Elisabeth Charis is a writer artist producer currently living in England with her daughters, though she has lived in several other countries and spent years cruising aboard her narrow boat. She began working life as a hairdresser in the Black Country, had several career changes and spent many years teaching. Since leaving Damascus during the outbreak of the Arab Spring and jaded with the education system, however, she became freelance writer and producer. She set up Owl Productions, an experimental organisation aiming to use stories to bring people together, explore different voices and make positive change. Owl Productions are currently developing My Body Speaks, a large scale project about the lived experience of the female body explored through multiple voices and media.
Qualified and experienced at working with marginalised and vulnerable young people and adults and mental health service users, Elisabeth is interested in the transformative potential of self-expression.
In 2019 Elisabeth was awarded a grant by Arts Council England, to work on her creative voice and a collection of short stories under the close mentorship of Kit de Waal. This creative exploration extended during COVID and throughout recent treatment for breast cancer. Elisabeth is now working on a larger body of concentrated new multi media work exploring the relationship between the woman and the female body based on experiences of physical trauma, abuse, loss, disease, motherhood, sexual exploration and altered states.
Published work includes poetry (print, radio 4, film and live performance), short stories, creative non-fiction, rap, children’s fiction, reviews and editorials. She was also shortlisted to be Birmingham Poet Laureate.