december writing prompts + the magic in the mess
Reminder: Free Voice + Vision Workshop and Showcase this Friday night
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Hi everyone,
I’m writing to remind you that our usual one-hour first Friday writing workshop on Zoom will be a bit different this time. To close out the year and celebrate our creative community, I’m hosting a two-hour workshop and showcase featuring readings and prompts with the theme of Voice and Vision. This will be a night of writing, storytelling, and setting intentions for 2024.
You’re invited to join us! We’re gathering on Zoom on Friday, December 1 from 7 - 9 pm et. Registration is free and you can RSVP here.
Below are the prompts we’ll be writing from and thoughts on creative courage and the magic in the mess.
the magic in the mess
“As we begin a work, remembering we needn’t know how it’ll turn out or whether it’ll be successful might be comforting. And we can cultivate our ability to work despite confusion.” ― Louise DeSalvo, The Art of Slow Writing: Reflections on Time, Craft, and Creativity
You have a vision in your mind of where you want your creative journey to take you. You might picture your book on a bestseller list or your byline in your favorite publication. You might visualize yourself reading your words in front of a room full of people at a book launch, or supporting yourself full-time as a professional writer.
You have stories to tell and you are overflowing with ideas when you’re driving, showering, or taking care of the rest of your life. But when you sit down to write, doubts creep in and suddenly your ideas and words lose their sparkle. You’re talking yourself out of it. You don’t know how or where to start, or your words aren’t coming out as powerfully as you thought they would. You’re distracted by fears and limiting beliefs. You’re questioning yourself.
Your creative calling is persistent, but so is your inner critic. To keep moving forward through the emotional resistance, we have to change the way we think about the obstacles and embrace the discomfort and uncertainty. So often we don’t start, continue, or finish projects because we are afraid to make messy, unpolished or amateur art. We are afraid that our results will not match our expectations.
As I evolve as a writer, I look back at my first projects and I see the rawness, but I also see the courage. I see the freedom of being a beginner, the pure enthusiasm of finding meaningful work, and it reminds me to be driven by the expression itself and not judgmental of results. I will always be growing in my craft, and I know that progress involves growing out loud. It’s uncomfortable at times, but on the other side of that discomfort is expansion.
With practice, you can change your reaction to discomfort and recognize it as a promising part of the creative process.
Can you give yourself permission to look at your creative life, not as a measure of your gifts or worth, but as a practice in getting more comfortable and unapologetic about who you are?
Our desires are clues to our potential. Our discomfort holds valuable information about our doubts and fears. To what extent are you willing to face the uncertainty of exploring these things? This exploration requires vulnerability and the willingness to be a beginner again and again as you develop and advance.
Beginners don’t know what they don’t know.
They may not have experience but they have heart which is what it takes to bring an idea to life. You’re giving birth to something new. Of course it’s messy. Of course it’s magical. Of course it requires faith in something bigger than yourself.
At some point we must accept vulnerability as part of the vision. Before the byline will come lots of what Bird by Bird author, Anne Lamott, calls shitty drafts that make you question if you're making any sense at all. When you sit down to write you will come face-to-face with restlessness, boredom, confusion, and doubt. To move through these obstacles, get curious about them and invite them along for the ride. Open your mind to what they have to teach you by journaling about how they feel. In Callings: Finding and Following an Authentic Life, Greg Levoy says: "Free expression invites accidental insight.”
He goes on to say, “Art can be a superhighway to rare kinds of emotional maturity. An art practiced over time can become a form of self-study that slowly and steadily builds a matured self-awareness.”
So how does the ‘mess’ become the byline or the book deal or the engaged readership you seek? The following mindsets will lead you to embrace the unknown and lean into the discomfort of experimentation and growth:
Beginner’s Mind — Be coachable and willing to learn. Understand that no matter where you are in your journey, you are a student of the craft, the process has so much to teach, and the experience you seek is in the work.
Growth Mindset — When the learning curve seems intimidating or insurmountable, break it down into small pieces and find ways to make the process itself rewarding.
Artist Identity — Get clear on your why and practice in public to build confidence and develop skills around non-conformity and risk-taking.
Self-Care Mindset — It’s vital to nurture creativity through self-care so you can work with your authentic needs and not against them. Building self-care into your daily life gives you the energy to ride the ups and downs.
Community — Root yourself in creative community so you have safe spaces, helpful feedback, and encouragement.
The next cohort of The Creative Courage Writing Intensive opens soon. This is my signature offering that lays the foundation for how I coach, mentor, and of course, navigate my own creative journey.
In the Creative Courage Writing Intensive, we break the heart-centered work of self-discovery down into a process that benefits you, not just creatively, but holistically. The Creative Courage framework is based on my personal + professional journey, years of research and client work. You will be guided through a 3-month transformation of how you think about your creative work and how it fits into your life. With mentorship and community, you will develop the courage to ask yourself hard questions and explore the answers through creative expression. All while learning strategies to cultivate a lifestyle that fuels that courage.
To be notified when registration opens and get access to the early bird discount, please sign up below.
This experience will be transformational to the souls that have been craving fuller expression and are ready to expand. Does that sound like you? What stories are you carrying that are blocking you from letting your authentic self become more visible?
write with us in december:
December 1. Voice and Vision Year-End Workshop and Showcase (free) // 7 - 9 pm et
December 16. The Practice: Group Journaling Session #10 w/ Dr. Sophia Godkin // 11 - 12:30 pm
Reminder: The Practice, our monthly group journaling sessions, are free for paid subscribers, or you can drop in for a $15 fee.