exists in the future and you’re just trying to reveal it – you’re just trying to find out what it is.”

I love the writing of John Higgs. It was a chance encounter with 'The KLF: Chaos, Magic and the Band who Burned a Million Pounds' that first switched me on to his unique literary landscape.

It’s a landscape where there’s a surprise round every bend, a place where diverse ideas intermingle to create flashes of illumination - and it’s peopled by figures as diverse as William Blake, Timothy Leary, The Beatles, James Bond and Dr Who.

His book 'Stranger Than We Can Imagine: Making Sense of the Twentieth Century' should, in my opinion, be compulsory reading for, well, everyone really.

And John is not just one of our most brilliant writers of non-fiction, he’s also – as you’ll discover in this conversation – a really lovely bloke.

We talk about the power of synchronicity, why writing is akin to washing up, how come he never has writer’s block and how he stays inspired. Oh, and John describes the moment he reached forty and had to decide whether to go all in on being a full time writer or not – a choice, as he puts it, between being bitter or penniless.

You‘ll also learn more about Alan Moore’s concept of Ideaspace, Bill Drummond’s Liberation Loophole and John’s own multiple model agnosticism.

And you'll find John's newsletter here ... https://johnhiggs.substack.com

‘Sometimes a fuck up isn’t a fuck up: it’s the angel on the shoulder of the devil on your shoulder.’

These lines were among the first I came across by the Australian poet and artist Darby Hudson. I liked them so much I asked if I could use them to head a chapter on mistakes in my own book. Darby said yes, and so began our correspondence.

I’ve thought for a while that Darby would be an excellent guest on the Wind Thieved Hat and when I found out that he was about to publish a book on creativity and poetry, I invited him to join me.

Our conversation roams over subjects as diverse as the losses and wins of getting older, what your sober self can learn from your drunk self, the benefits of hanging out in cemeteries and much more besides.

Darby’s a charming bloke with lots to say about creativity. I hope you enjoy our conversation.

You can explore all things Darby related here. And you can join his hordes of Instagram followers here.

Dan Nelken is on a mission: he’s passionate about helping creative people create and get over what's stopping them. A fork lift driver and advertising copywriter by trade, his book A Self Help Guide for Copywriters was a breakout hit during the pandemic.

I wanted to speak to Dan not just because I’m on a similar mission, or because I wanted to talk about copywriting per se, but because I know he has things to say that are helpful to anyone who’s plucking up the courage to begin their own creative journey.

It’s a fascinating chat.

We talk about Dan’s chaotic and lawless early years. He introduces me to Alan, the scared little voice inside his head. And he explains how he got over a lifetime habit of not finishing stuff and finally found fulfilment.

This episode was recorded down the line. There are kids in the background. And a little hammering. But there’s also lots of great conversation.

You can find out more about Dan’s course ‘Writing Under Pressure’ here and buy a copy of his book here. I’d also recommend his excellent weekly newsletter.

Since the recording I listened to the Jerry Seinfeld interview with Tim Ferris Dan mentioned. It’s fascinating. You can find that here.

Kathryn Mannix is a best-selling author and palliative care doctor. Given that this is a podcast about the creative process she may seem to be a rather unusual guest, but as you’ll discover, Kathryn is a brilliant wordsmith and someone who has a great deal to say about stories; the stories we use to make sense of life and of death.

Kathryn’s self-declared mission is to make us all more comfortable with the idea of dying. And this is something we discuss in detail. But we also talk about creativity in medicine, about the process of writing, how to give stories the space to tell themselves, and she has a fascinating theory on why it seems that only the good die young.

You can watch the Dennis Potter interview we discuss here. With the End in Mind: How to Live and Die Well is available here. And Listen: How to Find the Words for Tender Conversation is available here.

My guest in this first post-pandemic episode of TWTH is the writer, performer and broadcaster Byron Vincent. He joined me in my shed at the bottom of the garden and it was really lovely to be able to record in interview in person for the first time in a long time.

Byron grew up poor. With the cards stacked against him. He had a tough time when he was younger. He’s the only one of my guests, so far as I know to have been shot and kidnapped. But through the nurturing of his home environment and his own character kooks – he used to bunk off school to go to the library – he managed to navigate those early challenges to become one of the most thoughtful and socially conscious writers working today.

Our conversation roams widely. We talk about creativity of course, but also about neurodiversity and addiction, about turning perceived deficits into attributes, about the scourge of social media and there’s some brilliant advice for anyone looking to make it as writer or performer from a background like Byron’s.

If you have time check out Byron’s BBC short and the James Price film we discuss. Oh, and if you get chance to see Instagramming the Apocalypse make sure you do.

Of all the books I read to my kids when they were growing up, there was one that I loved just as much as they did - ‘The Murderer’s Ape’. An enthralling globe-trotting tale of murder and mystery. And at the heart of the story is a ship’s engineer who just happens to be a gorilla, the one and only Sally Jones. 

In this episode of the Wind Thieved Hat, recorded down the line, the creator of Sally Jones, writer and illustrator Jakob Wegelius bravely submits himself to questions from me in a language that is not his own. His responses are gentle, humble and wise. 

We talk in depth about Jakob’s process, about how writing is the broccoli he likes to get out of the way before he indulges in the ice cream of drawing. And he tells me about his dream to hitch hike round the world on boats.

If you’ve not yet read the Sally Jones books, you might want to after listening to this., no matter how old you are …

It’s rare but every so often a documentary film comes along that transcends the medium, that is in itself a work of art. For me, Garage People is such a film.

It describes the lives of a group of people living in the arctic circle in Russia, all of whom have their own garage space where they pursue all kinds of activities, from salvaging scrap, to carving religious icons, playing death metal, breeding quail, and even digging a never ending hole.

It’s intimate, profound and above all, human.

So I was delighted to talk to Natalija Yefimkina, the film’s director, about her own creative process. Garage People is - remarkably – her first film.

In our conversation, recorded remotely, we discuss the question of artistic compromise, and fighting for your vision, especially as a first time director and as a woman. Natalija, who has never been to film school describes the value in rejecting the conventions of your chosen medium. She reflects on the role of ego in the artistic process. And there’s an explanation of how she managed to navigate the challenges of a four year project.

An inspirational conversation with a great talent.

I first came across the writing of Oliver Burkeman in his weekly column for the Guardian newspaper. Each week beneath the gently ironic title of ‘This Column Will Change Your life’, Oliver would ponder on an idea or technique intended to make modern living just a little easier. 

He’d cut through the worst excesses of the cult of positive thinking with his laser guided wit, and somehow, in so doing, unearth genuinely useful insights, not least about creativity and the way we work.

Now he’s written two books with a third on the way, and I love how he threads together ancient truths from Stoicism and Buddhism, together with discoveries from the latest research into neuroscience and human behaviour.

Our conversation, recorded remotely, begins with his own writing process, before we go on to explore the evils of procrastination and perfectionism, and the universal curse of self-doubt; Oliver explains why when you’re feeling overwhelmed becoming more efficient is maybe the worst thing you can do, and he shares a brilliant tip on how to navigate those tough calls one has to make in life about whether a job or a relationship or a life change is the right thing to do.

Oh, and if you listen very carefully about two thirds of the way through you’ll hear my local ice cream van making his rounds.

This is a thought provoking conversation with a lovely human being in possession of a very large brain. I hope you enjoy it. 

John Wood and Paul Harrison are two artistic heroes of mine. They make work that is both simple and complex, profound and mundane. It’s always engaging, often funny and, as you’ll hear, has occasionally ended in disaster.

Look on the Tate Modern website and you’ll see them described as ‘an art world Laurel and Hardy’ - and it’s their ability to create entrancing short videos that has now led to them becoming, in this their 30th year together, a TikTok phenomenon. Although exactly how this happened, or indeed what it even means, they’re not entirely sure.

In our conversation they reveal the secrets of a long term working relationship. We talk about what makes a good idea. And a bad one too. And they tell me about two classic mistakes they made early on in their career.

Peter Andre is a fan. As are large swathes of the Japanese population. Maybe after you hear them talk you’ll become one too – if, of course, you’re not already.

In this conversation, recorded down the line, I talk about writing and life with poet Toria Garbutt.

We chat about what it was like growing up in a close knit northern town in the aftermath of the miner’s strike; Toria tells me how poetry has enabled her to come to terms with some of the toughest episodes in her life; she explains how she’s overcome getting stuck with her second collection; and she shares a technique for making your wildest dreams come true.

Oh, and we discuss Sonic the Hedgehog as a metaphor for the creative process.

You can explore Toria’s work on her website.

Her first collection is The Universe and Me. Available here.