And you know what? It’s been nice. A bit luxurious, even.

As you can see at the top up there, this blog is called The Creative Life. But what is the creative life, really? First of all, living your life creatively means vastly different things depending on who you are. Secondly, it depends on the willingness to keep your eyes and ears open to the tiny details of life where you might get an idea for a story or a blog post or a new tapestry piece.

My creative life? I’m busy. I know you’re busy, in fact, busy is kind of a dumb word…we’re all busy, all the time! And I, like a lot of you, have a lot of irons in the fire (although I’m not taking blacksmithing…yet), which means that sometimes the creative life can be tough. Everything gives me an idea for something new and sometimes it’s hard to turn that switch off. But… like lightbulbs, the switch needs to go off sometimes to save energy.

I love my penchant for creativity and the way it makes me see the world, but sometimes worry about keeping up with blogs or posts or other online things gets in the way of it. I’m not someone who can write 4 posts a day and keep up with the people that post that or more each day, that’s not how my brain works. And I get sad when I think about having blogs and not fulfilling my “duty” to readers. But wait a second here… aren’t I supposed to help people embrace, work through, fall in love with their creativity? How in the hell can they do that when they’re reading blogs that are constantly being updated or inundated with pattern ideas via the web? Don’t get me wrong, I love the internet and blogs and posts. They are super helpful and awesome.

But the creative life can be hard. And murky. And deep. And fuzzy. It can also be beautiful and joyous and make you feel whole! So, I’m wondering what you, reader, (if anyone’s still reading this right now? Holla!) want to see from me. Here. Exploring this creative life. I’d like to post here and continue the dialogue with you, but also extricate myself from the unwritten contract that if I don’t post every day the world will shut down. ‘Cause it won’t. You won’t. Everything will be okay.

Do you have guilt about what you should be doing online vs what you should be doing offline? If you do, I give you permission to go out and make and do and see. And then come tell me/us all about it online with a Tweet, a comment or a blog post. Take an extra minute with your cup of coffee. Go take pictures of the leaves. Go hug your dog. Then let it sit for a bit and work its creative way through your brain and become even more beautiful. Then share. Blame me for not signing on your computer this afternoon. Go do. Go see. Go make.

Alternatively, if you think this is all poppycock, and that I should be keeping up with 4 posts a day and that I’m just lazy, feel free to tell me so. Just wanted to remind you to take a minute out of life to be creative. And not worry about if someone’s writing a tutorial write now this minute about a similar idea, thus stealing your thunder. Another great idea will come, perhaps one even better. You just may have to slow down a little bit to find it. Trust that first great idea, and your creativity, that it means that more great ideas will come. To you. Stop worrying.

What’s your creative life like? How do you sustain it?

Hi there!!

For some reason (I’m blaming PMS) the whole not going to Africa thing has decided to put me in a crappy mood the past day or so. Ugh. I think the thought of finding a vehicle that would magically put me in the right place with the right people with direct in country access to organizations I’d like to work with was so freeing (for that fleeting 24 hours!) that realizing I’m back (again) trying and break into a new field in a recession with non-traditional skills has sucked the wind out of my sails. I was looking at jobs today and in tears because it all seems so impossible and ludicrous and I just wanted to hug all the women I was reading about that were making mats out of branches or cooking for their villages or whatnot. And then I was in tears because it was so stupid that I was upset when I wasn’t the one making mats or cooking for starving people and was writing on a laptop and drinking coffee in air conditioning!

Ok, that was sort of an untraditional way to start an email, but when the reporter writing a story on me for the local paper came by the other day, we started talking about people’s roles in institutions and she said that thinkers like me (and you!) were really important to the way things work and that how seeing life as this one giant path where you learn and screw up and try and fail and try and succeed and keep going is really valuable. Of course… this was awesome. And is awesome. But… it doesn’t account for all the in-between WTF times that appear along the way. I actually referred to those WTF times today as “bushwacking,” because you’re near the path but not on it. And you know you’re near so you’re annoyed and hopeful and tired and most importantly ready. Not to mention hungry to be back on track!

I think we’re both in one of those WTF times where things are going well, but not really where you wanna be, although you’re glad you’ve come farther than where you started initially?

So what to tag the posts? Hmmm… all I can think of is “the creative path” but that’s not really one word…

Okay, I need to go to bed. I really need to stop sending emails late at night, when I’m all night-owled and awake and uber-rambler.

More soon!

xo
betsy

Kim,

Aw, shucks. Glad to hear I don’t sound like a raving loon or something. It’s ironic that I get worried about voicing my insecurities even when I know everyone has them and that they should be voiced!

So yes, let’s go for it! I think that the internet is one of those things where we’re all so concerned about perception and best foot forward as once it’s online it’s public domain, but I think it leaves out a lot of the human experience that way. Not in a sniveling neurotic whiny way, but dude, life is full of unknowns and adventures and new things, not just happy-clappy support kind of things…. which the internet can sometimes seem to solely be.

As a social science nerd, I’m big on seeing how people react and absorb new ideas and new projects, so starting a project without being 100% about where it goes sounds so lovely! And what can I do to help you with all of this? Can I help you with the domain cost? Maintenance? Anything? Lemme know! And crap! I need to get you some sort of bio!

Oh, and how the hell are you?! How’s life been over the past few weeks? New projects? Ideas? Wonderfulness?!

Am off to work, but a few questions I have for you:

1. How do you keep all your different projects separate and forward moving at the same time? I need to figure out a better system at keeping several balls in the air as there are so many different projects I’m working on, but sometimes it’s hard to move forward on some when I’m worried about the other ones? You (and Diane) both seem to be masterminds at this, so if you have any secrets, lemme know! :)

2. So, this whole Africa thing.* I need to figure out who to pitch the story to. I know this story is totally pitchable, and I’d like to pitch it to a mag or paper that will be able to pay enough that I won’t totally lose my shirt for the trip (although I know no one’s going to cover all of it! Ha!) Do you have any ideas of peeps or places I could contact?

More later.
xo
betsy

*There was a period of 24 hours where I was going to accompany some people to Africa for a documentary film. Those 24 hours were AWESOME. Everything was fine, then some space logistics for the van got in the way. But what’s the first thing to keep in mind about freelance? It’s often unpredictable. Am sad that I wasn’t able to go to Kenya, but who knows what could happen in the future?

Don’t know how you’re feeling about freelancing at the moment (or if that crazy -WTF am I doing?- email I sent was incomprehensible), but I’m down for still writing about if you are! Via the world of Twitter, I’ve come across a few freelancing sites, and wanted to this post along, because it’s pretty freaking brilliant.

Yesterday I was talking to a friend of mine and we started talking about people’s missions on earth and if they always complete what they’re sent to do? Because some days it seems like that mission thing seems crap and is something Dr. Phil or someone similar made up and others it’s like, “Wait a minute! Have I got work to do!”

I still think that fear is what entraps us from finding said mission despite the irony that most of us know that we’re here a limited amount of time, shouldn’t live the life we don’t want to lead, etc. It’s easier to say “I had to pay my bills instead of find my calling!” because then you never have to fail.

Oh dear, I am rambling on again. About missions, no less! Eep!

x
betsy

YES! This is exactly it. I think fear is at the crux of the issue for everyone, even if people’s fears differ. But I think the fear of instability is common to all people who want to go independent.

I think this is why an open dialog can be so powerful. Not just because talking with people who are in the same boat can be so great, but also because, really, “independent” can mean two things: It can mean making a living for oneself on one’s own terms, but it can also mean going it alone.

It’s the alone part we can address together. Really, freelancing probably entails working with more people (and, I think, in more satisfying ways) than working a “real” job. We’re not alone.

To risk cheesiness in summing up: We all have each other.

But seriously. Businessy types call it networking; I call it collecting people. We have each other to learn from, to learn with, and to count on. It won’t pay the bills, but it can be the foundation of creating stability.

Ok, we have to do this. I don’t know why I’m caught on the idea of writing letters to each other—maybe it seems so intimate while it also tells a story.

The site could become many things; maybe the first component of it should be something like a collaborative blog. Like, “Dear Betsy, I woke up this morning with a terrible feeling of doom. I hate one of the big projects I’m working on, and am totally at a loss for what I want to do instead. I have all these ideas, but…”

If we do it, and do it honestly, I have no doubt good things will come from it, even if those good things only add up to a bunch of fun (but I think it will end up being more than fun).

What if we took the few tweets and these emails, edited them a bit, and started there?

Kim

Oh! P.S.:

I so totally hear you.

I have an internet nemesis (so I like to jokingly refer to her). Every so often she tunes into what I’m doing and rips it apart. When I announced I was leaving the magazine, she went on about how I have the luxury to not follow through on things (of course she thinks I suck and am unqualified to do those things in the first place) because I have a big mucky-muck husband to support me. Of course, my husband is in school, and has been for the last three years. I was the one doing the supporting, and when I started to be miserable at work, we sat down and figured out what I’d have to make freelancing in order for me to be able to leave my job. It turns out it wasn’t a painfully large amount of money.

But then I also ended up selling CrochetMe.com at that time, and that removed the desperation for income, for a few months at least. I certainly didn’t get rich off it, but I did buy some cushion. I wonder, though, if that cushion is a blessing and a curse. A blessing because, oh my god the luxury! But a curse because that luxury means I can do anything I want for a while. And that means I have to figure out what I want. And I want a lot of things, and I don’t know if they’re compatible. I want to write, I want to write about crafts but I also want to branch out into other topics and I haven’t figured out yet what I want those topics to be; I want to work with smart, creative people when I do whatever it is I’m going to do; I want to talk the talk of doing right by the planet, and I want the strength and conviction to walk the walk. All of that is so general! What’s my first step to be? And the tenth step? How on earth will I make a living?

Ok. Anyway.

If you want to write, don’t get a day job. Write. For you. People will listen.

P.S. As I was getting to ready to head out to meet a friend for lunch, it hit me.

My problem is that I’m scared to dive into being a writer/crafter/artist person because of its instability. Doing anything else will make me miserable, but not knowing how to really go about things is making me neurotic.

It’s the struggle so many of us have, but how many of us dive and how many of us step back off the diving board and watch?

:)