In March, I was just back from a sunny vacation (in February before we had really understood this whole “COVID thing”). Then, a few short weeks after that I was in lockdown. Like everyone else I had a lot of time on my hands. My usual entertainment is either reading or murder podcasts. I love Canadian True Crime, My Favorite Murder, The Last Podcast on the Left, Southern Fried True Crime, Dirty John and Criminal.
I used to love Sword and Scale but there’s some terrible drama about its problematic creator and I can’t listen to it anymore.
As for horror movies, I tend to love the idea of horror movies, but baby usually can’t deal with the gore.
So I like a very specific genre of horror that just creeps into your head and whispers to you in dark hallways.
Anyway, during this time the strangest thing happened. I couldn’t listen to the podcasts. Something I usually enjoy had no appeal to me. Even MFM or LPOTL which are hilarious just couldn’t hold my interest.
So of course, I thought I would channel my anxiety into writing. The trouble is, I usually write about things that cause me angst. Whether it’s politics, race, or gender issues it’s passion that motivates me, and usually a touch of anger.
But, there are times in a freelancers work that the jobs come to you, and people want certain topics. It was around this time that I was commissioned to write a spec script on Aaron Hernandez the the famous football playing murderer.
Then, George Floyd was murdered and Black Lives Matter swept across the country again. It was an exhilarating and also terrifying time. Would protester’s rights be upheld with a President like Donald Trump? (No!) Would this movement’s momentum create real change? (Yes!)
The conversation across the US and Canada turned to policing, or rather the end of policing as people tried to reckon with alternate ways to create public safety.
I had been working on a piece about Tina Fontaine, a young Indigenous girl who had left home, moved to the big city (Winnipeg in this case) and had turned up dead in the Red River. I’ve shelved that piece for now. Every time I work on it I end up in tears or find myself unable to sleep. Her story has some similarities to my own life: foster care, chaotic childhood and a bit of rebellion.
So now, while I am working on pieces about COVID-19 (because that’s what is on everyone’s mind) I am also writing on the Saskatoon Freezing Deaths as a contribution to the conversation about policing, and some of the systemic issues like racism in Canada and the US.
And slowly the podcasts have found a way back into my ears. Maybe this is a sign of return to normalcy?
I really can’t help it, I guess. As a teenager I wanted to write the next big vampire novel, but you write what you write.
I’ll let you know when the podcast episode is out.
So, what else would you like to talk about?