When I was in third grade, my father enrolled me in a weekend course where I learned to play the recorder.

I didn’t only learn to play the recorder. I also learned the basic concepts of western music and how to read it. I even performed on the stage for our end-of-year concert. We were a little orchestra of 8–10-year-olds playing recorders, mandolins, harmonicas. It was one of the best adventures of my childhood.

I loved the entire experience. But the whole time, my eyes were fixed on one thing: the teacher’s piano. It was the most amazing thing in…

I am a geriatric mother. Yes, apparently, they call pregnant women over the age of 35, that. I was 40.

I feel lucky for this. In my twenties or early thirties, I wasn’t in the right headspace. I didn’t want the responsibility. Also, as a young mother, I probably would have to face more social pressure in Turkey. It would be harder for me to do my own research and choose what kind of mother I wanted to be. Instead, as a grown-ass woman, I felt stronger and more independent to read, learn, make up my mind, and resist what…

A few months ago, I lost everything. All the possessions I had accumulated in the first 45 years of my life in Turkey. My furniture, books, kitchen boxes, photos, sentimental items, clothes, everything.

They were in my parents’ shared basement in Istanbul, and I am in New Zealand. Everything had to go on a weekend. My father asked me if I wanted to save anything. At that moment, the only thing I could remember was my Ikea garlic presser, and it was too embarrassing to ask for it.

So I went to sleep. When I woke up, the operation was…

When I first joined a screenwriting group and began writing drama series for Turkish TV in the 2000s, I hadn’t read a single screenwriting book.

In fact, none of us in my group had been to film school; we were all coming from an advertising background. We were excited about stories, novels and movies. With a general feeling for storytelling, we wrote intuitively, from our hearts. We got lucky, got involved in a fabulous project. Our show had excellent ratings. But I always felt the uncertainity: were we going to get as lucky for our next project? …

Years ago, my screenwriting group and I wrote a comedy show for Turkish TV. It had a rich premise with amazing potential. We felt confident that it was going to be a big success.

We were interviewing one of the most talented comedians in the country. Or rather, he was interviewing us. He would be cast as the brother of the main character. We thought we would have to persuade him that his character was just as important as the main guy.

He asked us one question: “What is my flaw?”

We had already given him a detailed chart, pages…

MORNING ROUTINE

We artists! Aren’t we naughty sometimes? We are like children with no bedtime. Which is not entirely a bad thing. Picasso said:

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.

I am pretty sure this means we have every right to behave like children. Anyway. What was I saying? No bedtime.

We enjoy nocturnal lives. Then, of course, we sleep in the next day, knowing that this will hurt our productivity.

Picasso himself was a great example of this. He used to sleep until noon every day. And he created 16.000…

TOTALLY SERIOUS

I made a bold promise. A white powder that solves all problems? I am aware that it sounds suspicious.

But trust me. I fully intend to keep this promise. This is real. There is a fine white powder, and it is so lovely, amazing, magical that it solves all my problems. I think you are already guessing what it is! Please don’t tell. I will raise the curtain in a minute.

Have you ever been disciplined -punished- by an authority figure? How did that make you feel? Did the punishment make you want to be “better”? When you receive violence (physical, mental or emotional) from someone, do you feel like cooperating with them?

When someone is rude to me and bosses me around, I don’t feel like doing what they want. I have been an easy-going person my whole life. When I experience lousy behavior, I don’t fight back, but I shut down, get passive-aggressive, or leave.

The same is true with our kids: when we dictate, yell, punish, they get…