WRITERS ABROAD MAGAZINE: THE THIRD SPACE
Author Interview: Rachel Marsh
BY LAURA BESLEY
When we met you were living in Hong
Kong. Was this your first time living
abroad?
It wasn’t my first time living abroad – I’d
lived in France for a year as part of my
University degree course, teaching English
when I was 20.
Do you feel that living abroad influenced
your writing in any way?
Yes I think it did. I found that living abroad opened me up to new experiences,
perspectives and feelings - I felt compelled to get them down on paper in case they
escaped me. I think there is something valuable for writers in the experience of being a
stranger. For me, that change in going from someone who arrived knowing no-one to
someone who feels they have found a new home was a valuable journey where I learned
a lot about myself.
How were you involved in the writing scene in Hong Kong?
It began with me deciding to do NaNoWriMo 2012, which put me in touch with a
flourishing writing community. I went to a weekly write-up session, run by Shannon
Brown, and within a few months some of us had decided to hold a monthly salon evening
to share our writing. I found it was a supportive and inspiring environment for my
writing. I also wanted to check out the poetry scene and get performing. I went along to
OutLoud in the Fringe Club a few times before I worked up the courage to perform at it,
and then I became a regular at Joyce is Not Here on Wednesday nights, until my time in
Hong Kong was up. This group is now known as Peel Street Poets, who have a huge
profile, performing at TedEx and drawing large crowds along to their weekly Open Mic
at Orange Peel.
You have since moved back to the UK. How was the transition and how has it affected
your writing?
I didn’t find the transition easy. Although I had only been away for a year, it felt like a lot
had changed. In particular I was aware that I had much less free time to write than I’d had
in Hong Kong, because lots of friends and family wanted to see me. Of course this is
lovely, but I haven’t always been great at prioritising my own time – I’m getting better at
this now though.
Tell us about ‘Rhymes with Orange’.
Rhymes with Orange (www.orangesrhyme.com) started the month before I left to go to
Hong Kong. It is a group of former colleagues who met once a week to write. With my
9 | November 2016