‘The pieces of who I thought I needed to be fade away as I begin to realise that who I am is already enough’
This week I sat down with Abbie Wiggins, more popularly known on Instagram as WordsByAbbie, to ask her some questions about her journey as a poet and where her inspiration as a creative comes from.
Hi! How are you?
I’m doing good! I’m very busy at the moment, it’s tough balancing a full time job as well as my poetry account. I also try and fit in socialising and the gym, it’s a lot to balance. But overall, I’m pretty good.
Have you always been interested in writing and literature?
I think so… Even before I could read, our dad used to read books to us, I particularly remember The Chronicles of Narnia, I remember that really clearly. Having bedtime stories and imagining the whole story in my head being part of my routine since a kid was important. When I started getting a bit older, I started reading books for myself. I didn’t always really love writing, but I did enjoy reading. I’ve always liked the way you read words on a page and then they become a story or a movie in your mind.
What were some of your favourite books as a child?
Aside from, of course, The Chronicles of Narnia… especially The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. I really loved Enid Blyton as well, her books The Faraway Tree, Mallory Towers and St Claire’s were a big part of my childhood. I found them in my mum’s childhood bedroom and was hooked. Another classic was Jacqueline Wilson, her stories were a bit more intense but I loved them. Michael Murpurgo was great too, The Butterfly Lion and Shadows were so deep and I always loved reading about animals.
Who are some of your favourite authors now?
Oooh, good question. I think my favourite author now is Kristin Hannah, one of my favourite books of her’s is The Nightingale. All of her stories are all about the characters and their relationships with each other… that’s what I love about books. I also like Emma Donoghue who wrote Room. I love the way that book was written, from the perspective of the little boy. It’s such a fresh perspective. I like Jodi Picoult, her books always have a central ethical or moral dilemma that the characters explore from all sides. Small Great Things and A Spark of Light opened my eyes to new things.
What book are you reading right now?
It’s called A Dance of Thieves, it’s by Mary E. Pearson. I haven’t read that many fantasy books so far and wasn’t sure if it was my thing, but I actually really like it! I’m going to read A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas next… I’m in my fantasy era.
Where does the inspiration for your poems begin?
Sometimes it doesn’t always come from the same place. Sometimes I imagine I’m talking to my younger sisters and what I’d want them to hear… or I’ll think about a situation I went through in my life and write about that. If I hear my friend’s talking about what they’re going through, I respond to that through my poetry. Within all of it, it really truly comes from my faith in God. Whenever I’m writing, I have worship music playing in the background and I’m really tuning into what God is saying. I always want that to be the main point, and that the words come from a place of hope. However, I like to write in a tone that makes it applicable to everyone, not just religious people. Sometimes I hear phrases from God or just a couple of words and I use that as a starting point. Most importantly, I try and keep it real. Everything new that I post was written recently, it’s a real reflection of my life at the time.
Are there any other poets, or creatives, that inspire you?
Yeah! My biggest inspiration is Charlie Mackesy. I am so inspired by what he does. He’s also a Christian and I love that he includes that in his work, but doesn’t make it an obvious forefront. His work is so powerful. On Instagram, I’m so inspired by Morgan Harper Nichols. She’s one of the first creatives that I followed and I’ve engaged with her stuff for a long time. There’s so many more but these two really stand out for me.
What does your ideal day look like?
I’d start off with a coffee and going for a walk. I don’t have time for that with my day job now, but in an ideal life that would be great. I’d come back home or go to a cafe and do work. I could run my business from home and maybe work from 9-3, giving me free time to workout and chill out at home. I’d have dinner with friends and a little games night. And then, of course, read.
What are your goals for this year?
My main thing for this year is to be intentional with everything that I do. I think intentional is my word for the year. Life just happens and if we let it go, it keeps going without us. I want to be intentional with my choices. I read Gabriel Conte’s new book A Mission for Meaning and he talks about how all of the small choices we make add up to the life we have. He talks about deleting Instagram off his phone as it was taking up too much headspace and energy. I did the same myself last week and now only have it on my iPad. So, going on Instagram is intentional now. I’m not spending hours scrolling. I have to actively choose to open my drawer, get my iPad out, log in, etc. We have so much more control over what we do than we think.
Even what I choose to watch, choose to listen to and choose to engage in. Everything we let into our lives effects how we feel. I want to be intentional with what I choose, what positively effects me? What negatively effects me? How can I make myself feel good. It’s totally my choice.
Other than that, I want to read more. Taking time off my phone has helped me to do that.
What advice do you have for people who want to get into poetry or writing?
Write what you want to write and post what you want to post, don’t think what to people do people want to see or what will get you likes. At the end of the day, people will like it or they won’t like it. It’s your account and your image and your writing, so make it you.
Find a reason why you’re doing it. What’s the purpose? I decided early on that my ‘why’ was that I wanted to spread words of hope. Even where things are challenging and I doubt myself, I’m able to go back to my intention and my ‘why’. If I didn’t have that, I would’ve stopped a long time ago.
Also, do your research into Instagram. Even though you’re doing it because you love it, it’s important to understand how the platform works. When I first started, I wanted to know how to make my profile look good, pick a good username, make a cohesive colour scheme. Pinterest is a great tool for this.
I had so much fun talking to Abbie this week. If you’d like to see more from her, check out her Instagram @wordsbyabbie. Her book ‘Anchor’ is available on Amazon.
What keeps you inspired? What motivates you to create? Let me know in the comments!
with love,
becky
all poetry credited to WordsByAbbie
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