I grew up writing stories. I filled up notebooks and floppy disks. I wrote during car rides and Chemistry classes. In high school, most of it was Harry Potter fanfiction, but I published an original fantasy series in my early twenties. I completed five other novels that were never published. My life blood for years was writing, storytelling, editing, and reviewing books.

About seven years ago, I experienced a huge life shift as I went through a divorce, deconstruction, spiritual upheaval, a sexual awakening, and a move overseas. Since then, I've started two novels and got about halfway through each one before my motivation trickled and I stopped. Then I bought a house, had a baby, created a new career path, and started a business.

There were times when I thought, Am I ever going to write a story again? Was that simply a passion of childhood? Am I going to become an old, boring person now?

Have you been here before? I know I'm not the only one. You might be wondering when you're going to get back to drawing. Maybe you're stressing because you haven't worked on your book in a month. Or maybe you really want to go to the pottery class you signed up for, but you're totally braindead after 40 hours of work each week.

I get it, I've been there. About two years ago, I was a new mom, tired of being home so much because of the pandemic and brimming with creative energy. I didn't feel called to write stories though. It felt like too much screen time, and I had to take frequent breaks because I was taking care of a baby.

The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron and Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert inspired me to be intentional with my creativity, but also not take it too seriously. I used my creative gifts to start a blog about spirituality and mindfulness, share a love for color and drawing with my daughter, scrapbook dozens of Polaroid pictures, and experiment in the kitchen for delicious meals.

Last year I got really into creating collages, mainly for the purpose of analyzing my personal symbols, themes, and underworkings. In my coaching, I love designing my website, graphics, and downloads.

Then about a month ago, I started a new story, and I'm loving it. I never speak about stories this early because I've abandoned many more stories than have been completed. But it feels right to let you know that creativity is always present: you are innately creative, but the time you spend actually creating will ebb and flow. Everything in between creation can be inspiration.

Whether you're creating or not, you can always be creative. You always have the choice to live a creative life, to step out of your box, to disappear into your fantasies, and to mold and shape something new.

Are you ready to do that today? We can work together one-on-one for six months to develop a mindful, creative practice and accomplish your goals. Schedule a call to chat about it here.​

Being present and mindful may mean you step away from solitary, immersive projects, like writing books, to ones that can be done while watching a two-year-old. Or it may mean you're so entranced with day to day life, you can't imagine writing about a different one.

Being present can also mean you choose to be present to the creative force within you. Ideas are born inside you for a reason, and following that urge can be really rewarding.

​Amie McNee reminded me the other day that creatives aren't athletes. You don't need to train every single day to win an Olympic medal. Books can be written in a matter of weeks, born from a furious urge to remember a dream. Songs can be written in fifteen minutes after percolating in your brain for a few hours.

So, don't think inspiration and creativity is beyond you because you're not disciplined or invested enough. An idea doesn't need your discipline, it wants your passion.

I have advice for creative people, especially writers, but that's not quite my place anymore. Instead of giving advice, I want to inspire you to keep creating, to be intentional, and to not take yourself too seriously. No matter where you are on your creative journey, you're still on the journey.

If you want one-on-one support during this journey, I offer 6 month coaching packages. We will work on developing a mindfulness practice that supports and inspires your creativity. Then we'll use life coaching tools to bring your goals to fruition. Whether it's a daily creative practice, a published book, a recorded album, or a collection of paintings, I'd love to help in this process of co-creation. You can book a call on my calendar here:

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Emily Loveall, Life Coach

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