August Strindberg and Schizophrenia

In a few months I will be releasing my new book, A Schizophrenic to Strindberg: An Unanswered Letter.  The book is written as an epistolary novel addressed to the now dead August Strindberg.  Strindberg lived in the 19th century, and became famous for plays such as Miss Julie and The Father. His plays were performed around the world during his life time, and are just as famous and well-known (revered, treasured and misunderstood) today. He didn't just write plays, but novels, poetry, history and even painted. My book will have one of his paintings on the cover. He was in every sense of the word a polymath.

He wasn't adverse to scandal.  One his books, The Red Room, was a contemporaneous depiction of the cultural, artistic and literary life of his peers.  He defamed many of his contemporaries in the novel, and indeed one individual who read the book, and who was named and written about in it, was to die one week later.

He got his start as a playwright by receiving a stipend from the King of Sweden for an early work, Master Olaf.  His plays were performed regularly in his homeland in the early days, but after repeated controversies, found it difficult to have theatres perform his work. He founded his own theatre, The Intimate Theatre, which was an important outlet for him, when others wouldn't perform his plays.

He went to trial twice for his work, once for blasphemy, the other for obscenity.   He was tried in Sweden for blasphemy. Strindberg was overseas at the time, and was not going to attend the trial, but as his publisher was to stand trial in his absence, Strindberg returned to Sweden to face the charges.  When his train arrived at the station, a large crowd had gathered to greet him.  When he was acquitted,  there was a galla dinner held in his honour.

In his fifties, Strindberg wrote a book called Inferno, which was an autobiographical account of schizophrenic experiences he had earlier had.  The material he used for the book came from a diary he kept, which was posthumously published as The Occult Diaries. Karl Jaspers famously studied Strindberg's psychosis. Inferno has many traces of the schizophrenic experience.  Strindberg believed that lightning strikes in the area were specifically directed towards him, he believed that someone in the room above him was trying to kill him by using a sort of electrical machine to send charges of electricity through the floor. He got deeply involved in the occult, and saw signs and symbols of larger meanings where ever he went.

It is Strindberg's schizophrenia that interests A Schizophrenic to Strindberg: An Unanswered Letter.  As someone who has suffered from schizophrenia, I enter into a sort of one way dialogue with Strindberg about his life, work and indeed his madness.

Mental Illness Fellowship of Victoria Workshops

Next week I start work for the Mental Illness Fellowship of Victoria running workshops regarding recovery strategies in the context of the roll out of the government's National Disability Insurance Scheme. It is a ten week course, to be held at the Dax Centre at Melbourne University.  The Dax Centre is an an art collection for those who have had experience with mental health issues. The course uses traditional understandings of recovery such as the biopshycosocial model of amelioration.  I will also be using my lived experience of art and writing to guide sufferers through their own journeys. Creativity and mental illness are long held research interests of mine, and am excited to employ this knowledge to help others. If you are interested in attending, just email me at fearne[at]hotmail[dot]com. See you there!

Launch of Leaves Literary Journal

Two weeks ago we launched the first edition of Leaves Literary Journal at Red Wheelbarrow Books.  It was a great night. We had about 25 people turn up. Our readers were in fine form, who included Bronwen Manger, Bronwyn Lovell, Initially NO, Stu Hatton, Matt Hetherington and Hoa Pham. They each read selections from their poems in the journal, and other assorted pieces. Red Wheelbarrow books really supports Australian poetry, and it was an honour to launch the journal there. Submissions have been coming in for the second edition, so stay tuned! You can read the journal here.  Submissions are now open by emailing three poems and a short bio to leavesliteraryjournal [at] hotmail [dot] com.