Slow Waters: with Nic Marna

In your world right now, what does ‘rest’ mean to you? Has your relationship with rest evolved over time?

Life is so loud right now - which is a good thing! Socially, emotionally, physically, professionally, there’s just so much more going on than there has been for a long time. This shift means my relationship to rest had to evolve. I take rest more seriously, I listen to my body more. Having a full diary and a full plate makes the empty moments more special and I don’t take them for granted anymore. 

You’ve recently moved to London - welcome! How has the transition been so far? Are there any neighbourhoods/places that are already starting to feel like home?

It is very challenging, there’s no need to sugarcoat it. I’ve always had complicated feelings about the concept of home, but now ‘home’ is on my terms and that part of it feels incredible. At the risk of sounding saccharine, home isn’t a neighbourhood or a place to me. It’s a feeling and it’s people and it’s also me climbing into the driver’s seat again. I guess what I’m describing is alignment. Alignment feels like home.

What are your current holy grail skincare/bodycare products?

My main goal is usually to appear juicy. For that, my skin has been loving Skin1004’s Madagascar Centella Ampoule for the face and MIRROR WATER SMOOTH Body Oil for the rest. I’m also a fragrance fanatic and my current go-to’s are DedCool’s Xtra Milk layered under anything and Mango Sticky Rice by d’Annam.

As a writer, how do you create space for creativity within your day? Are there any rituals or habits that help set the scene?

This always depends on what I’m working on, what phase of the project I’m tackling, etc. Part of writing is listening, part of writing is noticing, and I try to do those as much as I can. I’m also very into filling the well. Finding things that inspire me like theatre, music, art, reading, and also talking to other artists. 

Creativity is freckled throughout my day and I think that’s what’s working best for me right now.

When you’re feeling overwhelmed or out of sync, what helps bring you back to yourself?

I’m really into music right now. For a long time, I was podcast-pilled, but I’m finding so much grounding through music. Old, new, popular, weird, there’s a real power in shaping my mood with whatever I’m listening to.

I also love taking a bath. For the first time in years, I have a big bath that I can really sink into. Lights off, candles lit, music softly playing, that’s my Break Glass In Case of Emergency centering method.

Our founder Estée is a fellow Canadian! She created the MIRROR WATER signature scent to capture the calming feeling of being immersed in nature back home in Canada. Is there a scent or texture that instantly brings you back to yourself, or makes you feel grounded?

I could sit here forever and write about the myriad of things that fire up my nostalgia, but here are the few that were top of mind: the sound of cicadas, the spicy smell of a spruce, the feeling of crunchy snow underfoot, the smell of lavender, and summer rain on a hot sidewalk. 

What’s a recent book that’s really stayed with you - and why do you think it resonated?

Kitten by Stacey Yu, which comes out in July! It’s about a young woman on the brink of the rest of her life who becomes obsessed with her boyfriend’s family cat. Kitten speaks to the inherent violence of growing up, the embarrassing comfort of complacency, and the jarring realisation that you may never be fully understood by another person.

I’m so excited for this book to come out and for more people to read it. I think it’s going to be really impactful for readers who crave a story that doesn’t shy away from saying the quiet thing out loud.

Talking of books, please could you share three book recommendations for spring with us?

Spring reading for me is about capturing a little glimmer. It’s anticipation, it’s finding a story that feels like those first few days you don’t need a jacket.

A Minor Chorus by Billy-Ray Belcourt: This is a novel about a queer indigenous academic who puts his dissertation on hold to search for connection, identity and meaning. It’s intimate, moving, and reading this feels like watching a breeze rush through a field.

Disappoint Me by Nicola Dinan: This is a novel about a budding relationship between a lawyer and a poet, and the clash of their two worlds. It’s a sharp examination of class, race, the modern world, and it’s just an incredible story to get lost in while sitting on a park bench.

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin: This is a novel about a dizzying love triangle in Paris in the 1950s. This is one of my favourite books and every time I read it, I get more enamoured by it. There’s an urgency to the story that feels like spring, desire and shame and love swirling around. It’s also just a book I think everyone should read.

To close, describe your perfect slow day - from the moment you wake to the way you wind down…

I wake up without an alarm, the smell of coffee hits me right away because my boyfriend always gets up before me. The flowers I bought a few days ago are finally blooming, and I sit down to write something that feels like an itch I’ve needed to scratch. I go for a long walk with my boyfriend in a London neighbourhood we haven’t explored yet. I find a book I’ve wanted to read and a cool pair of pants in a charity shop, and we have lunch in a little spot we’ve never heard of but turns out to be amazing. When we get home, I finish a book I’ve been loving and he cooks dinner (probably pasta). I take a bath with a nice tea, and coat myself in SMOOTH Body Oil before slipping into bed early with a new book.

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