Isolationcast #11: Anxiety as creative fuel and reviving unfinished projects with Jenny McCartney

Have you ever got halfway through a creative project, only to abandon it - and then wonder what could have been had you completed it? That is what happened to the journalist Jenny McCartney. Having grown up in Northern Ireland, she reported on the paramilitary attacks in the 90s for The Sunday Telegraph, and became fascinated with the psychological legacy of violence. She channeled this into the beginning of a novel, which she never finished. Life took over - she got married, had children. Then, six years ago, she decided to dig it out, getting her draft off a set of old floppy disks and picking it up again. The result was her highly acclaimed debut novel, the Ghost Factory. I found Jenny totally fascinating to talk to - not only was it riveting to hear about her childhood in Northern Ireland, but we also discussed life in lockdown, anxiety, balancing family life with creativity and more. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Twitter: @aliceazania / @mccartney_jenny

Buy the book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ghost-Factory-Jenny-McCartney/dp/0008295492

Edited by Chelsey Moore