3.8 Chloé Valerie Harmsworth: Nature-Inspired Creativity
Hello! Welcome to Prompted by Nature series three episode seven. How have you been? I hope things are going well for you right now.
This week I’m speaking with the wonderful Chloe Valeria Harmsworth, a nature writer and illustrator from St. Albans, Hertfordshire. Chloe uses her work to encourage others to engage in the natural world in a variety of ways and has been published in print magazines such as Breathe, Bloom, Be Kind and Oh magazine, and on websites and blogs such as Bloom in Doom, Creature Candy and Sustainable St Albans. Her work and art covers various environmental and conservation issues and explores how nature aids mental well-being.
She was the Creative Manager and Editor of the latest issue (Volume 3) of Bloom in Doom Magazine, which is on the theme of 'Forests'. In this role she called upon her passion for nature and her experience as an educational publishing editor to commission articles, interview people such as Darren Moorcroft (CEO of The Woodland Trust) and me! You can buy the wonderful and fascinating issue by going to https://www.bloomindoom.com/shop
In this conversation, we discuss:
Her nature-centred childhood and how she came to be a nature writer and illustrator
How her local natural space helped her to reconnect with her creativity and aid her mental health
Creating a nature diary as a way of learning about wildlife and local biodiversity and how this led to writing articles and being published
Why we should worry about knowing ‘all the things’ when engaging with the natural world
Seeing the value you in your own work and finding your voice
The importance of putting your own projects first
Her writing process
Her favourite memory of nature
Valerie is currently writing a book about woodlands, which will describe the wonders you can see throughout each season in this magical environment and is due for publication in 2022. To find out more about this, her previous projects and articles, and to see her nature photography and art, visit https://www.instagram.com/chloevalerienatureart/ Many of her articles can also be seen at https://chloevalerienatureart.wordpress.com/writing/
Just a little note that for some reason the sound quality of this episode wasn’t great. I’ve worked some magic in the editing process to help it and it doesn’t get in the way of Chloe’s words but I wanted to mention it before we got into it.
As always I’m over on www.promptedbynature.co.uk where you can find all of my writing prompts and blog post as well as news about my upcoming events such as a writing residential with the Field Studies Council. If you’re an Instagram user, I’m @prompted.by.nature and if you’d like to sponsor me for my 100k charity run in aid of the Sussex Wildlife Trust please go to my justgiving page www.justgiving.com/helen-forester123 I’m currently 26% towards my target and I’d love to have your support if you are able to spare a little money.
If you enjoy this episode or any of the others, please rate and review it on whichever platform you’re listening on.
As I mentioned I’m currently taking some time out from the meditation and writing prompts but rest assured that this will follow in the coming weeks.
Happy listening and I’ll speak to you after!
