In this episode, I sit down with author Jenny Haysom to discuss the themes of keeping and losing in her novel, Keep. We explore the delicate balance between motherhood and creativity, the struggle of carving out solitude as a writer, and the impact of community on personal growth. We also look into the world of home staging, hoarding, and the emotional weight of objects.

Keep tells the moving story of two home stagers and their client, Harriet, an elderly poet who is reluctant to sell her home and let go of the paraphernalia of her life. As these stagers find ways to carefully declutter Harriet’s home, they find that they themselves must attend to the clutter in their own lives. Keep investigates how, why, and what we keep and lose, and the big question: what is the most important thing? Keep is out now with House of Anansi Press.

Show highlights

0:00 – Introduction

3:35 – What inspired Keep?

7:56 - The things we keep that aren’t ours

16:50 - Belonging as a thing we don’t keep

18:24 – Juggling motherhood and creativity

24:16 - Losing the things that are integral to us

28:18 – The antidote to loneliness: community & connection

32:44 - Writing about the elderly

37:22 - Learning to write and publish a debut novel

39:18 - Appreciation and end

Watch on YouTube:⁠https://youtu.be/XH96GUsZ0wU

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Guest’s links

Buy Keep:https://houseofanansi.com/products/keep?srsltid=AfmBOoq80vlJNg-7LZPX2RXSnOCUfA6TOdSZkSM6Zc4OwFAFsFSEjOUm

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Host’s links

Find out more about the show: ⁠https://www.journeyoftheart.com/⁠

Follow Journey of the Art on Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/journeyoftheartpod/⁠

Book a one-on-one with Lola:⁠https://wordcaps.com/coaching/