Writer’s Block: Christina Wong & Daniel Innes

All Lit Up: As a visual artist, what do you do to inspire yourself? 

Daniel Innes: I make such a variety of work, and I’m influenced by such a large range of things. For our current project, these three things stand out the most:

1. Walking. Seeing the architecture, nature and how they work together. Whether in the country or the city, walking, looking, and listening gives me an energy that helps me set the tone for whatever I am working on.

2. Dreams. I moved a lot as a kid, sometimes changing schools twice in a year. I think vivid dreaming was a way for my brain to offer some sort of social stimulus, since in my day to day, I couldn’t really keep the few friends I made. The vivid dreaming has continued my whole life. My painting and writing is often directly influenced by things that happen in my dreams.

3. Conversations. Being an introvert that works alone on most of the projects I do to make a living, conversations with both friends and strangers are very important. A good conversation with someone nice can carry me for days, whether it just be from their positive energy or an interesting concept to think about and work through in whatever I am making. 

ALU: Do you have a book that you’ve gone back and read several times? 

DI: Bluets by Maggie Nelson. For me, it’s the perfect book. It has everything. Except pictures… 

ALU: What question do you wish someone would ask you about Denison Avenue?

DI: The “About your instagram” question. Someone whom I won’t name here wrote a very good review of our book right when it was released. But they never interviewed us. In the article they said that Denison Avenue started out as an instagram project. This is not true at all. We both hate social media. But we also know that to promote anything, it is a crucial tool. When we started making Denison Avenue we had no agent, no publisher, and no idea about how to get either. So as we were working on the book, we would alternate posting. I would post a drawing that I had recently finished, then Christina would post a quote from something she had recently written. Did it help us get an agent? Or our publisher? Doubtful, but either way, the book came first. Instagram was after. (I wish they would correct that review/article, but you can only ask so many times.) 

ALU: Describe your perfect writing day.

DI: Waking up relatively early. A big breakfast and lots of coffee. A diner breakfast would be ideal if I can afford it—and if there are any diners near where I am. But that’s not usually the case. If the weather is nice (it would be on a perfect writing day)—a walk somewhere, or bicycle ride if it’s far—to a quiet place in a park or by the river. I write (and draw) in small notebooks. When I’m thinking about what happens next and get stuck on how to word something, I make small abstract drawings of my surroundings. Usually of the trees and plants. It’s very meditative, and helps me clear my head and be present in the space. The drawings have nothing to do with the writing, but I do often use them later in my painting work. 

Christina Wong: On an ideal writing day, I would have the day off from work. And similar to Daniel, I like to wake up pretty early. There’s a sweet hour or two when it’s completely still and quiet and my neighbours haven’t woken up yet. And all you can hear are the birds chirping. It’s quite peaceful actually. If I could have that replicated throughout the day that would be amazing! Oh, and lots of coffee as well. At some point, I will probably go for a walk, or work on other creative projects. I do a lot of walking and thinking before I do any actual writing; it’s all part of my process. It’s like I’m mapping things out in my head, or I’m trying to immerse myself into my characters.

ALU: Christina, was there a stand-out moment or experience you had that helped you realize you wanted to become a writer?

CW: I would say it was a combination of several moments. I was lucky in the sense that the elementary school I attended nurtured creative writing and it was part of the curriculum. I would say that kickstarted my passion for writing, but I didn’t pursue it seriously until late high school/early university. I actually started off in theatre, directing (on the side). Despite my extremely shy nature, I took acting classes so I could better understand my actors when I directed. I loved memorizing lines and taking on different characters. I remember feeling a little brave and showing up to an audition for the role of Juliet and the director told me I shouldn’t bother because there would never be an Asian Juliet. I think that planted something in me. Even though I was still directing, I was tired of hearing stuff like that and it pushed me to want to write roles or pieces where I (and others like me) could see themselves. A couple years later, I participated in my first playwriting unit with fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre Company. That experience was so inspiring; I learned so much about the craft. (Thank you Nina Lee Aquino!) I think that really cemented my desire to write. Needless to say, writing became my way of telling the world something, of starting a conversation. 

ALU: Do you have any rituals that you abide by when you’re writing?

CW: I actually carry two notebooks and a sketchbook with me everywhere I go. One is a fairly small-medium-sized one to jot down thoughts, ideas, things I hear in passing, and just random things. And if I’m working on something specific, I will carry a larger notebook devoted to that particular writing project. I know it’s more economical to just have one notebook versus three, but I like to keep things separate and it feels more organized that way. I always write my drafts by hand. Another thing I do is make a playlist. I choose songs that help me get into the mood of the piece (or character) I’m working on, or I choose songs that almost act like a soundtrack to the story. 

ALU: Have you experienced writer’s block? What did you do about it?

CW: Yes, all the time! I find when I’m stuck or when I’m feeling stressed, I gravitate towards the piano. I’ll play a few songs, or just some chord progressions and that puts me in this nice headspace. And as I mentioned earlier, I walk a lot. It helps clear my head, or it might help me figure out something one of my characters is going through. Sometimes a bike ride also helps! Or I try to work on other creative stuff like drawing. Or I might just read, or catch an exhibit at my favourite art galleries. I know, so many choices! But if I’m really stuck, I’ll put on the playlist I’ve compiled and see if that works. I should also say I don’t like to force the writing. If it’s not happening, it’s not happening. I find that if I don’t think about it for a few days (or weeks), the words will eventually come to me so I try not to put too much pressure on myself. 

ALU: How did the design of Denison Avenue come together? 

DI: Right from the start, we knew we wanted to make the book together, but have full creative control over each of our works. Our narratives didn’t correlate linearly, so combining the text and images together on the same pages didn’t make sense to us. Telling aspects of the same story, but in two different ways, a double-sided book seemed the most feasible (as opposed to two volumes in a slipcase). 

ALU: How did you settle on the final images?  

DI: My half of the book is meant as an invitation for the reader to use the book as a visual guide: to take the physical walk through our neighbourhood, as Cho Sum does in the novel. My pages are split into “then” and ‘now,” with the “now” locations dated roughly around the time the pages were being drawn (2019-2021). We worked independently on our sections, but gave each other constant updates throughout the process. I had a list of locations, but that was added to some of Christina’s references as she wrote the novel. Also, for some of the locations I couldn’t find any interesting “before” reference photos. And Covid happened, so I couldn’t visit the reference library and we couldn’t go to the Toronto Archives—I could only use what was available online. So many locations did change over the course of the drawing (from late 2019 to early 2021). 

CW: Throughout the project we uploaded photos to a shared Google Drive so we each had an idea of what places were important to us, to the characters, and to the story. And likewise, Daniel would show me illustrations and I would think, oh yeah, I should add that to the story. Even though we did work independently from one another, I think we inspired each other along the way. 

ALU: Was there any collaboration in terms of direction for the cover? 

DI: I was terrified of the cover. Not about what “I” would do, but terrified that we wouldn’t have control over the process. I am very picky about book covers when I’m browsing. Bad design, something trendy, or too modern will make me not buy the book. And I personally know people who had no control over what their publisher did, and one so embarrassed by the book cover they didn’t promote their own book. Thankfully, ECW Press, our publisher, was very flexible with whatever we wanted to do. So I got to design the double-sided cover, with my drawing of Chinatown, placing the drawing’s cantilever signage on the spine to connect both halves. I drew all of the fonts, referencing the Rol San sign on Spadina (not sure if the new location’s sign is the same??) and some of the older Honest Ed’s signage (RIP). I love making book covers. I hope to make lots more. 

CW: I generally deferred all design stuff to Daniel. I had complete faith and trust in him. Knowing that he was going to design it, I knew we would have the best possible cover for our book. 

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Daniel Innes’s extensive portfolio includes painting, installation, graphic and textile design, illustration, sign painting, and tattooing. He uses traditional commercial art techniques, with a focus on the process. He has a special interest in creating works that have the possibility of an immersive physical experience.

Daniel was born in the north end of Toronto and has lived in the Spadina–Chinatown neighbourhood for over 20 years. Watching the neighbourhood change over the years has ended his love affair with Toronto. His time is now spent between Toronto and his studio (an artist residency project) in Hyōgo, Japan.

Christina Wong is a playwright, prose writer, and a multidisciplinary artist who also works in sound installation, audio documentaries, and photography. Her plays have been performed at Factory Studio, Theatre Passe Muraille Backspace, and Palmerston Library Theatre. Her work has also appeared in TOK Magazine, the Toronto Star, and on CJRU 1280AM.

Christina grew up with the sights, smells, and sounds of Toronto’s Chinatown and Kensington Market neighbourhoods, which have shaped her identity and view of the world.