Our Story

Earlier this year, I made the difficult decision to close the Kindred Creativity Club.

Not because I no longer believed in its values, but because I realised I had tried to do too much, too soon. What had begun as a dream of creating connection through creativity had grown into something I could no longer sustain in the way I wanted.

Even so, one idea refused to let go.

One of the projects I'd planned for KCC was a charity anthology called Dear Past Me—a collection of letters to our younger selves, sharing the words we wish we'd heard during life's hardest moments.

Around the same time, I wrote a personal essay on my author blog about looking back through old journals and discovering that, despite everything I'd experienced, the core of who I am had always remained the same.

The response to that essay reminded me that I'm far from alone.

So many of us carry words we wish we could send back through time. Words of hope. Of reassurance. Of belonging. Of compassion.

That's when I realised Dear Past Me deserved to become more than a single anthology.

It deserved to become a home.

Today, Dear Past Me is an ongoing collection of letters from people around the world, each offering the kindness, understanding, or encouragement they wish they'd received when they needed it most.

Some letters are joyful.

Some are heartbreaking.

Some are quiet reminders that healing is possible.

Together, they form something larger than any one story—a growing reminder that none of us are truly alone.

Although the Kindred Creativity Club has evolved, its heart remains the same.

It still believes in connection.

It still believes in compassion.

It still believes that stories can change lives.

Dear Past Me is simply one way of putting those beliefs into practice.

Thank you for being here.

Whether you've come to read, to write, or simply to know that someone else understands, I hope you find something here that reminds you of one simple truth:

You have always been worthy of hope.

About the Founder

Hi, I'm Clare.

I'm an author from the West Midlands, UK, writing stories of hope, connection, and belonging.

As a queer, neurodivergent writer, I've spent much of my life exploring what it means to find your place in the world. Those themes appear throughout my novels, my essays, and now here in Dear Past Me.

When I'm not writing, you'll usually find me reading fantasy, designing book covers, embroidering something delightfully nerdy, or spending time with my husband and our two children.

I created Dear Past Me because I believe stories have the power to remind us that we are never as alone as we think.

Thank you for trusting me—and this community—with yours.