Burton born and bred writer and artist, Yasmin Donlon has published a claw-some range of work over the years, including her biography, ‘Self-Portrait with Cat’
I met Yasmin Donlon while out for a few ciders in Burton town on Friday night. We got chatting about everything, from both of us being writers, to the wonderful poetry she writes, to the beautifully unique art she creates, to the fact that we both used to work at Burton and South Derbyshire College!
A very interesting lady, Yasmin is indeed a talented writer and artist – with a deep love of cats! As such, much of her work is inspired by her adoration of felines and is available to view on her website. She has written poems such as ‘3 Cornish Rexes’, ‘Aimee’, and ‘Charlie Green Eyes’, while more of her written work comprises the ‘Cato Dogo’ booklet, the ‘All Cats – Tail Trails’ story excerpt, and a play called ‘A Cat in a Bag’.
Additionally, Yasmin has a custom poetry writing service available, offering to write poems for her clients’ cats at a fee of £15-£20, and longer work at £120 per piece.
Having held various jobs throughout her life, including town planning assistant, teacher, librarian, sausage maker, carer, and bar maid, she also spent four years helping at a local homeless shelter. It was this experience that inspired her poetry book entitled ‘Aspire Night Shelter’, where she wrote about the homeless people she met.
Now in her 70s, Yasmin has lived in Burton her whole life, and she has always been a very creative type, having been a painter since nine-years-old, studied at the Burton Art School on Waterloo Street, and holding a BA (hons) degree in Fine Art and Sculpture. Her art – focusing on subjects such as cats, people, and Burton buildings – is available to view on her website, and notably, five pieces were displayed at the Llewellyn Alexander gallery in London as part of the Society of Feline Artists exhibition in 2017.
This all comes alongside her book, ‘Self-Portrait with Cat’, a vibrant and personal telling of her life story. Yasmin provides a first-hand account of her whirlwind life, which has comprised intense and stormy personal relationships, including a violent first marriage and losing her second husband; pushing back against her controlling parents; her fight with depression; and the difficulty she faced to earn a living while experiencing discrimination in the workplace. Today, Yasmin is happily married to her third husband, Michael, enjoying the company of each other and their cats.
Furthermore, Yasmin’s upcoming projects include her new book ‘Rory the Composer Cat’ and she is currently writing a play, ‘The Ninjubartshi Island’.
‘Self-Portrait with Cat’ is available to purchase from bookshops, online retailers, or by completing and posting this order form. Yasmin also posts videos of her poetry readings on YouTube. If you would like to get in touch with Yasmin, please email yasmindonlon37@gmail.com.