Write On! interviews writer Curtis Brown.

Curtis Brown is a playwright, poet and multi-disciplinary artist based in London, UK. His poetry has been published in numerous journals and anthologies, including: Masque & Spectacle, Wildfire Words and Under The Radar. His poetry films have been selected for several film festivals around the globe, including Southwark Festival of Words, London, Ó Bhéal’s International Poetry-Film Festival, Cork, and Queens Underground Internation Film Festival, NY.

In 2021 his first play, Give Me Back, was selected by London Playwrights. In 2024, Curtis produced and directed the same play as part of Bitesize Festival at London’s renown Riverside Studios, and is in the process of transferring it from stage to screen.

WO: How would you describe your writing to someone new to it?

CB: I would say that, on one level, my writing is themed around social justice. But on a deeper level, it’s about presenting alternative perspectives, ones that cause us to think about the wider effect before we act, to respond rather than react, to then choose to be kind.

WO: Can you tell us a bit about your latest project, Give Me Back?

CB: Give Me Back is a play that got me selected by London Playwrights for a mentorship program. It’s a play about the impact of knife crime on families, but there are a few twists thrown in.

I recently had the privilege of producing and directing the play at London’s renown Riverside Studios. I didn’t know how I was going to fill the 172-seater studio. In the end, the turnout (a few seats short of a full house each performance) and positive feedback was almost overwhelming. I’m now looking to transfer it from stage to screen.

WO: What inspired you to write in the first place, and what inspires you now?

CB: I’m not really a man of many oral words, but have always felt as though I have stuff to say. I’ve always been driven by curiosity and a desire to understand personal perspectives and interactions, with our environments and each other. However, I never had a solid sense of direction until I finally felt I’d found a natural outlet for my voice when, in 2018, I joined a creative writing group at a local library. Poetry was the perfect genre to ‘release the pressure’ and has eased me into other genres, such as playwriting. In fact, Give Me Back was, in effect, an extension of a particular poem I had written.

WO: Recently Write On! explored the theme of ‘Change’. Do you actively embrace change and the chaos it can bring, especially in your writing routine, or does the idea of any change at all fill you with dread? What tactics can you recommend for coping with it?

CB: Change is inevitable. I embrace it by acknowledging that any battles I choose are only efforts to steer change in a particular direction, rather than control it. I may struggle, but don’t see change as the enemy. I set goals, never write them in stone, and often revisit my perspective.

WO: What one piece of advice would you give an aspiring writer?

CB: Have a way to record ideas (voice recorder app, notebook, etc) while getting on with your life (including those moments, between sleep and waking, when the universe momentarily opens a portal). Also, set goals. Number One: Make time to write for at least five minutes each day.

WO: Question from Instagram user: @grasshopper2407 Do you find it more challenging to enter competitions now that you’ve had some success, or does it just empower you?

CB: I think success is subjective (and rejection is the name of today’s game). I’m empowered by a strong desire to create. If I then feel a strong desire to submit my work to a particular competition, I try to follow through.

WO: Can you tell us anything about future projects?

CB: Apart from rewriting Give Me Back for the screen, I’m also writing a poetry collection exploring the unforeseen impact, on me as a former Christian, of the latest conflict in Gaza. It seems to have been more profound than any of the other heartbreaking conflicts I would have expected to affect me more (Congo, Sudan, etc). It’s a personal journey through a collective anguish.

WO: Lastly, if you could choose one fictional animal/creature to be a pet or companion, who would it be and why?

CB: I found it hard to find one I felt I could communicate with and trust. I’ve settled on Kilgharrah, Merlin’s wise mentor dragon, beneath Camelot. I’m not sure how, or if, it would work, but hey – it would be a change!

You can see some of Curtis Brown’s filmed work here https://youtu.be/UXDtA34Fa6Y?feature=shared. You can also connect with him on Instagram and X: @iamcurtisbrown.

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Issue 23 will be out on Wednesday 12 December. In the meantime check out all  previous editions  on our magazines page here.

You can hear great new ideas, creative work and writing tips on Write On! Audio. Find us on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Google Podcasts and Spotify. Type Pen to Print into your browser and look for our logo, or find us on Podcasters.Spotify.com.

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