#5: An Interview with Nadine Araksi
"Writing helps me make sense of the world and my place in it. It's how I process everything from the big existential questions to why I can never find matching socks."
Welcome to Archipel, an ongoing dialogue between me (Cara Waterfall) and other poets and creatives of all kinds, celebrating the ways we connect through mentorship, community and transitions.
If you are interested in participating, please send me an email by replying to this newsletter or click here.
Archipel was also inspired by my very first poetry mentor, my Dad. When you purchase a subscription to this newsletter, you are paying into a scholarship fund in his name, which will support emerging poets.
To learn more about The Donald E. Waterfall Scholarship Fund, click here.
Thank you for reading!
Today’s interview is with Nadine Araksi, an Armenian-Canadian writer & mindset coach as well as a gifted storyteller across many media. Simultaneously savvy and authentic, she has the rare ability to make people feel seen and heard.
Nadine writes vulnerable, inspiring and humourous essays at I Heart Stories, where she examines “societal narratives & stories we’ve internalized that keep us stuck”, and is also a Content Marketing Manager at Resolver Inc.
In my mid-30s, I switched careers and was a 37-year-old intern, who worked with Nadine at Sweetspot.ca. After, Nadine gave me my first shot at a real job when I became an Editorial Assistant at Today's Parent magazine. What I have always admired about Nadine is how she is unfailingly true to herself, no matter the circumstance — I have never seen her treat any individual without respect or empathy.
Since our Today’s Parent stint, Nadine has become a mindset coach and author, among other things. She has an essay "Dede's Dream" (The working title was "Word to the Motherland") in the upcoming anthology Back Where I Came From: On Culture, Identity, and Home, edited by Taslim Jaffer and Omar Mouallem, forthcoming this Fall:
This book is close to my heart because it explores the complex experiences of diaspora writers returning to their ancestral homelands. My piece delves into my 2019 trip to Armenia, unpacking layers of identity, belonging, and what it means to connect with a place that's both familiar and foreign. It's raw, it's real, and it touches on some deep stuff about being Armenian-Canadian and how that shapes my worldview. I'm really proud to be part of this collection that amplifies diverse voices and stories. It's the kind of book I wish existed when I was younger, trying to make sense of my hyphenated identity.
If you would like to learn more or pre-order, please click here.
1. Who are you and how do you express your creativity or describe your art?
Oh boy, where to start? I'm Nadine Araksi, a writer, coach, and professional overthinker (kidding... sort of). My creativity flows mostly through words — whether it's personal essays, articles, or the occasional attempt at poetry that my kids politely nod at. I'm all about exploring the messy, beautiful chaos of life, especially through the lens of a second-gen Armenian-Canadian single mom with ADHD who loves to research, reflect, and build community.
But I'm also playing with this idea that my life is art. Creativity might show up in how I arrange a room, make a meal, deal with one of my teenagers' emo moments... Art doesn't have to be seen, does it? I am a constantly evolving work of art, and if I can bear witness and appreciate that, it's half the battle. Easier said than done somedays.
2. What keeps you coming back to creative work? Why is it worth doing?
Honestly? It's like breathing for me. Writing helps me make sense of the world and my place in it. It's how I process everything from the big existential questions to why I can never find matching socks. Plus, there's this magical moment when someone reads something I've written and says, "Me too!" That connection? It's worth all the late nights and caffeine jitters.
There are few things in life that get me into "the zone." But writing, cooking, gardening, being with others (bonus if it's on a dancefloor), getting dressed, even riding my bike... they are all some sort of creative expression for me. I see creative work as a means to come alive. To get out of this sense of self in an individualistic world and connect with spirit and others. It's a gift to see life this way. It keeps the darkness at bay.
3. What legacy do you hope to leave with your art?
I want to show women that there is more than one way to build a life and that we don't have to be burdened by the narratives we've been handed. We can use art for connection but also to reframe and reimagine an inequitable world that has harmed women and marginalized groups at the hands of a dominant narrative.
If you haven't experienced author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED talk "The danger of a single story," I'd love for you to experience it and reflect. We need your stories. And we need to share and amplify the work of others, to share what made us feel something and why.
4. What are your biggest challenges when it comes to maintaining a steady creative practice, and how have you overcome them?
Oh, hello ADHD, my old friend! Focusing can be a real struggle, especially with the siren song of social media and the constant juggling act of work, kids, and life. I've learned to embrace the chaos, though. Setting timers, creating a cozy writing nook, finding (and soon, creating) containers and communities to make writing accountable and less lonely—oh, and bribing myself with chocolate or a fancy coffee at a cute cafe have all become part of my creative toolkit.
I've also had a huge reframe from "I have no time to write" to "I'm not currently taking the time to nurture my writing practice" to "When/how can I TAKE the time to write and nurture my creative practice?" Realizing I have the power to claim that time. Then determining what I need to make the How happen. I'm launching a quiet collective writing group for accountability in October called Pen to Paper Sundays, for example, because it holds me accountable for claiming that time to create.
5. What advice do you have for someone who wants to start or maintain their creative practice in a new way?
Don't get caught up in comparison or "not enough" thoughts. Treat your writing like seeds you need to nurture. How do you lean on the faith that if you water them and talk to them, those little seeds of ideas will sprout into something beautiful? What little attention or energy do you have to give your creative practice today? What do your ideas and dreams need to manifest into reality? And make it playful! Don't get hung up on "shoulds." How can your creative practice feel like play?
6. Why does mentorship/ community support matter?
Yes. Despite all the psych talk, humans are codependent creatures. We need one another to survive (literally in the first few years of life). Everything is a co-creation process. Find the people who will keep you going and give you honest feedback and edits. I have a few of these groups, and they are the best. I will let myself down 100 times, but I will show up for others. I have stopped beating myself up for that or seeing it as a flaw. It's a feature, not a bug. Embrace it. Be vulnerable.
Know that someone out there has a wound in the shape of your words (I wish that was my quote, but it's not, haha), and if you're able to get your signal to reach that one person in the noise of modern life, it's worth all the effort. Writing can be lonely, but it doesn't have to be.
7. Do you have a mentor?
1. If yes, who is your mentor?
2. If no, are there other support structures or community that have helped you?
I have someone I have seen as a professional mentor in my corporate career. (hi, Sean!). Thinking about how he shows up for others and his work helps me even in how I show up creatively.
But currently, I have 3-4 different writing clubs or groups that help with different aspects of working on my craft.
One group for making quick, intentional writing time on weekdays: Firefly. You can read more about them here. I've also done courses and retreats with this group and adore them.
One group for getting things across the line. For example, if you have to submit 1500 words every few weeks, you gotta get those words down. Hilariously, a bunch of us met at a Firefly retreat and fell in love with each other. It's a gorgeous group.
One group for ongoing support and publishing advice - friends I met when I worked at Random House nearly two decades ago. We try to do NaNoWriMo together, which is coming up soon.
And then the Pen to Paper Sundays idea came from a Firefly Life Stories class needing a container to find time to write. So I made one. Now I'll be opening it up to a broader group. I'm nervous and excited about all I'll learn in the process.
8. How has your mentor (or support structure/community) impacted you?
I'm way further along now in my work than I was two years ago. I'm learning a ton about writing as a craft.
9. Who is your dream mentor, living or dead, and why?
Dead - I'd love to sit at the Algonquin with Dorothy Parker. I tend to write with humour, so I appreciate a funny woman who can hang with the lads.
Alive - I had the great privilege of meeting Curtis Sittenfeld at a lunch when I worked at Random House. I am truly a huge fan. I like the kinds of stories and women she tackles. I'd love to be in an MFA class with her.
I feel very lucky to have many published authors and poets in my circle and future authors and poets who will change the world with their words. Life has been good to me in that way. My career choices have helped for sure — which is how you [Cara] came into my life. :) All the women writers I know are inspiring in their own way. I learn something from each of them.
I'm working on building out www.nadinearaksi.com, but in the meantime, folks can find me writing weekly at www.iheartstories.substack.com and procrastinating on Instagram at @nadinearaksi — I joke that I have a night shift at the meme factory. I'll be announcing details of Pen to Paper Sundays on those channels. Hope to meet some of you online soon!
(Answers received via email September 16, 2024)