For the last twenty-one years, Vicky Morris has worked to facilitate the growth and professional development of many young people, helping to nurture and develop their talents. Morris is herself a writer, working freelance and having produced a large quantity of poetry and a multitude of short stories, though much of her time remains spent mentoring the young and inexperienced.
Vicky has been the driving force behind many writing projects such as CUBE Magazine between 2005 and 2012, a non-profit youth magazine written by teenagers on work experience and the PX Youth Media Project, an endeavour that sought to include school children in various writing, photography and filmmaking projects.
In 2013 Vicky produced a documentary entitled Dyslexic and Loving Words. Supported by the Off the Shelf Festival, and drawing upon her own experiences as a dyslexic writer, Morris offers her audience a peek into the world of writers with cognitive difficulties and phonetic processing. The documentary itself is fascinating, covering a subject that has hardly had much coverage; that of the dyslexic authors and poets. Morris continues to provide endless platforms and opportunities for young, talented voices.
Speaking from personal experience I can most certainly vouch for Vicky Morris as a compassionate, patient and understanding individual. I had the pleasure of working for Miss Morris in 2009 at the age of sixteen as a young intern and have always found her to be nothing if not enthusiastic and deeply committed.
I caught up with Vicky in the run-up to the BBC Community Champions Award, of which Morris is a candidate, being nominated in the creative category and who was described by the nominational board as ‘dedicated to making writing an inclusive, accessible art for everyone across South Yorkshire, regardless of sexuality, race or religion.’ I had the pleasure of interviewing her for Exposed earlier this month…
Hello Vicky, so, just to start off with; what made you want to become a writer in the first place and what’s been your creative journey to where you are now?
Thank you, Ben. Where to begin… I wasn’t academic at school, I just loved being creative. I didn’t dream of being a writer because kids where I’m from didn’t become writers. I gravitated towards visual arts initially. Being a creative, big picture thinker I realised was something I was good at.
As for writing, it was actually young people, wanting to give them the mentoring and support I didn’t have I think, that actually brought me back to a childhood love of words that I hadn’t dared pursue. It was this work that allowed me to see my potential really. This award nomination, and other recognition I’ve had, I think they are just examples of how what we give out can come back to us. Although in truth, I couldn’t see it for many years.
You have worked quite extensively with teenagers and young adults, what is your motivation for working with young people and why have you stayed with it?
I think it’s a combination of a lot of things. Firstly, I left home at 15. My younger years were rocky but I was a hard worker, self-taught and had a boundless enthusiasm for things. This energy and what I remembered about what it felt like not to fit, to be at odds, to want to believe in myself but not quite have the tools that were a big connector for me with young people at a key development stage in their lives. And I don’t mind saying, that’s because I still acutely felt all this, way into my adult years. When I started to witness my enthusiasm for creativity and all it can offer having impact and helping to start positive snowballs rolling in young people – I was invested. Even small things in our developing years can knock us onto a good path with something. That still blows my mind. I also liked the authenticity and lack of formality with young people. I felt at home with them.
Could you speak a little bit about the projects that you have done over the years; you set up the Hive young writer’s project a few after you had recovered from a serious illness, perhaps we could start with that. I know that it has been a huge success, winning the Northern Young Writers Award, so what got it started?
Hive came about because I finally acted on what I knew. Previously, I suffered from what many people from my background and experiences often grapple with – imposter syndrome. When I got diagnosed with breast cancer, I took stock and realised just how much I’d achieved, often against the odds. I had to change the narrative that had followed me all my life. I had to honour myself. That also meant being true to what I’d learned and putting good practice into better practice. One of the reasons I’ve loved freelancing, is because I could stay true to what I believed in and keep my integrity. Hive was a way of doing that in a more impactful way. I thought, ‘if I’m going to put my heart into what I do, I want to take a shot at doing it in the best way I can’.
You drew upon experiences you have had as a dyslexic writer in making your documentary Dyslexic and Loving Words. Which highlights that dyslexics can be talented writers, was that the inspiration?
When I was in my early 30’s, I found out I was dyslexic. It still took me a few years to understand what that actually meant in terms of writing. For example, it’s not just – ‘oh they can’t spell’. It’s most significantly about short-term memory and retrieving and processing the sounds in words. I’d started to realise, and this was a game-changer, being dyslexic doesn’t mean you can’t be a writer, and that writing is to do with internal verbal reasoning and skill, how our mind connects information. I realised that despite my impairments, I was pretty good at this so I wanted to explore that more. I researched and saw that there was nothing on dyslexic writers to inspire young dyslexics, but I knew of very successful writers like Sally Gardner and Benjamin Zephaniah. From there, I just set out on a mission to ask them and others to enlighten the world. I know if I’d had that understanding earlier, I would have believed in my potential earlier. Now I recognise the kinds of things neuro-divergent thinkers are capable of, and knowledge is power.
Speaking of which, I believe you have also recently found out you are on the autism spectrum. How has that been, finding out at this point in your life?
In truth, brilliant. Finding my people, as it were, has been a joy. Looking at inspirations like Greta Thunberg and recognising the traits I’m proud of in my own thinking, that autistic precision, focus and authenticity to a cause. It’s been the missing link to who I am, and no question, why I’ve achieved what I have against the nods in creative fields. On the one hand, it’s tough though. My kind never fit in and, if our differences don’t get picked up, we often spend our life masking for a neuro-typical world (sometimes not even aware of it). We often have a spikey profile in ability, i.e. issues with the management system in our brains, but then amazing big picture or detail-orientated thinking skills. The mismatch can cause a lot of anxiety.
A lot of women of my generation weren’t picked up for our differences in childhood because of the old Rain Man stereotypes of maths and science savants, but thankfully this is shifting. We still have a way to go, though. I’ve also got ADHD and my knowledge of that was terrible before I did the research. The naming is misleading for a start. Fact: a high proportion of entrepreneurs have ADHD. I think we’re going to learn so much in the coming years about neuro-divergent brains, it’s exciting. I’ve actually started a podcast about it with a few fellow females on the spectrum called WonderfullyWiredWomen on Sound Cloud.
Before we finish I just have one final question, what are you up to with your writing, what is your inspiration and what advice would Vicky Morris give to emerging young writers?
I’m working towards publication at the moment. I was lucky enough to be chosen as the nineteenth out of twenty mentors for the Arvon Jerwood Poetry Programme, working with a poet I love, Hannah Lowe. In terms of inspiration, anything and everything. Sometimes my work is very personal, other times surreal and light-hearted. I read a lot of contemporary poetry. Life experience inspires me too. In terms of advice – keep your integrity for what you do central and take pride in your work. Don’t let others decide your worth or withhold your power. Ensure you have supportive people around you and elevate each other. Keep chipping away, and one day you might look up to find a beautiful sculpture you never realised you could sculpt. Most importantly, believe. Because you can.
Thank-you very much Vicky and the very best of luck with the award!
