Welcome to Overthink Tank

Hello! I’m Chelsey Flood — a writer, educator and researcher. I got sober in my thirties, and not long after, discovered I’m Autistic and ADHD.

Since then, I’ve been writing about why it took so long for this knowledge to emerge, the systems and biases that led to me struggling for so long, and how we might improve them.

What is Overthink Tank?

Overthink Tank is a weekly newsletter about things that interest me:

fiction

late-diagnosed neurodiversity

sobriety and addiction

writing and creativity

motherhood, relationships, and domestic bliss

emotional labour

masking and unmasking

living honestly in a culture full of pretense.

The writing is exploratory. I’m thinking on the page and inviting you to think along with me.

This writing on addiction and neurodivergence forms part of my wider research and writing practice, including my forthcoming book Hiding in Plain Sight (Jessica Kingsley Publishers), which examines the relationship between undiagnosed neurodivergence and addiction.

My hope is to help myself and others feel less misunderstood and alone, so please share posts with people who might recognise themselves.

Write back and share your thoughts, don’t be shy.

And remember, sometimes you’re not overthinking at all — other people aren’t thinking enough.

About me

I’m an award-winning novelist and Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at UWE Bristol. My debut novel Infinite Sky won the Branford Boase Award, was longlisted for the Carnegie Medal, praised madly by The Guardian and designated a Times book of year, amongst other accolades.

I write this newsletter alongside full-time teaching at uni, parenting, and *a little more* than the usual human chaos due to my absolute lack of working memory.

If you enjoy it here, please subscribe or share — it helps keep my heart in it.

Polite Robot, a section of this newsletter, was a featured Substack publication in 2021, and all of the writing initially undertaken here has informed the upcoming book.

Thanks for supporting my work and thanks for reading!

Say hi in the comments.

Chelsey x