The records and archives which are the bread and butter of family history research reflect a male-dominated society and family histories are therefore weighted towards male lines, surnames, occupations etc. In Roots and Routes, I use visual autoethnography, graphic narrative, fictional dialogues and a series of genealogical road trips to focus on the lives and stories of my two grandmothers and six of my great-grandmothers.

As well as a writing/drawing project in itself, this project is the basis for two forthcoming academic conference papers exploring the use of creative methods and approaches in the production of a feminist graphic narrative of a family history. I’m also working on a podcast, which I plan to launch in April 2024.

Some early plans and sketches are below and this page will be updated with work in progress.