I have struggled with mental health issues my whole life. Varying degrees of sporadic anxiety and depression have prevented me from achieving past goals, helping others, taking care of my physical health, enjoying a good social life, pursuing several career paths. I look back at most of my life and realise that these two darkContinue reading “there is always a reason to keep going”

Productivity can be a fickle beast. Often I find myself procrastinating for hours, so much so that by the time I finally sit down at my laptop, I realise I don’t have enough time to focus on my writing. I rarely sit at my screen unsure what to write. That type of writer’s block seeminglyContinue reading “the demon procrastination”

A lot has happened since my last post, much of which I don’t want to go into too much detail about. The important thing to focus on is that I am back doing what I love: drawing and writing. Creating. I have finished my master’s degree now, which is both a frightening as well asContinue reading “life update”

The past few weeks have been quite chaotic for me, even by my own wacky standards. The resulting noise of all of these personal distractions has meant that I have been unable to focus on what I really love: my writing and my art. Slowly but surely, I have made a return to both myContinue reading “a return to sanity”

I have two massive updates. Firstly, my debut novel The Black Rook has been snapped up by a publisher and will be published in the near future. I’m so happy that the hard work that I poured into the project has paid off. I can barely put into words how much that means to meContinue reading “the black rook will be published, plus the putrid hand launches”

The other day, I decided to experiment by drawing directly onto a paperback book page. I’m really happy with the result, and it got me thinking that I might create a series of such drawings in the near future. It also felt good to be working on a new kind of paper. The paper isContinue reading “experiments and managing time”

I’m currently working on two fiction pieces right now: Like Pigs, which comments on several ethical and societal issues, such as animal meat consumption, over-population, and what (if anything) makes us better or worse, as a species, than the rest of nature. I realise this is going to be a massive piece of work, andContinue reading “update”

It’s been a while since my last post, in no small part because I have now started working in my job full time again. I do really like my job, but it can be a bit disheartening not being able to spend the time on my writing and illustrating. But the disappointment of not beingContinue reading “still here”

It’s crazy to think that I spent almost all of 2020 editing my novel, The Black Rook. Besides the regular drawings that I did exclusively for my Instagram account, all of my creative energy was poured into that novel. And once the editing was finalised, my time was occupied with university work and trying (andContinue reading “time well spent”

That’s right. I’ve finally published my first novelette, Putridity, which is now available on Amazon. (Just search “Davey Cobb”). Crafting it certainly wasn’t easy. I wrote most of it whilst having to endure the constant drilling and hammering of the builders working on the unit next door to our flat. There was a time whenContinue reading “putridity is live”

I’m currently in the process of editing my first novelette, Putridity, which I’m hoping to self-publish in the coming weeks. Process has been slow with it, as I’ve got so much going on at the moment, but as soon as it’s completed and ready to purchase, I’m sure you won’t hear the end of theContinue reading “putridity”

2021 had a bit of a slow start for me, in terms of my art. I’d reinvigorated my passion for drawing during the first lockdown last year (the less said about that time the better), but more than anything, the reason I did so was simply to pass the time. After all, I was furloughedContinue reading “bleeding eyes”

I’ve felt really inspired lately, for a number of reasons. Firstly, my Instagram account has started to grow in the last couple of weeks. I only have around 600 followers as I write this, but compare that to two weeks ago when I had around 400, I’d say that’s pretty good progress! Not only that,Continue reading “inspiration”

This is my latest drawing, Distress, which I’d describe as fine art rather than an illustration. And like many of my more emotive, swiftly-drawn pieces, the themes and subject of the portrait are undefined. Indeed, I find that drawing without a particular subject or theme in mind is often the best way to describe aContinue reading “visceral imagery”

As you can probably tell by the title, this blog deals with sensitive topics. Consider this a warning: what you’re about to read may be upsetting to some. Having said that, I’m won’t go into any real detail in regards to individuals or events, as I don’t believe it’s appropriate here. So, where do IContinue reading “creative writing saved me”

My greatest struggle, when it comes to writing, has to be multi-tasking. No matter how many (or how few) writing projects I have on the go at any one time, one piece will always be prioritised over the rest. Often, this has few negative consequences, as I do like to have one large, overarching projectContinue reading “juggling work, work and work. oh, and work”

I can finally say I’ve started writing my second novel, which, coincidentally, is the sequel to the first. I’ve yet to find a publisher for The Black Rook, and at the rate I’m going by the time it’s published I’ll have completed the sequel. The Black Rook deals with themes and issues very personal toContinue reading “a new beginning”

It’s been 5 days since my last blog, where I spoke about finding inspiration for creative work. In a tragically ironic twist, since I made that post I have found inspiration to be in short supply. The fabled muse has sewn her lips shut, or she’s given up on me and gone to whisper inContinue reading “the lockdown blues continue”

I don’t know if any of my fellow writers are like this, but I find that my inspiration to write (and also to read) springs itself upon me at the most random of times. I can spend hours staring at a Word document and feel as if I’m physically and mentally incapable of producing anythingContinue reading “the beast called inspiration and its cousin, the fickle muse”

I’m not even referring to this lockdown as “lockdown 3” like many others, as the second one never really felt like a real lockdown – it felt more like a hospitality/shop lockdown, sure, but students were still attending universities and colleges and workplaces were simply told “if you can work from home you should workContinue reading “lockdown blues”

It almost felt like 2020 would never end. In many ways, the year felt as if it actually lasted for four or five years, dragging on and on and on. But I don’t have to tell you how grim the previous year was (I don’t think there are many who hold the belief that 2020Continue reading “2021 is upon us”