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I am a disabled activist, writer, poet, spoken word artist, theatre-maker and creative practitioner based in Darlington in North-East England – I do stuff with words.

This page is a brief overview of some of the things I get up to. You can read more about all the different strands to my practice by clicking on the menus above.

Image shows Lisette in a purple t-shirt which reads disability is not a bad word, holding her walking stick with her eyes and mouth wide open.
photo description: Lisette in a purple t-shirt which reads ‘disability is not a bad word’, holding her purple walking stick with her eyes and mouth wide open. photo credit: Laura Tindall at PaperBoat Photography

This is what my awesome wordsmith and spoken word artist friend Sarah Crutwell has to say about me, and I rather like it, and her, a very big lot:

She’s the sista

Who cracks open disability labels, wide smile and huge heart,

Stomps boots on stage, talking about the years she spent

Overlooked in wheelchair.

 

I am proud to be represented by the fabulous Molly Ker Hawn at The Bent Agency.

 

12 squares containing in each a photo of the 12 mentees, I am one of them. The Penguin logo and the words Write Now are mid left hand side.
photo description: 12 squares containing in each a photo of the 12 mentees, I am one of them. The Penguin logo and the words Write Now are mid right hand side.

I’ve been chosen as a Penguin RHUK WriteNow Mentee, one of ten out of 1700 applicants. This is to work on my middle grade novel, THE WRECKLINGS, which features a strong female disabled protagonist and is set in a lighthouse on the rugged North East coast where I grew up (there are also mermaids and a captain with a kitten in his beard…).

My theatre and spoken word performance work seeks to make the invisible visible. I perform frequently on the spoken word scene delivering passionate lyrical pieces about disability, mental health and politics.

Filmed by National Spoken Word Organisation Apples and Snakes – my piece ‘Second Best Room’

Our BLACKBOX film series captures performances from the best spoken word artists of today.

A recent interview in NARC Magazine about the Words Weekend Festival and my beloved North East.

I was awarded the 2019 Early Career Residency for Literature at Cove Park by the Fenton Trust.

photo description: The heading reads Cove Park, Residency, Early Career Residencies 2019, 02/09/2019 - 21/09/2019, Lisette Auton, and there is a head and shoulders photo of me looking to the left, appearing whimsical, wearing my favourite black dress adorned with tigers. Text reads: Cove Park's programme of Early Career Residencies supports UK-based artists in the process of establishing their careers, providing an opportunity for research and the development of new work at this crucial stage. We are pleased this year to offer four residencies to artists specialising in composition/music, crafts/design, literature and visual art. This year, the literature residency has been awarded to Lisette Auton.
photo description: There is a head and shoulders photo of me looking to the left, appearing whimsical, wearing my favourite black dress adorned with tigers. Full text is in Alt text for screen readers.

I am on the coveted #BIFFY50 list for the Best British & Irish Flash Fiction 2018-2019.

A horse with a mermaid's tail holds a quill. Text reads: Best British & Irish Flash Fiction 2018-2019 #BIFFY50
photo description: #BIFFY50 logo

INK FLOWS, the poetry collection I wrote about my time as Poet-in-Residence for Crossing the Tees Book Festival, illustrated by the incredible Illustrator-in-Residence Sara Gibbeson, is available now from Teesside libraries, Book Corner in Saltburn and 6e Publishing.

Front cover of INK FLOWS
Introduction to INK FLOWS
A poem about chairs with one of Sara’s illustrations
photo description: image from Crossing the Tees Book Festival website – a banner with books and hands looking like butterflies and a picture of me.
The twelve finalists in our finest outfits standing grouped together smiling at the camera. I am one of them. There are also two members of the CF team, Lemn Sissay and Kaerry Hudson.
photo description: The twelve Creative Future award winners in our finest outfits standing grouped together smiling at the camera. I am one of them. There are also two members of the CF team, as well as Lemn Sissay and Kerry Hudson.

I am a 2018 recipient of a Creative Future Literary Award for poetry.

Accessibility – pause the film and press the first little rectangle on the bottom right hand side for subtitles/closed captions.

My poetry, short stories and essays have been published in both print and online journals, links available here. I was appointed as Guest Editor for Disability Arts Online from December 2018 – February 2019. I used the platform to focus on Northern Emerging Disabled Artists. You can read the commissioned articles here.

Lisette stands pen in hand with purple doc boots covered in red ladybirds. She is wearing a white boiler suit covered in giant word bubble questions such as - Who is MIMA?
photo description: Lisette stands pen in hand with purple doc boots covered in red ladybirds. She is wearing a white boiler suit covered in giant word bubble questions such as – Who is MIMA?

As a creative practitioner I specialise in working with people who are not fully represented in the mainstream. I work in schools, community centres, prisons, probation hostels, galleries, libraries, wherever the words will have me…

Thank you for a wonderful workshop journey. Your warm up got the creative cells going, the quickfire focused my thoughts and then the stream of brilliant exercises made me fasten my literary seatbelt and enjoy the ride! A wonderful safe and accessible environment to write and share.

Well planned. Beautifully executed. Exhilarating. Thoughtful & caring. Thank you very much.

You can read more Nice Things People Have Said About Me here.

Spoken Word

Lisette sitting on a stool on stage, arms wide, shouting into a mic. The stage is lit in pinks and purple and there is a spotlight on me. Upstage right John Pope plays bass guitar.

My work as a spoken word artist seeks to make the invisible visible.  I deliver passionate, high octane, physical pieces about disability, mental health, politics and quite often also my freckles.

Contact

Click here to get in touch.

Events

Coming soon to a stage near you…