Jordana Wright, Cannabis for Creatives- Interview Series

“The wild thing about it is that once I tried pot and enjoyed it, I felt more compelled to question other things that had been presented to me as truth. I smoked regularly but I still got good grades, I got into college, I felt creative, I had friends, and I had a good relationship with my family. Since all that was possible while my brain was on “drugs,” I felt fairly certain I was being lied to.”

Jordana Wright

We have come a long way trying to erase the stigma that for a long time has plagued  the cannabis industry. What’s remaining will take more than just staging demonstrations on streets carrying placards. To completely change the face of cannabis, we will need a “coming-out-of-the-closet” kind of concerted effort from all marijuana enthusiasts. At least, that’s what Jordana Wright thinks.

To erase the stigma engendered by the “your brain on drugs” and “say no to drugs” unsuccessful campaigns, the world will need to see and hear human stories that depict an alternative truth. In other words, much is needed to change the notion that marijuana users are antisocial human beings of diminished intelligence and with a display of the cannabis amotivational syndrome (if that is a thing). The antipodal would be; brains that are oozing creativity on energy on cannabis.

Jordanna Wright is a writer, photographer, and a creator at large who has used cannabis productively for some time now. She recently interviewed 30 creatives who use cannabis to inspire their creativity. She discusses with us about what inspired the project, surprising things that she discovered, and what she feels should be done to completely de-stigmatize cannabis.

Meet Jordana.

Tell us more about your background and how you found yourself in the cannabis space.
I’m a photographer, a writer, and someone with a very active creative streak. Even though I’ve been crafting and creating since I was a child, I really came into my creativity and realized how important it was to me around the same time I started experimenting with cannabis. Pot and creativity seemed to enhance and engage each other in a way that fueled my growth as an artist and as a person. I remember smoking with friends then running off to do my high school photography class assignments with a new level of excitement and energy.
I’ve been a professional photographer since 2006 but remained relatively closeted about my cannabis explorations. A few years ago I lived in Colorado for a year and saw what it was like to exist in a place where judgment and fear weren’t a part of the cannabis experience. I shopped in dispensaries, grew my own little pot plant, and felt like I could be more open about my love of cannabis. After living in that situation of honesty I was determined to continue along that path. There’s no going back in the cannabis closet after you’ve felt that safe and at peace.

Cannabis for creatives, what inspired this book project?
Writing this book came from a desire to be open about the positive influence cannabis has on my creativity and a curiosity about what other artists were experiencing. I really wanted to hear artists describe the creative process and the effects of cannabis in their own words. It fascinates me.
There are so many resources out there about the medical applications of cannabis, but no one had compiled any significant resources about creativity and cannabis. I wanted to fill that void and start the conversation about cannabis and creativity.
You took the time to interview 30 creatives on their use of cannabis and how it affects their work. What was the most surprising thing that you learnt from the interviews?
Before the interview process, most of my knowledge about the cannabis high was from personal experience or from smoke sessions with friends. When you smoke with other people, it’s common to casually talk about how pot makes you feel, but the conversational depth and descriptions of experiences in the interviews were something new for me. One thing that really stood out was how profoundly individualized the physical response to cannabis can be.
When I smoke a strain like Gorilla Glue that’s typically marketed as a sedative and relaxing strain, I’m done for the day. I get sleepy and contemplative, which for me is pretty far from a creative state. Some of the artists I interviewed mentioned this strain specifically as one that engages their minds and gets them into the creative space. It really goes to show how there’s no one-size-fits-all experience with cannabis. Our brain and body chemistry has so much to do with the effects we feel. Marketing for strains can serve as a guideline, but it’s not a true indicator of the experiences you’re likely to have.

Tell us more about the book. What does the book address and who should read it?
Cannabis for Creatives is a holistic exploration of creativity and cannabis. I wanted to appeal not only to active cannabis enthusiasts but to inspire interest in the plant for those who may not have personally experienced it. For that reason I didn’t jump straight into the anecdotal experiences creatives are having. The book builds up to those experiences by first presenting lots of background information about the history of cannabis use among creatives, how creativity is studied and measured, and what exactly is happening in our brains when we get high.
If you’re pot-curious, this book can serve as a means of informed, guided exploration. If you’re already a cannabis fan, you may still discover things about it you didn’t know, or connect with some of the experiences the artists I interviewed are having. Even if you have zero interest in personally experimenting with cannabis, reading this book may help put the plant in a little better perspective.
“This is your brain on drugs” was a much popularized advertorial that was used for the anti-narcotic campaign in the 1980s. Considering that cannabis was thrown in the mix, what’s your take on this?
I grew up on those ads. The Just Say No Campaign combined with D.A.R.E. classes in school didn’t particularly scare me off from the idea of drugs and cannabis. In fact, several of the artists I interviewed mentioned D.A.R.E. and other government anti-drug campaigns as something that made them more curious about trying pot.
People often gravitate towards things that are presented as forbidden and that was certainly the case for me with cannabis in high school. The wild thing about it is that once I tried pot and enjoyed it, I felt more compelled to question other things that had been presented to me as truth. I smoked regularly but I still got good grades, I got into college, I felt creative, I had friends, and I had a good relationship with my family. Since all that was possible while my brain was on “drugs,” I felt fairly certain I was being lied to.
Cannabis is a grossly misrepresented plant. What are some of the things that can be done to destigmatize the plant as well as the industry as a whole?
I think the most impactful thing cannabis enthusiasts can do to destigmatize pot is to be open about what it does for them. We need to reshape and recontextualize what a pot smoker looks like. We are professionals, active members of society, parents, athletes, creatives, and intellectuals. We’ve made significant strides already, and judgment about pot use will continue to
decline as additional productive members of society come out of the cannabis closet.
What’s next for you?
In October of 2020 my husband and I moved from Chicago to Belize. We bought some land and built a tiny house, and now we’re actively beautifying the property and developing it into our own personal paradise. I’ve been so inspired by the nature around me. I’m taking photos non-stop and rediscovering my love of nature and bird photography.

Being in a natural environment like this where you wake up to the sound of parrots and howler monkeys really puts things in perspective for me. I’m focusing on enjoying every day instead of driving myself crazy with my former expectations of what success and happiness look like. It’s really liberating.

It was a pleasure having this interview with Jordana. You can check out her book which is available on Amazon.