I’m on YouTube!

Posted by Helen Kara

I have a YouTube channel! It’s a new baby one and I intend to grow it into a useful adult channel.

No, not that kind of adult channel…

I thought creating a YouTube channel would be a straightforward process. In fact it has taken me around four years of difficulty after difficulty. First I had to figure out what I wanted to say. Then there was the technical side, working out what equipment to use for recording video and audio. I got organised in my spare bedroom and had a go – and discovered that when I am on my own in a room talking to a machine, I turn into a muppet. Feedback from friends was along the lines of “Why are you doing it like that?” and “Ewww, it’s terrible.” (I have some delightfully candid friends.) So I figured I needed someone to help, but professional video people are eye-wateringly expensive.

Eventually I recruited a student friend. We had a fun time filming, but then she found out there was something wrong with the sound and got discouraged. Last autumn I was having dinner with a colleague and found she was having the same problem, so we agreed to help each other in the spring. And then the pandemic hit. But the good news is, because I can’t get help from anyone else, my partner, who is a sound engineer and a techie, agreed to help me out. Hurrah! So I have uploaded five new videos, and created playlists which also include some other videos of me from the last few years.

Do please visit my channel; I’d love to know what you think. Also, if there are any topics you would like me to cover in a video or blog post, please let me know in the comments.

This blog, and the monthly #CRMethodsChat on Twitter, are funded by my beloved patrons. It takes me at least one working day per month to post here each week and run the Twitterchat. At the time of writing I’m receiving funding from Patrons of $57 per month. If you think a day of my time is worth more than $57 – you can help! Ongoing support would be fantastic but you can also make a one-time donation through the PayPal button on this blog if that works better for you. Support from Patrons and donors also enables me to keep this blog ad-free. If you are not able to support me financially, please consider reviewing any of my books you have read – even a single-line review on Amazon or Goodreads is a huge help – or sharing a link to my work on social media. Thank you!

Independent Research and Creative Methods

Posted by Helen Kara

This week’s blog is a video. It’s a keynote I gave last month at a doctoral conference at the University of Birmingham. The conference organisers asked me to cover three topics: my career as an independent researcher, creative research methods in practice, and advice for anyone considering becoming an independent researcher.

The video was created and published by the Contemporary Philosophy of Technology research group at the University of Birmingham. You might want to get a cuppa… Enjoy!

Creative Research Methods on Video

Posted by Helen Kara

Last week I was so poorly I did very little work, so this week I’m playing catch-up as hard as I can go. I wasn’t sure where I’d find the time to write a blog post, but luckily I don’t have to, because those nice people at the UK’s National Centre for Research Methods have made a video of a seminar on creative research methods I gave at the University of Southampton last month.

This video references two other videos which I will include here for your viewing pleasure. They are both creative research outputs, coincidentally both from Canada, though they are very different from each other. The first is ‘The 7,024th Patient’, and talks about an exhibition created to disseminate research into people’s experiences of open-heart surgery.

The second is ‘Have We Waited Too Long?’, a digital story about some of the effects of climate change on the remote northern community of Rigolet in Labrador.

Together, these videos will give you a sense of the breadth and possibilities offered by creative research methods. Grab the popcorn, sit back, and enjoy!