Interview: writer and drag artist, Thom Seddon

Thom Seddon (also known as drag artist Nana Arthole) is a writer, entertainer, and full-time creative type based in Nottingham, where he lives with his husband and their two cats; “watching an unhealthy amount of 'Judge Judy'. In 2024, Thom published his latest work; a verse novella entitled ‘Men Holding Hands’.

Thom Seddon

Thom explains: “'Men Holding Hands' is a verse novella; a work of fiction written as poetry, basically. Thirty poems to be precise! Each one is essentially a chapter, written for each day in the month of November. A dreadful month, yes, I know! Halloween's officially done with, and you can no longer wilfully ignore the approach of Christmas.

“The story is told by Stefan, a thirty-six-year-old man who's recently inherited a life-changing amount of money from his grandmother's passing. Then, as it says on the back of the book, 'No sooner than the cheque is in the bank, doubts that Stefan is already having about his stagnant long-term relationship with fiancé Will – along with frustrations at a life that has seemingly built itself around him – begin to close in.' It's sort of a darkly comical lament for a pre-midlife crisis, but while it sounds all doom and gloom it's also very tender at times, and funny and gross and horny in other places too!

“My love affair with reading and writing has been there for as long as I can remember," Thom continues, "Each birthday and Christmas, I'd ask for a bunch of 'Goosebumps' books by RL Stine, then stay up late into the night making myself spooked and scared! I truly believed I was going to become the next big horror writer before I turned 10, banging out my best seller on my grandad's old typewriter. I remember I used to catch my fingers between the keys, as they were so small they slipped between the gaps!

“Then as a teenager, I read 'Trainspotting' and 'Filth' cover to cover more times than I can remember after being loaned the books by a friend's mum, and subsequently devoured everything by Irvine Welsh I could get my hands on. Reading both him and Douglas Coupland throughout college and my twenties really showed me how you could experiment with form and structure in a way that was so intriguing and effective, but also playful.

“Then, as was undoubtedly inevitable if I'm honest, I discovered Chuck Palahniuk and his work just blew my mind. The way he'll turn his both personal issues and cultural anxieties into allegory is incredible. Then more recently I've adored the work of Ocean Vuong. Reading his words makes me audibly gasp, I just find it so beautiful.”

Talking to Midlands Rainbow about what inspired his latest work, Thom said: “Well, it's a real kitchen sink stew, for lack of a better description. I mean, conversations had with people venting about partners, a bastardised attempt at NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, which I've attempted and failed many times in the past twenty-plus years), old tweets I thought were funny enough to deserve a place to go after I shut down my Twitter account once it became X, questioning if money really does solve everything, and why was being in your thirties ever seen as 'old' in the gay community... yeah, a lot went into this book!

Men Holding Hands

“Not just that, but I was also writing it as a bit of escapism while I was meant to be working on something else, so it is in itself a result of procrastination and distraction, which are other themes of the story. But you know, while I think about it, the main plot didn't start to show itself until a few different bits I'd written that I really liked needed to be joined together. Even the title itself was originally the title of a song, and then a short-lived music venture, both of which got shelved or scrapped. I still liked the phrase and wanted to use it for something, so those three words alone inspired a lot of the written content. It was quite an unconventional creation!”

Men Holding Hands, along with Thom’s other works including poetry collections: 'The Smart Mouthed Victim', 'Death is Awful' and 'Choose Your Own Mediocre' are independently published.

Thom explains that his experience of indie publishing has been “for the most part, a positive one. I'd gained a lot of practical skills working with organisations like Nottingham Writers' Studio and Big White Shed, so my knowledge of how to edit, format, make it available, that was all straightforward. I even designed the cover myself using Canva, then had a friend help me put the finished jacket together. It's remaining consistent with self-promotion that's my downfall. So, if anyone reads the book - or has read it already... - please do consider leaving a review or telling a friend! In terms of the negatives, I wish a more ethical company held the monopoly for indie writers, but without investing a load of money I don't have to get the book released, it is what it is for now. I'm already thinking about how to approach it differently in the future.”

If you're local to Nottingham, 'Men Holding Hands' and 'Choose Your Own Mediocre' are both for sale in The Pride Shop on Maid Marian Way. Alternatively, you can visit artholethom.com or message Thom directly on Instagram to cut out the middleman and get your hands on a copy.

Thom is also doing a workshop and performance with Word! Leicester on 29th May for their Pride special. Find out more: @WordLesta / @QueerCoffeeLinkups