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| 2017 fireworks atop Calton Hill |
As is my wont I will break it down in an easy formula for those of you who will only read the headlines:
(Working hard + time with friends and loved ones) x liking one's self [(looking yourself in the mirror every day and saying "I like you"+ making lists of things that you're good at and enjoy) x every day] - pacing = A good year
So here are the top 12 moments of my 2016 (in chronological order) - a year that has been sweet with success and happiness.
Survived tonsillectomy – January
Stonewall award - February
Most of you know of the horror show that was the last few years at NHS NSS. However, there were still many bright spots, one of which was starting the LGBTI network there. And, to top it all off, the work that I put in with colleagues in NSS was recognised by Stonewall. It was special recognition for collaborative working with the equalities network team in Tesco Bank who helped us get the NSS network off the ground. It was a HUGE validation for me in the work I was trying to do to make my bad experiences into something positive for other people. And it really showed me that standing up for what you believe in and not giving up in the face of people putting you down and telling you to shut your mouth can make a difference. Visited Barcelona – March
I visited Barcelona with my mate Steve. It was an incredible holiday. While we didn’t get as much sun as we hoped we still had some incredible days out in places like Parque Guell, Sagrada Familia and just tripping around Barcelona eating, shopping, meeting new people and having more than a tipple or two. I hadn't done any travelling abroad in years so it was great to get out of the country and also practice my Spanish! Woohoo!! I'm thinking next stop is Germany to see my Uncle Wally. Time to pick up my German again!
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| Me and Steve in Parque Guell, Barcelona |
Got another tattoo – March
The day I got back from Barcelona I had a carpe diem moment. I arrived back to a stormy Edinburgh, left my luggage on the tram and just felt miserable. So, I decided to do something fun and stopped into the tattoo parlour to see how much a design I’d had tripping around my head would be. Well, I walked out with an appointment for later that afternoon. So, to commemorate the impending launch of my novel a new tattoo was born. I absolutely love it and can’t wait to expand it as my collection of writing does.
I published the long-awaited sequel to Black Star in March. The book launch was incredible and we raised over £200 for Book Aid International. The things I learned from the first book have made book 2 even better. The illustrations are better. The characters have grown and the story flows and is much more intense. I’m absolutely in love with the book and was so excited that so many people I care about came out to the launch. It made it that much more special.
British Citizenship – August
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| Me and Shug at citizenship ceremony |
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| Me and Robert at citizenship ceremony |
Well, as some of you know, I started dating this incredibly lovely chap, Robert, in April. Well, if you don’t know, now you know, Mr President. His birthday is the day after mine so we decided to celebrate away and took a trip up north to Loch Ness. It was an amazing trip and I loved Loch Ness. But the thing that, unsurprisingly, captivated me the most was Balnuaran of Clava, a mysterious ancient burial ground that is said to be laid out in the exact same formation as the Egyptian pyramids at Giza. The trip sparked even more ideas for my Age of Albion series and prompted me to finally get the edits for the book in gear.
Started working for the man (ie Scottish Government) – September
Despite the silly headline I am over the moon about my new job. I was offered the job in June but had to wait until the citizenship paperwork was all cleared in August. The job is amazing. I’m a senior content designer which means I do research into topics and write and design articles (how information is structured on the page) to best match public needs (that’s what the research is for). It means I get to read and write and talk to people all day. I work with a great team who are all hilarious and super talented. And the work itself is challenging and exiting. I get to work with important topics that help people who are dealing with things like FGM and becoming a carer. If you haven’t already, check out www.mygov.scot. Also, I get to be Batman at work everyday. Seriously, on the team board my avatar is BATMAN!!! So, as far as job satisfaction goes, this is pretty dern high!
Directed 'Sunshine on Leith' – October
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| Me and the production team |
I had my Edinburgh directorial debut with ‘Sunshine on Leith’. It was a lot of work but a very rewarding experience. I definitely think next time I direct I’ll wait until I don’t have as much going on at the same time because I came pretty close to burn out (citizenship, new job, 2 part-time jobs and show all overlapped). But, seeing stuff that was in my head come to life on stage was amazing! And it was a vision of my new home – my love letter to Edinburgh. On top of that it was a great project to work on with friends. Collaboration on any artistic project is hard work but what comes out at the other end is bigger and better than you can do on your own. ‘Sunshine on Leith’ became this dazzling performance that was better than I hoped in so many many ways. Working with the cast and company to not just entertain but tell a great story was incredible – so many of the cast are talented beyond belief! Directing gave me a completely different sense of achievement and buzz and I’m looking forward to doing it again. I also learned an ass-ton from doing something this big for the first time. But first a bit of performing myself (I miss that kind of buzz). I’m thinking my next directorial endeavor will be some sort of concert.
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| Sold out performances 3 nights in a row!! |
Speaking at Stonewall conference - November
A huge highlight of the year was getting to speak at the Stonewall Workplace Conference 2017. It was a huge honour that they asked me to share my experience of setting up a staff LGBTI network in the NHS. Setting up the network itself was a great experience. And having the opportunity to share that with other people to hopefully help encourage them on their way to doing the same was an honour. It was so exciting to see folks from the NHS network at the event which is encouraging to know that it's still going.
Finished drafting my third novel, Age of Albion: King Arthur Returns – November
I wrote King Arthur Returns last year for write a novel month. I made a stab at editing it but accepted the job of directing ‘Sunshine on Leith’ in February so that took up a HUGE amount of my creative energy on top of, you know, editing another novel and working a full-time job and two part-time jobs. So, I used this November to tidy it up and get a workable first draft – if you write a novel in less than 30 days it will not be readable. So now begins the redrafting and rewriting phase. I’ve decided 2017 is the year of the agent. I have so many passions and focusses. I think this year I want to knuckle down and really get my writing out there. Emersus Project will always be my baby and I believe in it 100%. It’s the uncompromising part of myself that I will continue to tell. But Age of Albion is the one that will get picked up. It’s a much more accessible story and the characters are more universally identifiable. It’s a story that I wrote deliberately to inspire young people, not just the story that inspires me. So 2017 is the Age of Albion… watch this space!
Alphonse Mucha exhibition – December
This will also be a highlight of 2017 as I’m going to see it again in January. I went to the exhibition at the Kelvingrove Gallery in Glasgow with Robert and my mate Doug. It was a great day out and getting to see Alphonse Mucha’s work – an artist who has already inspired so many things in my life – was such a precious and exciting moment. Mucha’s work has had a huge impact on my life and art, not least of which because he was one of the first things my best mate Ryan and I had in common (actually, one of the few things we liked in common). His art is the inspiration for one of my tattoos as well. So, getting to see his work in its original form for the first time was immense. To see how intricate his work was from sketches to final works was awe inspiring and makes me want to work more.
There were so many other amazing things in 2016 but this would have become a novel in its own right. But here are a few other highlights:
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| The infamous drag party |
- I’m still tutoring and loving it
- I have not stopped using the waffle maker I drunkenly purchased last year
- Had a super fab Drag me to the Barony party
- Sarah Serkin came for a visit and we found Nic Jolly’s veterans’ statue
- Had a super visit from Margaret Pritchard and she infected me with Hamilton
- Getting to meet the cutie Susie Peterson Lien when her parents Karen and Henry came to stay in Edinburgh (Susie is a baby btw)
- I tried clay pigeon shooting at Ray’s epic stag do. It was intoxicating.
- My friend Ray got married to my friend Craig. It was like watching two adorable, cat-loving, scary-hard-working teddy bears get married.
- Got to sing in the Showcase 2016 Christmas concerts
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| Ready for Christmas concerts! |
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