a leap of faith with Sandra Bittar

In this episode, we’re talking to writer, poet, speaker, and mental health advocate, Sandra Bittar. In our first international interview, this Egyptian-born, Ottawa-based creative powerhouse gives us the inside scoop on her creative inspiration from her culture through her faith. 

We were excited to learn about her journey from her first open mic to hosting open mics of her own – and how she’s growing to merge her professional and personal passions into an amazing opportunity for artists and writers to speak their words in safe and sacred spaces. This conversation was so inspiring, and we hope you think the same. 

timestamps

timestamps

• 1:15 Meet Sandra 

• 1:50 Growing up Egyptian in Canada

• 3:15 Grappling with identity and labels 

• 6:00 Journaling, mental health, and writing journey 

• 8:40 Posting poetry on Instagram

• 10:00 Imposter syndrome

• 12:30 How our upbringing shapes our creativity 

• 15:15 Hosting open mics and growing your audience 

• 20:10 Spoken word poetry – experience and pointers 

• 24:00 Being soft but strong-spoken 

• 27:25 Curating safe spaces 

• 33:40 The impact and influence of our cultures in our writing 

• 35:50 Natural hair 

• 37:57 Creative Process

• 40:00 When Sandra knows her poetry is ready to share 

• 44:00 Advice for writers 

connect with Sandra:

• On Instagram

• At her next event