Monday Musings ~ The Writer’s Corner: Things That Help My Writing & Day Be More Successful

This is a very busy week for me, but I still want to make sure to get out a blog for today’s Monday Musings series from The Writer’s Corner. While I did have thoughts about a couple of other themes that came to mind to share (I’ll save them for the next times), I felt like providing a list of things that help me to be more successful with my writing each day, which also extends to anything else I have going on in my life – be it other creative projects or simply my day-to-day business and personal life.

So here’s a list of ten things that help me to be more productive, clear the energy, and jump start those creative juices. Many of them are my morning kick-offs, but overall are things that support my day and writing goals.

1. Go to bed early and get up early – I used to be a night owl back in the day, but life changed and now I find that getting good sleep and getting up early support being more fresh and help me to get more done. I dream a lot and in sleep we go into the subconscious, so writing in the morning is a way to be closer to those creative thoughts and flow more before a more distinct separation between night and day happens. Writing in the morning is a way to ensure I get that time in before the day gets away from me.
2. Find all the things I have to be grateful for and acknowledge and thank them – having a gratitude practice before bed and when I wake in the morning helps to not only infuse the day with positive energy, but puts me in a happier space, as well as helps set me up for manifesting more.
3. Enjoy cozy breakfast time – I love having hot tea or a vegan latte in the morning with a yummy breakfast (small or large depending on my desire that day) to gently nurture me back to waking life from deep sleep. This warms me from the inside out and allows me time to go over my plans for the day. I’ll follow it up with a smoothie that accompanies my writing time.
4. Clarify my priorities and my to-do’s for the day – Even though I am spontaneous and flow, I have found that having more structure actually helps me to get more done, so this includes making daily to-do lists and prioritizing what is most important to get done. I also have recently created a time-table schedule in which I allot time blocks for the things I need and want to do each day. This ensures I get a balance of everything in as well.
5. Unplug from phones, emails, etc. – Once I get past the time allowed for relaxing with my morning beverage and snack, it’s unplug time. When writing, I don’t reply to anything else and shut down or ignore my phone. In order to be fully in the world of writing, I must be out of the outer world. I also know that for me, it can take time to get into a flow, so if I were to stop in between my writing for every little thing that comes up, this would break that flow and take me more time to get back into the groove. I find it crucial to disengage.
6. Carve out a block of time – This goes with #4, but I find it important to emphasize separately. It’s important that I carve out what block or blocks of time are my writing times and that I stick to that – both not allowing other things to get in the way, and not becoming lazy that day. That’s not to say that I will force myself, but I find that the more I get into a groove with something that seems foreign to me, the more it becomes natural. Discipline and commitment are my friends and not the enemies.
7. Moving – Carving out time for exercise is important for me. This includes being out in nature as I do so – double the benefit! Moving moves energy and when I move energy, I’m not only releasing any potential blockages, but I’m getting a healthy flow of ideas and feelings going, as well as boosting my energy, well being, and helping me to get better sleep at night too. Moving energy helps move creativity.
8. Music – I love having music accompany my day and/or special projects/my writing. Having just the right sound frequencies going really helps synchronize things for me and supports that flow even more. Music is a necessary component for me and my life.
9. Being present – For me this is mindfulness and “life as a walking meditation.” The more present I am with myself, my feelings, thoughts, and my environment, the more aware I am of what’s me and what’s not me, as well as the more observant and receptive I am to all the inspiration around me and ideas messaging me constantly. Presence also creates more gratitude, peace, grace, and alignment.
10. Surrounding myself with all that I love –  I find it crucial to infuse my life and surroundings with everything that brings me joy and moves my heart the most. This includes creating an inspiring and imaginative space and home, having plants, crystals, all things magickal, and nature close by and within sight of my desk, sharing a home with my partner and fur babies, and having my best bunny friend, Astrid by my side. When I see reflections of my heart all around me, it inspires me more, infuses my heart with greater peace and joy, and makes writing so much more fun and flowing.

Please let me know some of the things that you do to help with your writing, or your day in general, in terms of making it the best it can be.

View from our Forest Portal backyard from a recent sunset snow shoe – #7 on the list above

Monday Musings ~ The Writer’s Corner: Fragile is Like Breathing in a Bit of Stardust

Today’s Monday Musings from The Writer’s Corner is my own musing on the word “fragile” that I was presented with as part of a challenge by Linda of Litebeing. I’ve been quite immersed in family and end-of-year things, as well as new year start-ups, so I waited for the time to present itself for this, which feels like today.

The challenge is to write a post about Fragile and to include two quotes on the subject, then to nominate three other bloggers to blog about a word of my choosing. I shared with Linda that the word DID resonate very much with me and wasn’t surprised she had chosen me for this.

Being that I’m committed to my blog series these days and want to stay consistent with the themes, I won’t be taking on challenges unless they maintain synergy with my series. That being said, a musing felt appropriate as a writer to share for today’s theme and might be a reminder or inspiration for other writers, as well as anyone truly, about embracing each day and your dreams and goals now, rather than later.

I won’t be nominating anyone for a new challenge, as I don’t feel called to do that, but if you feel inspired to write about this word or any word that has meaning to you, I support you doing so and perhaps it might even kick in a creative flow if you’ve felt blocked in any way with your own writing and/or creating.

Now on to Fragile.

This is actually a word I think about often and feel as a strong underlying theme much of the time.

Interestingly, when I think about the word it brings to mind my rabbit loves because I see them as both resilient and fragile. They remind me of both how life is fragile and precious, yet resilient like them, and how vulnerability is strength.

Nature reflects this to us everyday as well.

“Some women feel the need to act like they’re never scared, needy or hurt; like they’re as hardened as a man. I think that’s dishonest. It’s okay to feel delicate sometimes. Real beauty is in the fragility of your petals. A rose that never wilts isn’t a rose at all.” ― Crystal Woods, Write Like No One Is Reading

It’s that contrast of strength in vulnerability and that beautiful divinity within all experiences of “highs” and “lows” that is inherent in all, regardless of how it seems.

Butterflies are another example of fragility, as their wings are so delicate and yet it is those very wings that carry them miles to migrate. For example Monarchs have flown 3000 miles from Canada to Mexico for millennia.

There is so much beauty and power in something that is fragile.

And yet it also calls up a reflection upon the fleeting moment there for us to be present to and embrace as fully as possible because it only happens once and a future is not promised – at least not necessarily within the same reality as the moment before it.

“People die all the time. Life is a lot more fragile than we think. So you should treat others in a way that leaves no regrets. Fairly, and if possible, sincerely. It’s too easy not to make the effort, then weep and wring your hands after the person dies.” ― Haruki Murakami, Dance, Dance, Dance

If you have a dream, a loved one, friends, people, animal companions, passions and things you care a lot about, you don’t have forever in this life to put them off or say that you’ll give them your time and love when this or that happens. Those things may never happen. These people, beings, and things you love may not be there anymore.

Life is fragile.

Life is precious.

Life is here for you to embrace now.

And when you do…when you surrender to the fragility of now and surrender your heart to the hands of spirit, you get to realize the powerful potential and beauty of that delicate moment.

It’s within fragile moments that artists create, writers write, musicians compose, babies are conceived and birthed, inspiration strikes, innovation emerges, nature breathes, the cosmos weaves…

The human body is an incredible masterpiece – both resilient and fragile.

So often I think about this and how it takes just one moment that can change your life.

I’ve had several fractures that happened in quick and odd ways. And while my body has healed fast, proving its resiliency, it also helps me to make choices in my life about presence and what I value enough to put myself in positions of potentials like this.

I don’t live in fear, but I do live with awareness and make choices that reflect my values, passions, and beliefs.

I do the same with my dreams.

I don’t have forever in this body and my dreams can’t wait. Nor can the collective be put on pause until we each decide to step up and out.

Life goes on.

Cycles come and go.

Things change.

For this reason I follow the nudge of my heart and encourage myself to do things I love and that I feel guided with inspiration to express because when we surrender to that moment, we breathe in a bit of stardust that has the ability to propel us in unimaginable ways.

Even if just to add wings to our hearts.

It also makes a huge difference for everyone around us.

Imagine what happens within the person you say “I love you,” “thank you,” “I forgive you,” or even “hello” to.

Imagine what happens to you as well.

I find music and sound to be powerful.  For me, maybe the most powerful in assisting shifts, connecting dots, igniting creative power, and drawing forth from a deeper well in my heart.

This leads me to share two songs with the title Fragile.

The first is a favorite of mine by Sting. One of my top favorites of his actually. I thought I would include the lyrics and then the song to follow. I will let you sit with the words and their meaning for yourself.

Fragile by Sting

If blood will flow when flesh and steel are one
Drying in the color of the evening sun
Tomorrow’s rain will wash the stains away
But something in our minds will always stay

Perhaps this final act was meant
To clinch a lifetime’s argument
That nothing comes from violence and nothing ever could

For all those born beneath an angry star
Lest we forget how fragile we are

On and on the rain will fall
Like tears from a star
Like tears from a star
On and on the rain will say
How fragile we are
How fragile we are

On and on the rain will fall
Like tears from a star
Like tears from a star
On and on the rain will say
How fragile we are
How fragile we are
How fragile we are
How fragile we are

The next is by Dustin O’Halloran and is purely instrumental. Another favorite of mine. Sometimes we don’t need words to feel the energy move through us and understand its message.

I think if you sit with this next song, you’ll be taken on a journey that moves you to the edge of fragility – where you feel the thin thread we walk between realities and worlds upon.

Fragile N.4 by Dustin O’Halloran

It takes but one fragile moment to change the course of everything.

A reminder for being as present as possible and realizing the power within a fragile instant where reaction and response, impetus and inertia, life and death dance.

Thank you Linda for the invitation to reflect upon this.

And just a note about next week, as Monday Musings takes a pause.

I will be away in the transformative energy of Sedona, AZ between Friday, January 11th and Monday, January 21st (which just so happens to be a Full Supermoon Lunar Eclipse), returning back to things on the 22nd. During this time I will not be blogging, except for maybe this Friday the 11th while I’m in transit – we’ll see if Astrid has a message for me for Ask Astrid Fridays upon leaving or if she wants to wait until I return for her next share.

That means I’ll skip one week of the ongoing series until I return and two weeks for Monday Musings, since I’ll be fully back on a Tuesday.

I’m sure that when I do return that it will be with new inspiration and another shift in motion, as being in Sedona always happens at key points when big change is in the air.

I hope the New Year is starting off well for everyone and that you find your own strength in embracing those fragile moments of inspiration.

Monday Musings ~ The Writer’s Corner: Twas the Night Before Yuletide

My dear friend Mark of Ravenwood Inspired, who also happens to be the wizard behind making me two new fantastically magickal Faery wands (one of which just arrived recently in time for the Solstice), sent me this version, below, of one of the most famous Christmas poems. I have to say, however, that I really love this one a lot more and I think you’ll understand why.

I thought it would be perfect for today’s Monday Musings. It also reminds me of my Russian Tortoise, Gaia, and celebrates this sweet Eve that is also Joy’s birthday (my sweet angel rabbit who returned to the stars).

If you haven’t heard or read it, I hope you enjoy this enchanting Yuletide rendition that speaks of the spirit of the season and reminds us of its true reason. The poem is thought to be written by C.C. Williford.

We’ll be back to regular Monday Musings next week, which will feature more poetry and other works by a sweet author friend of mine. Stay tuned!

Until then, I hope you enjoy a beautiful holiday evening, however you choose to celebrate this time of year.

I’m about to jump into my snuggly bunny onesie, enjoy Christmas lights by the fire, prep a yummy meal and dessert, and get ready for the continuation of the new Watership Down miniseries and present opening.

Wishing you a beautiful Christmas Eve.

TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE YULETIDE

Twas the night before Yuletide and all through the glen
Not a creature was stirring, not a fox, not a hen.
A mantle of snow shone brightly that night
As it lay on the ground, reflecting moonlight.

The faeries were nestled all snug in their trees,
Unmindful of flurries and a chilly north breeze.
The elves and the gnomes were down in their burrows,
Sleeping like babes in their soft earthen furrows.

When low! The earth moved with a thunderous quake,
Causing chairs to fall over and dishes to break.
The Little Folk scrambled to get on their feet
Then raced to the river where they usually meet.

“What happened?” they wondered, they questioned, they probed,
As they shivered in night clothes, some bare-armed, some robed.
“What caused the earth’s shudder? What caused her to shiver?”
They all spoke at once as they stood by the river.

Then what to their wondering eyes should appear
But a shining gold light in the shape of a sphere.
It blinked and it twinkled, it winked like an eye,
Then it flew straight up and was lost in the sky.

Before they could murmur, before they could bustle,
There emerged from the crowd, with a swish and a rustle,
A stately old crone with her hand on a cane,
Resplendent in green with a flowing white mane.

As she passed by them the old crone’s perfume,
Smelling of meadows and flowers abloom,
Made each of the fey folk think of the spring
When the earth wakes from slumber and the birds start to sing.

“My name is Gaia,” the old crone proclaimed
in a voice that at once was both wild and tamed,
“I’ve come to remind you, for you seem to forget,
that Yule is the time of re-birth, and yet…”

“I see no hearth fires, hear no music, no bells,
The air isn’t filled with rich fragrant smells
Of baking and roasting, and simmering stews,
Of cider that’s mulled or other hot brews.”

“There aren’t any children at play in the snow,
Or houses lit up by candles’ glow.
Have you forgotten, my children, the fun
Of celebrating the rebirth of the sun?”

She looked at the fey folk, her eyes going round,
As they shuffled their feet and stared at the ground.
Then she smiled the smile that brings light to the day,
“Come, my children,” she said, “Let’s play.”

They gathered the mistletoe, gathered the holly,
Threw off the drab and drew on the jolly.
They lit a big bonfire, and they danced and they sang.
They brought out the bells and clapped when they rang.

They strung lights on the trees, and bows, oh so merry,
In colors of cranberry, bayberry, cherry.
They built giant snowmen and adorned them with hats,
Then surrounded them with snow birds, and snow cats and bats.

Then just before dawn, at the end of their fest,
Before they went homeward to seek out their rest,
The fey folk they gathered ‘round their favorite oak tree
And welcomed the sun ‘neath the tree’s finery.

They were just reaching home when it suddenly came,
The gold light returned like an arrow-shot flame.
It lit on the tree top where they could see from afar
The golden-like sphere turned into a star.

The old crone just smiled at the beautiful sight,
“Happy Yuletide, my children,” she whispered. “Good night.”

Monday Musings ~ The Writer’s Corner: Interview with Jean Brannon, Author of Atlantis Writhing

 

Today’s Monday Musings from The Writer’s Corner highlights author, Jean Brannon. The worldwide web brought Jean and I together by way of serendipity, but it feels much more like a golden thread of soul connection drew us back to where we left off. There is definitely a rich and sweet weaving that happens between us when we communicate, filled with continual, synchronous reflections. I couldn’t have been more honored to be able to read and offer a review for her new novel, Atlantis Writhing. Originally, it was my artwork that connected us, but it is our shared desire to spread love and inspiration through our work that unites us.

Jean was so kind to be open to doing a written interview for this Monday Musings series and I think you’ll find her answers and journey to be very inspiring and insightful.

Interview with Jean Brannon ~ Author of Atlantis Writhing

1. How did the idea for your novel “Atlantis Writhing” come about?

 

Back in 2013, I had been working in a joint healing practice in Athens, GA with my beloved life partner and Reiki Master Greg Hagin. When he passed away unexpectedly, I felt I needed to re-evaluate everything. To reclaim “my life” as opposed to what had been “our life” together. I also felt Greg’s death had been a wake-up call to ensure I made life’s every moment count. Just the week before his death, Greg and I had worked together to create a list of things we wished to accomplish in 2013. “Completing a first novel” was at the top of my priorities.

And so, two days after Greg’s memorial service, I sat down at the computer and decided to write. Really write. No matter how bad the words sounded or how much I didn’t feel like it. I committed to write without judgment, without editing and without missing a day until a first draft was completed. That was August 5, 2013.

I told no one what I was doing. I abstained from movies and television and the radio to eliminate outside influences and be able to write as purely as possible from a meditative place. Every day, after treating my acupuncture patients or finishing farm chores (Greg and I had lived on the outskirts of Athens, on over 12 acres of land), I would meditate. And then sit at the computer, allowing a storyline to unfold. I was guided right away to an Atlantean setting to explore the questions that kept flooding me. Questions that – not surprisingly since I’d lost my life’s great love – centered around examining what a balanced and healthy but impossible love would look like. Whether such a love could endure. And if  it would endure.

Then on March 7, 2014, I saved the first draft of the final chapter in “Atlantis Writhing”, my written response to those questions I’d been asking for so long. My own editing process then began and many revisions followed, leading me eventually to seek publication. An endeavor that turned into a few years of query letter submissions. A process that ultimately led to the book being published now by Absolute Love Publishing.

 

2. What are your inspirations for writing?

 

The archetypal “hero’s journey” is an endless source of inspiration to me. Anyone who is feeling frightened or challenged or traumatized or unable to go on…who finds a way to go on anyway. Whether that’s a fictional Rocky Balboa refusing to stay down in the boxing ring or a very real Rosa Parks not budging from her bus seat, I am moved and motivated by ordinary folks doing the extraordinary.

Yet in addition to that type of inspiration, I am continually appreciative of and called to action by the ancient wisdom I do my best to embody. The guidance gleaned from my studies in Chinese medicine and New Thought philosophies. Which means I intend to incorporate these teachings into my work, so that anyone who reads my writing – or even glimpses the cover art on something I’ve created – will be uplifted, inspired and empowered. And so knowing that I’m consciously intending to help anyone who crosses my path feeds my enthusiasm and keeps me passionate about this labor of love!

 

3. Have you always known you wanted to write?

 

I grew up an avid bookworm in a small town in West Virginia. At the time my hometown didn’t have a library, but every few weeks a mobile library would park near the elementary school. And I could hardly wait to check out as many books as I could from the Bookmobile! I would sometimes re-read books while waiting for the Bookmobile’s return. Truly I can say I’d read “Charlotte’s Web” at least 50 times by the time I was seven!

Perhaps it’s because books seemed like such a rare and magically precious commodity. But even as a child I daydreamed about one day being a novelist. By the time I attended Richwood High School, I’d fallen in love with classical literature, and in Mrs. Gwinn’s eleventh grade English class read two pivotal works – “The Hobbit” and “Jane Eyre” – which had a lasting impact in terms of the genres that spoke to me the most: epic fantasy depicting the hero’s journey as well as impassioned romance.

 

4. Can you share a little about yourself and the journey that has led you to now?

 

Even though I’d always hoped beyond hope to be an author, my writing journey has not been a straightforward path.

I grew up in an impoverished area where people worked hard for most anything they had. Where it was understood that young people needed a rational plan for the future so they could earn a decent wage and provide for themselves and their families. Where dreams were more in the “crazy pie in the sky” category because, in most cases, that type of thing didn’t put food on the table.

So when it came time to choosing a college major, I knew in my heart I wanted to be a novelist. But my head kept telling me to “keep it real”. I decided journalism would allow me to become a practical writer, and so I ultimately graduated from WVU with a bacheler’s of science in journalism with an emphasis on advertising copywriting.

Post-college I landed what I thought would be my dream job. I moved to NY and began work as a copywriter. But it wasn’t long before I felt disillusioned. Before it felt increasingly wrong to use my writing skill to sell people things. And before I developed pretty severe back pain. I vividly remember spending a couple of weeks recuperating in bed, where I began taking stock of my life. I acknowledged to myself I still desired to become a novelist, but working in the ad business had made me realize I simply couldn’t bear to write some pretty words simply so I could sell some books. I knew I needed to feel like I had something important to share.

Fortunately, an acupuncturist was recommended to me. And I was helped so quickly I felt uplifted by Oriental Medicine. I began to wonder how pleasant it might be to work in soft music and dim lights and help people to feel better. Ultimately I decided Oriental Medicine would make a wonderful second career – not realizing at the time that this ancient healing system would one day inspire the words I’d feel were important enough to share.

 

5. How do you stay motivated with your writing?

 

Motivation to me is fueled by two forces – desire and momentum. Sometimes I find that life’s extra-busy periods can scatter my energy, which tends to put the brakes on forward progress as it dampens my enthusiasm. Which can then undermine motivation in general.

So I’ve found a simple balancing technique that springs from committing to baby steps. Which involves asking myself honestly what tiny amount of time and effort can I commit to my writing each day. Because in the committing comes the showing up, every day, to honor myself. And that daily attention, from a Chinese medicine perspective, nurtures the digestion channels while helping the acupuncture channels governing movement to flow. These channels are all crucial to keeping one’s motivation moving forward in a healthy way.

If a person can thus “show up” and pay daily attention to a goal for 21 days straight, that’s how long it takes to form a new habit – or begin to realize a dream. So if all you can comfortably commit at first to your writing dream is two minutes a day, then commit to two minutes a day. But really commit!  Put it into your schedule. Set a timer if you need to. And make sure you write your heart out for that full two minutes.

At this stage, resist doing more. Because it’s all too easy to overdo it and become overwhelmed. Do your two minutes and feel great about it, since after the initial three weeks of two-minute commitments, your mind, heart and soul will be in the habit of enjoying them and thus be eagerly anticipating those two minutes. Once this habit is established, then gradually add minutes to your commitment. Perhaps two minutes extends to five, which can then become seven and eventually ten. Over the course of another month or so, you’ll find you’ve carved out the time and now have the initiative to move forward passionately with your dream!

 

6. What are your greatest challenges?

 

I find my single greatest challenge is being a natural multi-tasker. Which means, for the most part, I am in my happy place juggling a number of projects and goals. Yet if you combine that with my Capricornian tendency to be a workaholic, then sometimes I forget to make enough time to play every day. Add in the fact that I love being an author as well as an acupuncturist, and on some level I feel I can justify the long hours I put in daily – because these paths of service both light me up!

But I do my best to remind myself that experiencing daily delights outside my occupational joys are essential to overall balance and well-being. Which is why I set aside time every day for activities like drawing and home improvement projects (art and appreciating old houses are two passions of mine!). As well as yoga and Epsom salt soaks and walks in nature and quiet contemplation of a firepit’s flames. Incorporating such things helps me make self-nurturing as much a part of my life as multi-tasking!

 

7. What does a typical day look like for you and do you find that scheduling in your writing helps?

 

A typical day for me probably looks atypical to most people. Some days my acupuncture sessions are booked in the afternoons or evenings, while other days I offer morning treatments. Jogging and yoga and other self-care pursuits get penciled in around my sessions. And in the new year, I will be adding in book fairs and festival appearances and so forth – so my schedule is likely to get even less structured.

But no matter what else is going on during the course of a day, I find the early morning hours and the ones right before bed are when I’m naturally drawn to write. For me personally, a hard and fast writing schedule doesn’t feel best. I prefer to make the commitment every morning that I will meditate in front of my keyboard. And make sure I take at least some notes if full-on inspiration doesn’t strike. Then I do the same thing as my day is winding down. I find that by inviting ideas to come to me in the in-between hours (dawn and dusk) that the words flow more easily and naturally than if I try to force productivity according to a particular time table.

 

8. Do you have any advice for new writers?

 

I’d advise any new writers, first and foremost, to have their internal editors take a little break and go sit in a corner quietly. There is a time and place for editing. Which is that time and place when you’re ready to make it all look neat and pretty and wrap it up to go in a red bow. But that’s not at the beginning. The beginning tends to be rather messy. It’s a time for coloring outside the lines. For dangling participles and drivel as dialogue and a disturbing overuse of adverbs.

I’d encourage new writers to let it look bad. And move on. There’s too much of a human tendency to angst about whether it’s any good or not. Such a tendency to worry that it can block momentum and make you pause, overanalyze and then stop altogether.

Please. Don’t stop. Whatever else you feel you must do, just keep going. Just keep showing up, and the words will come. They may sound stilted or silly initially, but encourage them to keep coming and – sooner or later – they will start to flow. And flow well. For sure you’ll surprise yourself if you just keep at it!

 

9. There are more options these days for writers to publish their work and pros and cons for each. Which way did you choose and why?

 

I chose the traditional publishing route, and I decided to follow that path initially because I felt I might learn a lot from whatever feedback I’d get through the query-submission process. I reasoned that having spent my early corporate career as a copywriter would serve me exceedingly well as a new novelist. Because I’d learned not to be married to my words, and so I had no fear of anyone doing the equivalent of bleeding a red pen across my pages in the interest of making them better and moving them closer to being accepted for publication.

I wasn’t exactly prepared, however, for silence. And seemingly endless waiting. In this day of electronic submissions, I can appreciate how agents are getting thousands of queries every day, and so a prompt and warm and fuzzy response isn’t usually the norm. But to hear nothing? For months on end? After spending hours personalizing a query to a particular agent, and pointing out why my story perfectly aligns with the material they’re seeking?

After six months of form-letter rejections or no response at all – and no feedback whatsoever to go on – I decided to take an agent’s query-writing class. I followed that up with another agent’s class where I submitted my query and first few pages for a critique. I got some great feedback from those classes, and yet vastly different opinions as to what makes an awesome query.

I decided to experiment with the feedback I’d received, and so I revamped my query into two styles according to what I’d learned. And then I began the submission process all over again. Yet I got the same results. After several more quiet months, I decided to hire Jane Friedman – a veteran with 20-plus years of publishing industry experience – to review my query and synopsis. I’d been following Jane’s newsletter and blog for a while, and found her insights to be wise and thoughtful.

She provided quick and compassionate counsel regarding my submission materials. And then said something shocking. That basically it was my genre – a New Age fantasy novel – that likely was the issue. Because most publishers weren’t looking for novels with metaphysical teachings. Although she gave me some tips for searching via mlswishlist.com and PublishersMarketplace.com for agents and editors and publishers that perhaps would be open to New Thought novels.

I immediately started researching, and with renewed confidence I prepared a submission package for a publisher I thought would be a great fit. I mailed out the materials two weeks later. And then in six weeks, I got an email from Absolute Love Publishing’s editor – she wanted to read the whole manuscript. In two more months, I was offered a contract. And now eighteen months later, “Atlantis Writhing” is ready to launch!

And so my own experience and what I’ve learned talking to other writers tells me there’s no one right path to publication for everybody. Some writers may be overwhelmed at the idea of all the decisions required in self-publishing. While others may thrive on retaining complete creative control.

I have to say honestly my own journey toward becoming a published author is not what I’d expected. Yet I’ve learned so much and I wouldn’t change any of it! I am thrilled to be aligned with a publishing company whose sole mission is to promote goodness in the world – I mean, how wonderful is that?

I hope my own experiences may help inform others and prepare them for some of the possibilities they could encounter if they choose to pursue traditional publishing. Overall, though, I would encourage new writers to explore all the options available, then see what truly resonates with their intuitive senses. And make their choices accordingly.

 

10. What are you currently working on?

 

Right now, I’m revising a nonfiction manuscript on the lesser-known lower-leg chakras that Absolute Love Publishing is looking to release this spring. I’m also writing a free 21-day PDF series I hope readers will find helpful that explores step-by-step some of the self-actualizing tools the “Atlantis Writhing” characters use in the book; this PDF series will be available at no charge by the first of the year to anyone who emails me and requests the “Free PDF Series” at jean@jeanbrannon.com.

 

 

11. I know your book hasn’t officially launched yet, but how can people pre-order and where can they find announcements about its official release?

 

I so appreciate you asking about the publication date and pre-order information! The book officially is launching Tuesday, December 11, 2018, and at that time will be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks and other similar outlets. The book may also be pre-ordered at the Absolute Love Publishing website: https://absolutelovepublishing.com/atlantis-writhing/

 

And Tania, I’m so thankful for your time and for you allowing me to be a guest via The Writer’s Corner. Many blessings to you and your readers in the coming year!

Thank you dearly Jean for taking the time to share about your journey. It’s a beautiful example of what is possible through commitment and supporting what calls to our hearts. I greatly appreciate you and all you have to share with the world. I know that your experiences will be supportive for many. I wish you much success with your new novel and continued blessings. I’m so grateful for the reconnection.

Jean Brannon is an Author & Acupuncturist. Her website is www.jeanbrannon.com.

And again, her book can be pre-ordered at this link, where you’ll also find my review: www.absolutelovepublishing.com/atlantis-writhing/

Monday Musings ~ The Writer’s Corner: Writing Versus Speaking

A topic came up at a dinner party we hosted this weekend that I felt might be a good musing for today’s theme. While being asked about the book I am working on we started talking about the writing process since there were three writers at the table – all from different backgrounds, including also a retired librarian, and a writer of speeches. It’s no surprise we discovered that each of us have our own process and feelings around writing, but a couple of us shared the feeling that writing was our preferred form of communication over speaking. That included me.

Why?

Well, we both experience greater ease at getting out what we want to say more clearly and in a better way than if we have to explain or speak about something on the spot.

We find that the channel of writing gives form to our words in ways that just doesn’t always happen when trying to convey something in person or public speaking.

Personally, I find that when I write, the way I share something is more congruent with my essence because I am able to access my process of channeling with greater ease and without so much noise.

So, many times I’ll read something I’ve written, or someone else will, and it will sound like a different person, but it is actually more me.

That said, over time I have become much better at doing this in my speaking through the process of teaching because it has engaged more presence and ability to create that time and space for me to channel. I’ve learned to enjoy the process in settings like these and have grown enormously because of it. I just simply don’t like to be rushed, and yet when I’m writing it seems the words and inspirations come faster than I can get them down.

I have also found that if I’m moving, I also induce that channeling. This is something I’ve been known to do when on the phone with a friend or family member in need, or with a coaching client where I will pace back and forth. It moves the energy and I’m able to cut through this denser dimension and reach into the beyond.

I’ve also, as mentioned, been able to duplicate this with ultra presence and taking my time to listen and then pull out the most resonant words and expressions.

But when it comes to writing, this is a naturally built-in process for me and the stuff just flows. Same goes for my painting – another preferred method of channeling expressions through.

Writing and painting bring both presence and momentum to the experience and if I add in the perfect music with that process, it’s like pure magick for me. I am able to ride those frequencies and then grab the visions and feelings straight through.

Another way this happens is when I’m out in nature hiking. I find that so many ideas and inspirations will pop through when in this nurturing and inspiring environment and I’m moving energy in communion with Terra.

The guest who also felt she wrote so much better than the spoken work also said the same – that when out hiking in nature she will get the best ideas. She also shared that she is woken up in the middle of the night with ideas.

I haven’t personally been woken up with an idea, but I do indeed receive inspiration and messages via my dreams.

Perhaps the difference is also that writing is a more solitary experience where speaking draws upon interaction, reactions, and feedback from others. It may speak to a preferred way of being and feeling more comfortable or nurtured in one energetic space and dynamic over another.

While I feel both are challenging in their own ways, I’m much more drawn to the challenge of writing and engaging someone in the story I’m weaving as not only a form of personal growth, but in finding more intoxicating ways of storytelling.

I’m wondering if any of you experience similar with your writing?

Do you find writing to be easier than speaking for you? More resonant and clear?

Are there things you do that create greater ease of channeling ideas into words or receiving inspiration?

I’d love to hear your thoughts and I also want to welcome any fellow writers to contribute a piece of their own work, whether it be a poem, a short story, a new book you have out, or your own thoughts about your writing journey to be featured in an upcoming Monday Musings ~ The Writer’s Corner. Please send your ideas to: Contact Tania

Monday Musings – The Writer’s Corner: At Home With Beatrix Potter

Today’s musings take us back to Beatrix Potter and her journey ignited with Peter Rabbit. Now and then I will share a few of my favorite authors and artists, as well as books and works that have been inspirational muses for me.

A few months ago I finished reading a very interesting book that immediately became a favorite titled, At Home With Beatrix Potter: The Creator of Peter Rabbit, and it was a fascinating story that took you inside her life through extracts of her letters and diaries, as well as revealed the intimate relationship between her work and the land and homes she acquired, as a result of her success. The most famous being her Hill Top home.

It journeys through her transition from writer and artist to environmentalist of the Lake District in England who transformed the interiors and exteriors with an eye for antiques and natural beauty – she was a botanist too.

You’ll get inside peaks at the intimate spaces she created, lived, and worked in, as well as looks at the gorgeous gardens and grounds she cultivated. I only took photos of a few images in the book to share, but left a lot for you to discover.

She was ahead of her time, demonstrated here with one of her rabbit companions whom she walked on a leash – turning many an eye then.

This is her with Benjamin Bouncer who accompanied her and family on holiday in Scotland. She also had Peter Piper who accompanied her everywhere.

I found myself swept away in her whimsical world and saw so many heart-warming intersections to my own life, processes, and journey that made me smile.

Most recently I’ve made some connections to why certain things are happening in my life and even point to the changes I’ve made and styles I find myself melting into with ease – all finally making me feel most at home in embodiment and at peace with my expression.

If you love Beatrix Potter, Peter Rabbit, and her work as much as I do I think you’ll find this book a wonderful and interesting bedside read. The book made me want to go back and start reading all of her children’s books again and get lost in the faery tales.

She is a woman of my heart the way she also creates life as art. It’s fascinating to see how the illustrations of her books mirrored the inside chambers of her beautifully decorated and charming homes.

I think you’ll also discover a side to her that you didn’t know. She was quite the character, had very strong opinions, and was both a very smart business woman and faery tale dreamer enraptured with the natural world around her and a desire to create beauty and preserve the old ways.

I happen to have faery tales woven throughout my office space. Each corner and shelf has its own theme. And part of the enchantment includes some Peter Rabbit fun alongside figurines of Blackberry from Watership Down – another favorite book for another time – and a bunch of children’s books.

I also happen to have several articles of clothing that are Peter Rabbit themed, as you can see in this collage that includes a magickal Peter Rabbit muse who moves around my office as needed.

And most recently acquired a vintage looking Victorian Peter Rabbit coat dress. I’ll save it for another time.

Thank you for journeying with me into the world of Beatrix Potter and Peter Rabbit for a moment. It’s a wonderful thing to find those inspirations that light your heart, especially as writers and artists. Connecting with what moves you and threading it into every part of your life brings the worlds you create in your minds alive.

Who are some of your favorite authors that inspire you? Are there any other Beatrix Potter fans out there?

~

A little heads up that I just finished updating this web and blog site over the weekend so the pages that were “coming soon” have arrived. 🙂 In them you’ll find some of my inspirations, passions, projects, resources, and even a bunch of fun facts in answer to many repeated questions over the years and some recent new ones. I hope you enjoy having a peek into my world and along the way I will look forward to continuing to get to know each of you more too, so please don’t be shy to share a comment or drop me a note.

Monday Musings – The Writer’s Corner: How to be Your Own Magickal Muse

I thought I’d kick off the first blog in my new series under the theme title of “Monday’s Musings” with a few ideas around how you can become your own magickal muse. A muse by definition is a creative influence – this can be a “person or a personified force who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist.” But this can also simply be you, which makes the process empowering to realize you have within you the ability to inspire yourself. And guess what? This doesn’t just have to be isolated to influencing yourself purely with writing, but can be a way to inspire any aspect of your life.

Here are some thoughts to help get that creative fire lit inside of your heart, but don’t stop here, as there are so many ways you can ignite inspiration:

• Indulge your child at heart and engage that child-like wonder about everything with curiosity and fascination – what the heart is encouraged to explore will become a grand adventure of ideas streaming through
• Find a process that helps you to create a well of flowing ideas that move you – journaling ideas, taking photographs of things that are interesting or beautiful, clipping out images and words in magazines to create idea boards with or folders of inspiration, collect little trinkets and treasures that spark imagination or a part of your inner child, gather and write down words, phrases, thoughts that you hear and that float through your mind – what you find fascinating in some way can act as a seed to grow ideas from
• Go on a creative excavation about yourself and your life to discover what inspires you. Ask yourself what truly invigorates you and fuels your passion and really engages your imagination – what you uncover will be pathways to easier flow and streams of thought
• Be inquisitive about that feeling and nudge that is bubbling inside of you and wants out. Rather than just push it aside, judging it, fearing it, or keeping it as a constant thought, write it down, speak it into a recorder, draw it…just move it out and through – what you invite to dance with you will begin to reveal where your energy wants to go and rather than stay stuck, will start you on a journey
• Let your writing run free and perhaps allow this to be one part of your life that doesn’t have structure, if in fact all other parts do. Don’t over-think things, just write what comes up right away as a feeling no matter how weird and don’t edit – simply flow. There’s plenty of time for that later – what you surrender to will take you on an adventure
• And if you don’t have structure in your life, perhaps creating a ritual or sacred practice around writing and creative flow will help make it a more natural part of your life – in either event, once you do have a practice in place like a specific time to do it, area to be in that inspires, a ritual to invite the process to begin and be separate from the rest of your life, then go back to the point above and let it flow without judgment – what you create consistency with will become an extension of your creative flow and life
• In line with sacred practice and ritual is creating a sanctuary of inspiration or invent a way that supports and nurtures your writing. This can be surrounding yourself with things you love, have a particular energy, make your inner child feel safe, that inspire and cultivate thought flow and imagination, or could be noticing what kind of things or where you are that help more, like traveling, being by the ocean, tucked away in a cabin in the mountains, or in a closed room with specific music playing – what you cultivate will bring enrichment to your process
• Always look for meaning in things – what you are curious about will reveal many potentials and creative ways to express or solve things
• Work at it. Creativity is a process and for many isn’t flowing quite as freely as it once did when we were children. And even if it is flowing, we need to keep encouraging and nurturing it to greater heights. Making a committed effort to keep at it will bring it back to being a natural process again – what you focus on building, will come more freely
• Become conscious about everything and embrace a real caring – what you are present and passionate about will create momentum and connection
• Engage creativity, imagination, and ideas. Invite it, cultivate it, nurture it, and encourage it out – what you fertilize and cultivate will grow
• Ask yourself what wants to be written and what story is aching to come forth, rather than asking what you feel like writing. They say everyone has at least one book in them…what’s yours? – what you surrender to will reveal gifts and make the journey flowing and fun even when challenges arise
• Empty yourself of all knowing and let your inner vision and heart guide you to the truth within you – what you stop controlling will be able to fly
• Remember yourself as the child you once were and can be again – what you retrieve will flourish where once it was constrained
• Explore childlike fantasy and flexibility – what you open up to will make the impossible possible
• Listen to your instincts – what you trust will open you to the most natural flow of expression
• Feel what you feel – what you embrace will reveal the most meaningful things that will engage others to feel as well
• Take chances and write as if you’re the first person ever writing the story and writing in the way that you are – what you risk will bring innovation as your best friend on the adventure
• Be your own heroine/hero. Find the things you like about yourself and cultivate more gratitude around them. Create your own style and image that helps you to feel more alive, authentic, and cultivates the writer you – what you fertilize will blossom
• Believe in yourself and what you have to say – what you believe about you, others will too
• Allow mistakes and realize that there aren’t any – what you let go of will draw to you hidden gifts
• Surrender to the story and lose yourself – what you immerse in will bring that reality to the heart of others through you
• Keep writing. The thoughts will flow and your story will find its way, but won’t unless you write – what you put energy toward will take you on a journey, create a result, and a destination to begin again from

I’d love to hear from any of you on any additional thoughts and ways you engage the muse within.

The Six C’s Speaking to Things Right Now

As I move through my own journey and hear from others, I constantly notice themes and a big awareness around process. Process has always been inherent in everything, but there’s an increased awareness of process in everything and greater presence around every step. And through that moment-to-moment experience, clarity, commitment, courage, creativity, communication, and celebration are stand-outs.

I’ll break them down, as I see them.

• Clarity – there’s not only a greater need for crystallizing clarity of your intents, feelings, actions, and thoughts to create greater alignment, but there’s also an increased clarity, in general, being felt by many around their dreams and desires that is amplifying the manifestation of them and implementing a lot of life shifts in motion on every level. Veils are parting and awareness is increasing and with the intent to have greater clarity and willingness to truly see and feel, you will break down more barriers to yourself. With clarity comes focus and effective use of energy when you are able to identify what’s going on and what has been speaking to you from within. Now is a time to go within and trust what you receive so you can affirm clarity with actions you take.
• Commitment – there’s a greater need now than ever for unwavering commitment to the things that are most meaningful to you, which includes taking care of and nurturing your own needs as an example of your own life working. With commitment comes care – you realize how important and crucial some elemental things are to your well being and to producing what you want to share with the world, and you care enough to see that through. As we’ve all learned, until you value yourself and what you have to give, you will be left searching for empty value elsewhere. Now is the time to make a firm commitment to what is nudging at your heart. This helps others to do the same.
• Courage – it’s going to be scary, yes, and yet now more than ever there is greater support in seen and unseen ways to help you do what you feel clarity and commitment around. Courage of the heart is essential and it won’t erase fear, but it will accompany you through the journey with the right amount of encouragement to take you through the challenging stuff, step-by-step. If you REALLY want something and REALLY want to make changes, clarity around what that is, commitment to what ever it takes, and the courage to see it through are key. There’s no greater time than now to make leaps and grow exponentially. Courage will see you through the dark areas, as you navigate a new path. Everyone – even the people you admire and see as hugely successful – have harnessed courage to do what they’re doing. It gets easier, but without fears and uncertainties, we wouldn’t have opportunity to rise to the occasion. Remember, while others are leaders for you, you are a leader for others.
• Creativity – cultivating and channeling creativity is vital – I wrote a little about that in my last post Feeling the Potency of Creative Alchemy in Action. Creativity is your power to choose differently, imagine unlimited potentials, flow your life force freely, ignite your passion, and bring love and action together as manifestation. No matter what channel you bring creativity through, the importance is simply that you DO bring it through and this will continue creating new realities and new Earth experiences. You are naturally a creative being and when you are creativity in action, this will help you to trouble shoot any area of your life with curious imagination, as well as help you to bring forth your dreams and goals. Clarity of energy moving through you, commitment to that energy that wants through, courage to keep that fire fueled no matter what, and the willingness to engage your creativity that is throbbing to be expressed. Through creativity we can forge new ways and find new solutions. We can create humanity at its highest.
• Communication – there is heightened importance and need for communication and that includes the communication you have with yourself. Learning to make that a more present, gentle, tender, and open process will benefit you greatly and then help you to be the same with others. Communication is key for all types of relationships and the willing to be honest with yourself and others, while patient, and compassionate. Communication is essential to business endeavors, whether you work alone or co-create with others. You will have the need to enhance your communication skills with customers, clients, and co-workers, or people that you need to engage along the way that will be integral to your goals. There will also be importance in extending your reach of communication to include diversity of people, animals, plants, the Unseens, Nature and the Cosmos at large. This will help you to be in tune and aligned, so that things happen more seamlessly. As we evolve, communication is evolving and there are many forms whether through the written or verbal word, through art, music, your craft…communication goes beyond and into telepathy, which is felt through every interaction and increasing as we are shifting. Brushing up on your communication skills and bringing clarity, commitment, courage, and creativity to the process of how you share yourself is invaluable. The better you communicate to yourself and others, the more fine-tuned and aligned you are with your intents.
• Celebrate – a vital part of the process and journey is to remember to celebrate every step of the way. This includes the small and large accomplishments, the ways in which you have overcome hurdles, something new you’ve been able to do, and each part you move through, regardless if the ultimate outcome has happened or not. This is part of that core gratitude that really makes a difference and how you truly enjoy life to the fullest without punishing yourself along the way. There is always something to celebrate and that starts with you being here in this moment and choosing to be alive at such a creatively fertile time. As Dewitt Jones shares, “celebrate what’s right with the world.” Have clarity of your thoughts, intents, feelings, and desires, then devote yourself to commitment of what you want to manifest, have the courage to see your commitment through, channel your creativity because your piece of the thread in the tapestry is needed and contains your vitality and fuel for your dreams, communicate with yourself and others along the way to help motivate and remain clear and aligned, as well as to support transparency and vulnerability, and then celebrate every step of the way!

So how has this been applying to me currently? Well, mostly with my book’s process – basically my main and only focus at this time in my life, besides the balance of life in general and things I do with Dave, our shared business, and in my personal life.

I’ve definitely seen, after coming to closure with so much from this life’s “past” and every other “past” life and feeling harmony flow through increasingly, that my next spiral of evolution and growth stems around this book – regardless of outcome.

I’ve definitely had clarity with the story, my intent and dream vision with it, and knowing whole-heartedly it is what I desire deeply to bring forth.

I’ve definitely made a soul and heart commitment to it and have just taken that to the next level, with this third phase I’m in with it. The first phase was in writing the full story, the second was in editing and reworking it myself to the best ability I knew how, and the third now involves an outside professional I’ll be working with. More on that…I’ve committed to seeing it through step-by-step and not rushing any part of it and doing it no matter what, taking risks with it in terms of how I’ve written it, and am holding myself to see it through to the end.

I’ve definitely had to muster up my greatest courage with it – or at least my next level of courage, as I’ve moved through many other levels of courage in the face of fears I’ve had up until this point. That included my fear of speaking and having shyness, which led me to embrace teaching, fear of speaking up for myself and saying “no” and having boundaries, which led me to have healthy ones, fear of looking crazy and feeling insecure about who I really am and the magickal me, which led me to vulnerably put that all out there without apology and even create this blog where I share so much, helped me to be at my best with overall well-being, and to no longer be energetically drained, and fears of having no support or security in order to take leaps, which led me to jump into what has called me greatest in my heart to bring forth as my essence expression – or work as some might call it. And now my next level of courage is in phase three of my book where I am handing it over to a professional editor who will completely dissect it and tear it apart, leaving me very vulnerable and at the end, with another round of reworking to do. I had some good news take place yesterday in hearing back from the developmental editor of my choice, after sending her a letter of my intent to work with her and it looks like we’ll be co-partnering likely beginning the end of this week and will be sharing a working relationship for a while. This next phase is a huge process and to say I’m both excited and scared, is definitely accurate! But I am more excited and proud of myself than anything, which brought me to tears at end of last week before I sent her a letter, as I could feel the immensity of this step that was bigger than my book, and I could literally feel a huge leap taking place for my path and my vibrational frequency I have been operating at. And this commitment solidifies the realness of everything and aligns me even more with the vision I have, as I put belief, heart, and clarity of intent into action. There’s no turning back. I was so happy when she accepted working with me and although I’m still far from any outcome, I’m sinking my teeth into it all and sucking the marrow of life, as they say. There is still a very long road ahead, as I’m not rushing any part of it, but I’m excited to be pushed to my highest capabilities and to be challenged to dig deeper than ever to make this the best possible book I can channel it to be.

I’ve definitely been channeling creativity. I think it’s impossible for me not to be, as I would literally die if I wasn’t and when I stop, is when I won’t be here anymore. So onward-ho with creative flow! It’s definitely been my best friend on this writing adventure!

I’ve definitely been engaging greater clarity of communication when engaging myself and others and have put into action all of the things I’ve learned, more and more, so that truly communicating even at tough times, has become so much easier, and so much more present and aware. Communication is definitely coming through for this book, as I work with the written and telepathic word, for the co-partnership with my new editor, and in receiving communication from the Other Realms in channeling it.

And lastly, I’ve definitely been in celebration mode with every part of the process. In the past I’ve had a tough time with processes, because the visionary in me always saw things as whole and the end results, so to have to take things apart, piece-by-piece and go through the human journey, was tough. No longer so. Perhaps I’ve bridged timelines and experiencing it all at once now, or perhaps I’m just more present and grateful, and truly living what life is about and each piece as beautiful without expectation, attachment, and need for a result.

It’s all changed everything and the whole game for me. I know so many others that are also experiencing greater fluidity with it all, and I believe whole-heartedly that we all can.

 

And just for giggles and a heads-up, here’s two more C’s I’ve experienced and coming up.

Contacts – I’ve noticed an interesting influx of contacts in the last couple of weeks about a variety of things, that include inquiries about old services, invites to be on podcasts, synchronicities shared with people internationally, and even some odd inquiries on things I didn’t even know I had out there. All speaking to me to collective connection (some more C’s) and alignment both in knowing my boundaries and attracting reflections.

Crystals – Stay tuned either tomorrow or some time this week, as with a little opening in time on my hands and another big shift happening, a few crystal friends are ready to move on and I may have some custom and healing openings as offerings. More soon!

 

Feeling the Potency of Creative Alchemy in Action

So, wow! I have to start off by saying how incredibly beautiful this gift sharing has been with everyone who was a part of the Summer Solstice Gratitude Giveaway. I not only enjoyed sharing Reiki blessings with all who joined, but also loved being able to send what I was guided to for each of the recipients as well. It seems that most of the gifts are arriving since yesterday (even overseas – incredible!) and the blast of beaming energy of love you are all sharing via your emails supports why I felt like a giddy little Faery up to good mischief in sprinkling surprises your way. To hear about the perfection these gifts have been for you and the joy, inspiration, and shifts they are igniting, is the icing on my cake I so love. 😉

There’s always so much to be grateful for and increasingly I’m experiencing life in a natural flow of honoring the opportunities that present themselves to give and receive in a multitude of ways that reflect unity in truly fulfilling expressions beyond limited ideas and attachment.

The unlimited ways mirror creativity and creativity is one of the most powerful energies available to us.

Creativity is love.

It is a magickal and powerful energy vital to exercise and cultivate as a channel of creation itself.

Summer is rolling along and I can just feel the creative energy blossoming in bursts of vibrancy everywhere – not only mirrored in Nature and Her incredible flowers, but also mirrored in the explosion of creative output people are expressing, sharing, cultivating, and nurturing to bring forth.

I can’t tell you how many people I know that have birthed, or are in process of birthing, so many new things in their life whether a new product, a book, paintings, a new job, a new home, a new relationship including one with themselves, a new animal companion, a new idea, a major life leap…and having the courage to bring it all through, realizing the value in that and the value of who they are and what they have to offer. People are actively working that creative alchemy and anchoring in the manifestation of dreams they’ve long had or newly discovered as their truth.

Even just in the category of books alone, something I am also creatively engaged in, I know of SO many people writing books right now and how wonderful is that?! People giving value to their voice and are ready to express what is inside of them. And that, in and of itself, is beautiful and huge!

Everyone has something of value to contribute and will touch lives relative to their energy and message that aligns with others drawn to and needing just that very thing.

I was just sharing about this with a dear friend today, as I learned she, too, was bringing forth her message in a book. I personally know of a couple dozen of people either writing their first book or working on another.

I’m wow’d by this shift where once only a small group of people would be called to even venture into this way of creating and now we have a tapestry of colorful messages and stories popping up like a Cosmic grid of stars and so many ways to make this a reality where doors would otherwise have been closed – thus mirroring our expansion and letting go of rules and limitations that would otherwise have been daunting to the creative impulses you have.

I love that things are shifting to support everyone with opportunity – yet we must each rise to that challenge, as opportunity doesn’t just hand itself over.

You must reach out your hand, take the steps, or even leap into the air believing in your wings to carry you on. You must challenge yourself to open your petals when you otherwise would rather keep them tight in a bud.

When the Sun shines upon you, let the warmth of those rays do their magick, rather than fight them. Open your arms to vitality – to creativity – to YOU….to the MAGICK OF YOU.

And this creative energy isn’t just limited to “artists,” but is available to anyone who desires to push the envelope of their personal expressiveness in life.

Exercising your imagination is invaluable.

It’s an exciting time for alchemizing your very existence. You are an infinitely creative being here to evoke the remembrance of what lies in your heart.

Your creative energy is an expression of the boundless love of All That Is and it is essential in creating new realities of experience. Cultivating the imagination, dreaming, believing, surrendering to and supporting vulnerable and passionate expression, utilizing creative visualization… is all vital to manifestation.

The creative and healing arts are rapidly taking more of an essential role, as they once did, in leading the way to a new experience of life.

Creativity supports what feels most natural in this life and beyond. It IS your essence.

There are always cycles to life and the circle is cycling back in a new way, as we are remembering, reevaluating, and understanding that balance is essential and cultivating natural creative expression is healthy to the state of collective humanity.

All forms of art have the ability to enhance life in amazing ways, not to mention, help you to get more in touch with Source. It is an invaluable expression that through support and cultivation, can help you to connect more with your natural essence as a creative, loving being of individually beautiful expression within the collective diversity.

The more you support these creative impulses, the more you allow yourself to explore things outside the box, to start creating and manifesting what you desire, to experience more magick and synchronicity in your life, to create the greatest works of art you have yet to create, and to find greater sense of peace and inner joy.

Creative energy is the source of creation. If you don’t exercise it, you close the door on the endless possibilities you, as a limitless and powerful being, have the ability to tap into.

Creativity is the power of love expressing itself.

The more you support this expression in yourself and in others, the more beautiful life will be.

I’m grateful for creativity and the power of my creative heart to express itself in any way it feels called to channel what is within.

Right now that has been through the channeling of my new book that is about to hit phase three, but it also has been through the cultivating of our home, garden, and life, nurturing a sanctuary and magickal space for us and our soul family in furry bodies that supports our essence and helps to impart an outflow of the highest through that, implementing and embodying ways to support greater remembrance of wholeness collectively, creating yummies in the kitchen, and finding ways to bring little bits of creative gratitude through to others.

Today was definitely filled with people and experiences to be grateful for and I found myself a few times in joyous tears that rose up through me like a well of love exploding. I realized through some events that I’d hit another huge leap along my creative journey that suddenly snuck up on me while I have been engaged in the courage of each step, and was amazed to see where they were taking me. It doesn’t matter what the outcomes might be. It only matters that I celebrate each step and live in the awe of the now. I’m grateful to myself for supporting the vision I have and seeing it through.

I then saw 2:26 on the clock – my birthday – and realized I was in fact rebirthing again.

We all are, in every creative moment, because choice renews everything.

I’ll leave you with this photo.

It’s of a tiny succulent clipping I saved. When I recently found a few larger succulents at the local store here that I was looking for, I also found two clippings of different succulent plants that seemed to have fallen off or were broken off of other succulent plants. Those plants were no longer around, but these two little clippings were sitting on the shelf next to the potted succulents. I picked them both up and took them home with the potted ones. I immediately put them in the soil of two of the pots next to the other succulents, in hope that they would grow and weren’t gone already.

They’ve been sitting on my desk for the last week and suddenly this morning I noticed that the tiniest one had a bud, which slowly opened over the course of today.

As you can see, it produced this lovely red blossom of creative vitality and courage from a tiny piece of succulent, no more than an inch or less. I actually see another bud right next to it that I imagine will be opening in the next day or so as well.

And they spoke to me of nurturing and cultivating the tiniest of seed dreams and visions we have, taking those steps even when they seem impossible or others tell you it’s improbable. Not giving up and having the courage to open your petals to the Sun’s rays and to your essence that beckons creative expression.

Like the tomato plant I saved, that no one wanted, these two succulents are coming alive against all odds because someone saw the potential in them and fed that potential with love.

It is 5:55 right now as I close with this.

Never let anyone throw their shadow upon you. Cast the light of your creative power upon every hidden corner of your heart and watch the seeds within blossom. It doesn’t matter how long something takes…it only matters that you immerse each step with your beautiful essence.

Celebrating with Gratitude

Under the influence of last night’s Full Strawberry Moon in Capricorn, I’m excited to announce the conclusion to the second phase of my new book’s journey this morning. It’s been a full last couple of weeks and so much celebration since Summer Solstice with endings that ignite new beginnings. I’ve also been putting together the gifts for the 17 recipients of the Gratitude Giveaway, which will be sent out by end of week.

While there is still much more involved with my book’s birthing, this feels to be the last personal piece, as from here on out will involve others in bringing it into completion. I’m not rushing any part of it, but I have found all the timings aligning so incredibly with that surrender. I did feel it would be done by end of June, and so it is.

I love it coinciding with this Capricorn Full Moon, as that feels perfect for my journey. It calls upon powerful, new directions guided by our inner wise/elder selves to be met with personal responsibility.

Commitment, focus, and unrelenting work produce rewards – the greatest of those being the heart fulfillment I’m experiencing for following through with the path I’m guided on and intending it for the highest good, without expectation.

So, I’m big time celebrating each part of the journey and being grateful for what IS now.

This week on the 26th I was also reminded that Joy’s ashes had come home to me that day – you’ll remember she departed two years ago on Summer Solstice and heralded Astrid coming in one year later the same time. This had me remembering our time in Montana in the Magick Bus, reminiscing with my dear friend Christopher about that potent experience he assisted with and the magickal journey he took us on, and so many full circle experiences tied in with my book.

It was beautiful to teach a Reiki workshop last weekend in the middle of this and that the Gratitude Giveaway created such potent and beautiful energy for everyone who joined and was touched by it. I was even surprised by the giving part of the challenge, bringing gifts to me through it that truly touched my heart and were so meaningful. Thank you dearly! You know who you are. You really moved me. But in general, I was so moved by everything that came through with that and the shares and the shifts people experienced.

And meaningful is what I hope the recipients will feel in the gifts I send that are special crystal/stone jewelry, crystals/stones in a few cases, and other sweet things that all have purpose and dear connection for me. It was my intent that only things close to me would be given and would add to the collective thread we wove with the journey, and will continue weaving.

As mentioned, yesterday I got all the gifts gathered and all of the shipping material, and now that my book is done I’m working on packaging them up to get out by end of week. 17 gifts is a lot to wrap and prepare, so please bear with me. I trust in divine timing and so far I do love the timing of everything all connected.

And to add to the celebrating, Dave and I are hosting a Full Moon drum circle, vegan potluck for our Meetup group tomorrow evening to immerse in the energy. We had to make it on a night people could come, hence within the window, rather than on the night itself. That feels connected and potent also with the ending of this phase of my book and literally in a way I can’t share right now, but there are so many cross-over connections with my book and things that take place in it that happen in real life. So fun!

We also have a couple of events we’re going to on Saturday, so the fun continues as we close out June.

Next week will be a fresh start on phase 3 for me of my book, but will also hold July 4th independence and freedom day – which also happens to coincide with the day my closest Grandpa to me transitioned 7 years ago who supported my creativity and also mirrored it.

July 4th is also the last day to pre-register at discount for the Reiki 3 Master Teacher Workshop to be held on Saturday, August 25th. You will still be able to register until August 11th, but at full registration price.

Here is the link for that: Summer 2018 Reiki Workshops

And don’t forget that you can still register for the Fall Equinox workshop with Laura and I until September 15th. We have 4 spaces remaining, with a few people looking into registering, so keep that in mind, as we can only accommodate 12 to keep this an intimate gathering.

Here is that link: Living a More Magickal Life

I shared that on Summer Solstice, my first Iris bloomed that I planted myself. Then a second bloomed with the Full Moon energy approaching and yesterday, the morning of the Full Moon, a third popped out, creating a Trinity of energy in celebration of this day and my birth number as a 3. There’s a fourth on the way too! Yay!

This is a photo of the two, right before the third opened. I’ll try to get another when I’m outside again with all.

Feeling grateful for so many layers of things seen and unseen, including the mouse that ran by my office, as I completed my book this morning – again so timely!