TREASURE MAPPING (!) is one of my most popular classes and we’re doing it again live-on-the-phone, on July 10.
If you sometimes struggle with knowing what to do next, to make your dream real – you will FALL IN LOVE with this process.
I use it all the freaking time.? It?s what helped me build my creative business and quit my day job, buy my dream loft, travel around the world and live a happy and fulfilling life.
If you can’t join us for the live part today that is 100% OK, you won’t miss anything. Today’s video class will be recorded and ALL of the magic of it will be available to you inside our Circle.
Investing your time and money in something that helps you feel happier is 100% MAGIC.
The Love Your Life Creative Journal Class is specially designed to help you PLAY your way to a happier life.
If you?re new to journaling, this will help you find the MAGIC in it.
If you?re already journaling, this will help you deepen your practice and find MORE magic.
It?s got 2 parts:
90 minute video class (play along live or use the recording later)
playbook of deeply insightful journaling prompts, unique simple and effective energy healing processes and hand-drawn, heart-felt mandalas
Our goal: Happiness! Joy! Waking up in the morning being enthusiastic about starting a new day!
We?ll get there by: Gently shifting things around in your inner world, dissolving the obstacles to joy and building new places where delight can hang out in your world.
Things we will NOT be doing: telling yourself to turn that frown upside down, being all Pollyanna about it or forcing yourself to make a bunch of life changes that you don?t really feel like making.
Love Your Life is NOT about working your ass off to make your life into something it’s not so you can love it.? Or about trying to force yourself to be grateful for what you?ve got.
It?s about healing, transformation and possibility, approached with creativity, imagination and play (and glitter pens).
My students report that doing this kind of work helps them feel more whole.
Because it brings you into deeper alignment with your inner wholeness which is the ultimate source of joy.
I can’t wait to share this with you!
If you ARE planning to attend live, you do need to sign up by noon (Central Standard North America time) so you can get your account set up? in the Creative Dream Circle so you can attend.
If you are NOT planning to attend live, sign up any time today!? I promise you get ALL of the magic of it – this class is deeply healing if you are there live or not.
Feeling Cranky About Wanting To Feel Happy.? That is the title of a post I wrote yesterday in the Creative Dream Circle.
The past month I have been ridiculously happy.? Doing the energy work of preparing for our? Love Your Life Creative Journal Class was amazing and I can’t wait to share this beautiful experience with everyone tomorrow.
But yesterday, with the class just 2 days away, I started to get crankier.? Then I started worrying because it felt so out of integrity to be promoting the Love your Life class when I’m feeling all cranky.
So I took cranky with a layer of worry into the Un-Sticking Station in the Creative Dream Circle – which soothes, heals and transforms fear, worry and doubt.
In the Un-Sticking Station I discovered that my cranky self was worried that there wouldn’t be room for her anymore.? That she could no longer exist, if I want to teach a class about delight and joy.
She thought I wanted to sweep her under the rug.? Which is not true.
What she needs, to be happy, is permission to be cranky.? Not that that means she’ll actually BE cranky but she needs to know that there is space for her to feel what she feels.? She needed cranky to have a space in the Circle, to be a part of the class.? To be recognized out loud.
So, I wrote the Being Cranky About Wanting To Feel Happy post and made space for cranky (and afraid and annoyed and everyone else) to join us in the Love Your Life Creative Journal Class and something started to shift.
True happiness is not for the faint of heart.
In order to move towards more joy, happiness and delight you have to deal with what blocks happiness.
Fears that you are not good enough, that you don’t deserve it, that it’s impossible.? Worry about what could happen if you become so happy that you stop caring about problems and you life falls apart.
Or what if you do become truly happy and then you lose it… wouldn’t it hurt too much to know how good it could be, and then to not be able to get back there?
Yeah,? happiness is terrifying.
But this is what it’s all about.? Setting an intention to move towards something.? Then clearing out the obstacles that are in the way.
What I love most about the Love Your Life Creative Journal Class is how we’re clearing the obstacles out of the way in the funnest ways possible: colouring and creative journaling and imaginative playful energy work.
Making it fun makes it engaging.
The more engaging it is, the longer you stay in the process.
The longer you stay in the process, the more stuff you clear.
The more stuff you clear, the easier it is to step forward.
Miracles happen when you stay in the process.
I hope you’re going to join us.
If you?re new to journaling, this will help you find the MAGIC in it.
If you?re already journaling, this will help you deepen your practice and find MORE magic.
We?ll get there by: Gently shifting things around in your inner world, dissolving the obstacles to joy and building new places where delight can hang out in your world.
Things we will NOT be doing: telling yourself to turn that frown upside down, being all Pollyanna about it or forcing yourself to make a bunch of life changes that you don?t really feel like making.
Love Your Life is NOT about working your ass off to make your life into something it’s not so you can love it.? Or about trying to force yourself to be grateful for what you?ve got.
It?s about healing, transformation and possibility, approached with creativity, imagination and play (and glitter pens).
My students report that doing this kind of work helps them feel more whole.
Because it brings you into deeper alignment with your inner wholeness which is the ultimate source of joy.
You don’t have time.? That there are so many *more important* things that you should be doing.
And you can’t afford it anyway, I mean money is for important things, not for something so frivolous as trying to figure out how to LOVE your LIFE.
PLUS if you somehow magically found the time and money – it wouldn’t work anyway.? Seriously, who actually LOVES their life?? I mean, this is the real world not some fairy tale.? Grow up already.
The status quo is the status quo for a reason.
Sigh.
Well, as you may have guessed, I do love my life.?
And when I think of the status quo frankly I think of people who work in offices who have to go out for drinks after work to try to numb the pain of living in the status quo.
The idea that you can’t create a life you can LOVE is not crazy.? The status quo is crazy.
Here’s the secret: Loving your life doesn’t take what you think it will take.
For so many years, I thought things needed to change before I could love my life (and love mySELF – you don’t actually love one without the other).
I thought I had to make enough money as a creative, to not be a starving artist and not be working at some day job.? I wasn’t sure which one stiffed my creativity more: being broke or having to spend my time at a job that didn’t light me up.? All I knew was I was not happy either way.
I thought I had to be different somehow.? Smarter and more together, prettier, healthier, in better shape, more generous, more successful.?
I definitely thought the people around me had to change.?That they would have to believe in me 100% and support me in my dreams and be nicer and do more of what I wanted them to do and less of what they were doing.
And then, once I had those things, I would most definitely love my life.
BUT these things were all impossible.? So there I was: stuck.
It turns out, I couldn’t have been more wrong.
Though I did sort out #1 on my list, it did NOT happen the way I thought it would.
I spent a lot of time making art and waiting for success to come to me. I assumed that success would just naturally come if I deserved it and that surely I deserved it, so I just kept making art instead of learning how to effectively create a successful creative career.
Once I shifted my approach, it wasn’t long before I had what I wanted.
But I didn’t figure out how to shift my approach until AFTER I gathered up the courage to love my life.
As for #2 and #3 – well they still haven’t changed!
When I think back to the me who needed other people to stop being assholes before she could be happy – well, I don’t know if I want to laugh or cry about that.
When I think back to the me who never felt good enough I definitely do want to cry.
That’s why I do the work I do now.
After learning how to shift out of that I knew I had to share the magic.
In the Love Your Life Creative Journal class I combine effective energy healing with fun, insightful creative journaling prompts plus transformational mandalas for you to colour and adore as you move through the process of falling in love with your life.
You’ll be surprised to discover how many things there are to be delighted about in your life RIGHT NOW!
Class starts this Thursday, June 12.
It’s a heart-first creative healing process about how to love your life from the INSIDE out.
I can show you how to navigate the process.
I can make it fun and creative and magical.
But it’s up to YOU to gather up the courage to begin.? To stop listening to the nay-sayers and the inner (and outer!) critics and make the commitment to your own happiness, joy and well-being.
I’m not going to teach you about joy in this class, I’m going to create a container where you can get exactly what you need to move forward with your unique relationship with joy, on your unique life path.? This could mean:
a healing
a new perspective on what joy is
an idea that totally changes your life
permission to be happier, right now
encouragement to transform the limiting belief that is keeping you from being happier, right now
I never, ever, dictate what you’re supposed to get out of the class or force you onto a specific path.
Because it’s too beautiful to instead offer the thing you didn’t even know you needed, but now that you have it, it’s like you feel more whole.
Sometimes people get frustrated about this.? They want more direction and clear instructions.? But as soon as they start to play with it they see – there is freedom and possibility and, magically enough, they always find exactly what they need.
This is because my “classes” are actually energy containers for healing & transformation.? This is why my students are always telling me that my classes help them feel more whole.
This is the thing I’m proudest about, about my work.? That I have learned how to create these containers of magic + possibility so effectively.
Also, it means instead of spending lots of time doing lots of traditional “class planning” I get to spend my time working with the energies of happiness, joy and love.? That’s pretty rad.
And as a result, I joined a choir, I go biking every day (!), I’m having adventures, I’m making art that lights me up.
Most remarkably: Suddenly I’ve got a steady stream of new members signing up for the Creative Dream Circle without feeling like I’m working at marketing.
Not only is being happy awesome, joy is actually a superpower.
Joy magnifies and magnetizes.? Joy is the gas pedal for your dream machine.
So the happier you are, the more stuff you end up having to be happy about because you become a SUPERHERO OF JOY.
Joy is more powerful than obstacles.? Just like water is more powerful than stone, joy will wear down obstacles, smooth out rough patches and flow you towards a whole ocean of delight.
I mean – gosh! Imagine letting joy wear down the rough patches for you, instead of trying to power through or move boulders or figure it all out in your head.
It’s revolutionary.? It’s amazing.? It’s actually what we’re wired for.
And even though all this stuff is changing in my outer world, it’s totally not about the outer stuff.
Setting out to make changes in your life so that you can feel happier is a total drag.
Forcing yourself to play? Not fun.
Shaming yourself into making time for the things you love? Gross.
The frustration of trying to do more happy-things but they somehow always feel out of reach? So painful.
The solution is, of course, to focus on the INSIDE.?
Gently shift things around.? Carefully carve out new spaces for joy to hang out.?Send out clear invitations for joy to come and visit and maybe even shack up with you.
This is my Love Your Life project.
Allowing the changes that happen in your outer life to come out of the inner changes… gracefully and EASEfully and at the exact perfect pace for you.
A funny thing about the universe is that it can bring you something that is much, much better than the thing you think you want/need.
Because you decide “I want/need this” from your HEAD.? Your HEAD, cut off from your heart, your creativity, your inner wisdom, your power, your purpose…. and your HEAD, as beautiful and wonderful as it is, doesn’t know the whole story.
This is why this kind of work makes you somehow feel more whole.? Because it’s bringing you into deeper alignment with your inner wholeness.
It’s brings you more than you asked for and helps you be happier than you think you can be.
I’ve been wanting to share some of the super-inspiring stories of amazing things that happen inside the Creative Dream Circle but I haven’t known how to do it. Working with dreams is working with heart – so vulnerable and delicate. It’s no small thing that people trust me with their dreams and I’m not going to betray that trust by trying to force anyone into the limelight.
But some of these stories keep tapping me on the shoulder, demanding to be shared.
So I’ve decided to share bits and pieces – without naming names or sharing photos or anything like that. So people’s privacy is protected, their dream remains sheltered from public view, while the essence of the story can come out and play.
I know what my creative dream is and what the soul of it is, but I’m lacking the joy and flow to do it with ease and happiness. It’s still loaded with fear for me. I need to write and I want to do it but boy do I delay it every single time. That blank page is tough! Would your Creative Dream Circle help with that?
That question really hit me in the heart.? So many creatives know exactly what they want to be doing, but their dreams are, as this writer put it, LOADED with fear.
I hate knowing that there are people out there in this situation!? So much so that I’ve made it my life’s work to help people out of this situation.
Writer’s block, like all creative blocks, is an emotional block.
Facing the blank page is terrifying.? Going after your dream is terrifying. Starting is a terrifyingly vulnerable thing.
The secret?? Meeting your fear with creativity and love.
My response:
Yes! The Circle will definitely help with that. Fear is the biggest obstacle to dreaming, so I have a lot of material about it in the Circle. In the Creative Dream Incubator course (which you get in have circle) there is an in-depth module about how to work with fear effectively. Plus there is an “un-sticking station” to get quick help any time you get stuck. I use that almost every day.
It’s totally natural to be afraid, I find that learning how to work creatively with fear is one of the most important skills to learn to bring any dream to life.
She joined the Circle and one of the first things she did there was listen to my hour long audio class on How Meeting Fear With Creativity And Love Means You Never Have To Stay Stuck.
And then: she started writing!
She found the cure for writer’s block and she started writing!? This is from one of her first posts in the Circle:
Hello! I’m brand new here and decided this morning to get right into it by listening to the recording of “meeting fear with creativity and love”. I found it extremely helpful [removed for privacy]. I went on to write the piece I wanted to write…
She went on to write the piece she wanted to write.
Being un-blocked and in the flow really is that accessible.
Does this mean our heroine is never going to suffer from writer’s block, ever again?
Of course not.
She’ll have to keep meeting fear with creativity and love and learning new techniques for transforming fear and doubt and all the things that hold her back.
This is the secret to bringing any dream to life: to stay in the process of transforming the blocks.? To meet them there on the blank page – every day or every week.? To keep showing up no matter how hard your inner critics start to fight back.
I can promise that if you stay with it, it does get easier.
When I first left my day-job to be a full time Creative Dream Incubator, I had a major fear freak-out at least once a week.? But now?? In my fourth year of doing this full time?? I’ve had ONE fear freak-out all year. And it wasn’t even major.
You can transform your inner landscape.? You can make more space for freedom and glee and creativity and delight and trust and dreams come true.? You do not have to let fear stomp all over your dream garden.
If you’re wondering if this is right for you I thought I’d write a little more about it.
This is a class on creative inspiration, that’s Creative In~SPIRIT~ation.
It’s for experienced artists and total non-artists – either way, you will learn delightful & amazing new things.
In order to explore all of the possibilities of Creative In~SPIRIT~ation you’re going to work with an intention for your cards.
This is so you can explore inspiration through the lens of your intention, which, as you will see, teaches you all sorts of wicked cool things about both inspiration and your intention.? Working in this way with inspiration and intention magnifies them both.
The first part of this class is a self-paced series of short, guided, creative meditations and journaling prompts.? This is where you work with your intention for your cards and discover whole new worlds of magic and delight.
You’ll do this work in your own time, and of course you can share your discoveries and insights, and see what other people are learning, in our online classroom.
Because I teach from the intersection of creativity and spirituality, the class is very non-linear and? I’m not going to force you to go in a certain direction. ? You will have your own unique experience and adventure, based on where you’re at, where you’re going and what you need right now.
The beautiful thing about playing with intention in this way is that you get what YOU need from the experience.
Working with inspiration and intention together is very healing and transformative.
The second part is where we scoop up all the things you learned in the first part, and put them onto your gorgeous inspiration cards, so that you can hold onto the magic of it all.
As I said, this is for experienced artists and total non-artists alike.? You’ll get something valuable out of this either way, each group will just approach the second part a little differently.
If you’re an experienced artist you know how to make your cards!? You can look over my suggestions and ideas if you want, but I’m not going to get in your way and tell you how they “should” be done – play and experiment and work your magic and we’ll all cheer you on in the online classroom.
If you’re a total non-artist and aren’t sure if you can make your own cards – I will share so many easy ideas, tips and tricks you’ll be a pro in no time.
This is NOT one of those classes where we all come out with art that looks the same!? I encourage you to find your unique creative voice, not learn how to copy mine.
Even though the art I love to make is very simple & child-like, I have university level education in how to make all kinds of art so I really can answer any questions you’ve got about making your cards.? (I have a degree in fashion design from one of the best design schools in Canada.? As part of my four years as a fashion student, I was taking life drawing, technical drawing and visual communications classes.)
What I WILL NOT share with you are the harsh critiques and “you have to do it this way” attitudes of university level art classes.
Everyone will be celebrated in this class.
It’s about CREATIVE PLAY and INSPIRATION and LEARNING about yourself and CREATING new space inside you for inspiration to live.
It’s going to make you feel inspired and lifted up.? It’s going to help you believe in yourself more.? It’s going to help you find your creative joy.
One last thing: The Circle.
It seems like I have not quite explained this clearly, as I have been getting a lot of emails from people asking if I would run this as a separate class, as they don’t feel ready to sign up for a whole year of stuff.
When I put all of my classes inside the Creative Dream Circle I lowered the price dramatically.? If I ran this class on its own it would be $100.?
This way you pay $100 for this one class – but then you have the option of joining in on anything else I do for the next year without paying anything.? When you join the Circle you get access to the ultimate Smorgasbord Of Dreams.? Feel free to pile your plate high with treats, or just try one or two things.? You’ll find that every item on the menu is worth the cost of the whole Circle, so there’s no pressure to do it all.
You get to pick and choose which of these to play with, to create your very own customized Creative Dream Support Systems.
This isn’t a marketing gimmick.? When I added up the price of each individual thing that I put in the Circle, it was over $1300 – not even including the new classes I am going to keep adding this year.
It takes quite a bit of behind the scenes admin time/energy/money to run each class individually and I really want to simplify everything.? Plus, my work changes people’s lives so I want to make it more accessible.? So, that’s why you get a whole year of stuff.
Growing a business is hard and sometimes in that hardness I lose sight of why I’m even doing this.
I teach open-hearted, creative people how to live a RIDICULOUSLY inspired life, filled to the brim with dreams come true.
I teach what I teach because this stuff makes me happy.
This stuff makes me deliciously and consistently and reliably happy.? Which is kind of a miracle.
And the times in my life when I did NOT have this stuff have been pretty bleak.
I didn’t set out to become accredited as a spiritual teacher because I wanted to teach.? I was taking those classes it because I needed them for me.
I needed healing.
Even though I wouldn’t have used these words at that time: I desperately needed to find a way to live in tune with my own creative soul.
First, art and design helped (I have a degree in fashion design, half of a degree in interior design and a decade working as a textile artist) but were not enough on its own.
Then, spirituality helped (I am an accredited spiritual teacher/counselor and energy healer and spent years leading healing & meditation groups and classes) but was not enough on its own.
It’s only when I bring it all together and stay engaged in my creative AND spiritual practice that I am truly, like right down to the core, happy.
Without my creative dreams, I shrivel up.
I need this stuff.? This stuff changed my life.? I teach it so I can share it so it can change more lives.
And because my biggest dream is to live in a world where everyone has the option to live with their dreams.
I know we’re a long ways off from this.
I know this is a huge huge tremendously huge job and I am only one person but I’m doing what I can with what I’ve got to move towards this.
Just imagine what happens when everyone lives in tune with their hearts, when everyone believes in their creative purpose, when everyone on this planet feels safe enough to dream.
That’s why I do this.
Do you know that I do energy healing for the Creative Dream Circle and all of its members?
I do this often. Dreaming is about healing, and transformation and moving towards your inherent wholeness.? It’s a big job and it’s never really done.
I have so much love for the people I play with in the Circle.
I check in every day.? I send love and energetic healing attunements.? I offer support and encouragement and ideas.
Love for the dreamers and their dreams fuels my work.
That photo above is a chakra energy healing I was doing for the entire Circle, earlier this week.? The day after I did that members started reporting tiny miracles happening in their lives.
This stuff works.
I can’t make any promises about timing, like how fast you can have your wildest dream come true, but I can promise to make it easier and more fun to stay in the process of getting there.? I can show you how to make the ride smoother.? I can help you rev up your power source.
The Creative with Money e-course starts today.? (There is no end date, since this is an adventure of healing & possibility – everyone is going to work through it in the timing that works for them.)
I know exploring money can feel scary/boring/superficial/sad and it’s natural to want to not look at it.
But not looking at it is not helping you.? You know that.
And healing money stucks is absolutely liberating!? Healing money stucks fertilizes your dreams and makes them grow like crazy.
The Creative with Money class is happening inside the Creative Dream Circle.? So when you sign up – you get a whole year of follow-up support.? With the tools and resources you’ll get in the Circle, one year from today you could be living inside a miracle, which is how I feel about my life right now and let me tell you – it’s the best thing ever.
The Creative Dream Circle is positively oozing with warmth and love and healing and possibility and support and creativity.? All the things that make exploring money easier and more interesting and more fun.
My grandparents: My grandmother made these giant loaves of bread every year for Thanksgiving, to show what she was grateful for.
Yesterday it was four years since my grandmother died.? My mom posted some photos on Facebook and I was all ” four years, has it been that long” and “no way it’s been four whole years already” at the same time.
It’s really hard to measure missing someone in years.
I thought back to four years ago, and how devastated I was.? My grandmother was 89 and in excellent health.? She was independent and creative.? She was living a full life and we were planning a big bash for her 90th.? Her death was very sudden.
I know everybody says this after people are gone, but she really was the best person ever.
And I was sad for me for losing her, but I was also sad for the world for losing her.
I was lucky enough to grow up with all four of my grandparents, and she was the last one I lost.? It changed things for me in a way I did not understand at the time.
It was my grandmother’s death that planted the seeds for me to leave my cushy office job and set out to live my life more fully on my own terms.
At that point I was already leading my own creativity workshops, doing spiritual healing & counseling and leading healing and meditation circles – all while working at my day job.? By then I had worked my way down to 4 days/week and was absolutely blissed out to have the opportunity to be doing what I wanted to do, even though I wasn’t able to do it full time.
At that time, I didn’t think I would EVER do my creativespiritual work as my full time gig.
But after my grandmother died it felt like something changed.
Frankly, it felt like time to grow up.? Which maybe makes sense – I was about to turn 36.
Though she was not the first person I have lost, her death really shook me up and reminded me of how precious life is and not to waste any of it.
And that happiness I was feeling about “only” working 4 days a week so I could spend 3 days devoted to my creative and spiritual adventures started to turn to annoyance.
It was only three months later that I moved down to 3 days a week at my job, and let my boss know that I would be leaving by the end of the year.
No one believed me.
It seemed to unlikely that someone would give up the security of a job with a generous pension and benefits package to strike out on their own to teach people about the magic of glitter and positive thinking (which is how my co-workers described my early workshops).
But I was determined. Not because I wanted to build a big business or become rich or internet-famous, but because I wanted to live my real life.
I realised that life was too precious to spend it doing anything other than what feels TRUE for me.? And I liked my job, but I couldn’t say that it felt TRUE, down to the depths of my being, for me to spend my days doing that work.
No matter how uncertain life as an entrepreneur is, it feels TRUE.
So yesterday I was taking that in.
How much has changed.? How much I have changed.? How I feel about my life today.
Yesterday I wasn’t feeling super-great.? So I was taking it easy.? Drawing mandalas, re-arranging my work schedule to suit my energy, extra meditation, lavender tea lattes.
Four years ago, if I wasn’t feeling super-great I’d have been drinking extra coffee and maybe get a cupcake or something as a treat to get myself through the day.
Pursuing your dreams is a risk.? There is no doubt about that.
But I think we don’t think enough about what kind of risk you take in NOT going for it.?
I was imagining what I’d be like today if I was still in that job.? My whole body kind of tenses up.? I’d feel further away from my purpose and my creativity.? I wouldn’t be practicing extreme self-care as a way of living.? I wouldn’t have the Dream Loft.? I wouldn’t feel fulfilled by my work the way I do now.
That’s not who I want to be.
At the time, I thought it was all about money.? About how I needed my job because I didn’t know how to make enough money to support myself without it.
I thought the life I really wanted was impossible because of money.
In hindsight, that’s ridiculous.
It wasn’t about money.? It was about courage, and learning to trust myself and my creativity.? It was about stretching my comfort zone.? It was about how much more powerful I am when I am living in integrity with my inner truth.
And I promise: the life you really want is possible.? But it’s not going to come to you, you have to go to it.
I can promise you that in this course you?ll meet money in a totally different way ? this is not like anything else out there.? You’ll see new possibilities for how to live your REAL life.
And I can promise to be there with you on the journey.? I?ll be active in the class forum, answering your questions, helping you get through the stuck places and cheering you on.
The Creative With Money e-course? happens inside the Creative Dream Circle.?? Once you join the Circle, you’re in for a whole year.? This means you get this plus ALL of the other courses I run all year long – for just $100.
One of my favourite parts of my job is supporting amazing people in bringing amazing (often IMPOSSIBLE) dreams to life.
My clients and Circle members are brilliant bright stars who are making a big difference in the world.
I want to share more of their stories here because they are so super inspiring, and today I am super excited to share Corie Weaver‘s story about her “impossible dream”.
?Tell us about yourself!
I didn?t grow up planning to be a writer. I was never one of those kids scribbling stories in a notebook, or submitting to the school paper. But I?ve always been a voracious reader.
A few years ago, I realized I had some of my own stories to tell. I?ve been lucky enough to have participated in some fabulous crit groups, and to have attended the Taos Toolbox Workshop.
I love reading. I love stories of adventure, stories that grab me and won?t let me go. Stories that will stay with me for years. Old and new, paper books, digital and comics ? anything with a good story is fair game. And I love writing, telling stories, creating worlds and people and histories? and then doing terrible things to them!
My background is in medieval history (Spanish manuscripts of the apocalypse, if you were wondering), but as I?m fond of being able to pay the bills, I work at our local university, as well some freelance work as a web designer. I live in Las Vegas, New Mexico (the smaller, older, and much quieter one) with my husband and our two cats and two dogs. We travel as much as possible, and are active with our local animal rescue group.
Tell us about your dream!
To write stories full time, reach young people and their parents, and to create a platform for more stories than I can personally write to reach more young people!
Dreaming Robot Press focuses on publishing science fiction and fantasy novels for a Young Adult and Middle Grade audience.
We believe stories shape our reality.
We believe this is especially important for stories that we are exposed to growing up.
We believe novels can be excellent in both their stories and in the effects they have.
In order to ensure that all children can find models to identify with, we?re committed to publishing stories about a diverse range of characters and situations.
Today there are more options than ever for a writer to explore. If you have a great young adult or middle grade science fiction or fantasy manuscript and you?re considering going indie vs a small press, we?d love to talk with you.
Right now we?re very interested in receiving young adult/middle grade novels featuring strong female heroines, without a romantic subplot.
How has the Circle helped you with your dream? What are you doing now that you are in the Circle that you weren’t doing before you joined?
I never really believed I could make a living from my writing.
As I’ve been working deeper and deeper into the heart of my dream, I’ve realized that I’ve been telling stories to myself as a younger girl. And then with the help of LOTS of dreaming and journaling, and talks with friends, I uncovered something deeper that had bothered me.
In the world of Science Fiction and Fantasy, there aren’t a lot of young adult and middle grade books for girls that don’t have a romantic sub-plot. Its as if we’re telling girls that sure, they can go off on adventures, they can have a ‘hero’s journey’ – but its not complete until they find true love, or something like it. Even great books, with totally kick-ass heroines seemed to always have some level of romantic tension.
And I thought… I can do something about that.
Years ago I worked at a small press, and now in the world of digital publishing, a lot of the gates are opening for writers to bring their work out. I’ve started a small, electronic first, publishing house to focus on girl-positive young adult and middle grade science fiction and fantasy. Self-publishing is great, but there’s a number of hurdles that are easier tackled in a group 🙂
What’s your favourite part of the Circle?
The playdates!! I seldom have a chance to listen in realtime, but I love going back and making that special time for myself and my dream to get closer and reconnect.
I feel like I’m glowing for days after.
I’ve been known to run through the recordings again when I need a pick-me-up mid-month, and I’ll get a whole different set of insights.
One of my favourite parts of my job is supporting amazing people in bringing amazing (often IMPOSSIBLE) dreams to life.
My clients and Circle members are brilliant bright stars who are making a big difference in the world.
I want to share more of their stories here because they are so super inspiring, so I’m starting today with Angel Sullivan, who generously shares her story and some LUSCIOUS pages from her creative journals.
?Tell us about yourself!
hey gorgeous, i’m angel… and i’m a beauty, meaning, and depth junkie {all-together now “hi, angel”}.
i’m always looking for the light in the depths & for the deeper connection. i talk a lot about connection to self, Self, Mama & others… and have little to no patience for small talk & surface interactions.
i’ve been creating simple & soulful websites for solopreneurs for the last three years & before that worked for various companies in IT Support/Training roles.
now, i’m gearing up to shift my focus to bringing more soul to solopreneur. in other words, i want solopreneurs (everyone, really) to step back from all the marketing messages & ‘expert advice’ we’re being spoon fed… and instead to remember how to tap into our own inner gurus for the answers we seek & for the decisions that need made (this is what i love about Andrea’s work. she consistently points us back to ourselves, and that’s where the real answers are).
the primary way i’m going to do this right now is by creating a way for us to do luminous communion together (you & me = serious magick!). we’ll spend the day (plus some follow up time) bringing *you* back into your business so that it’s drenched in heart + soul *and* supports you financially. if you’re interested in hearing more, you can get the details here.
i believe that doing this will create a shift in the consciousness of our species that leads to a more just, peaceful, and equitable world for all of us (humans, plants, and animals alike… not to mention all of our living waterways etc… as well).
Tell us about your dream!
before this year, my dream has been to figure out my dream!
now, my dream (since i’ve gotten more clarity) is to help solopreneurs remember how to access the magickal & luminescent parts of themselves & bring that into their businesses so that their depth (their big truth) can spread out from their businesses into the larger world (and feed their souls and their bank accounts at the same time!).
How has the Circle helped you with your dream? What are you doing now that you are in the Circle that you weren’t doing before you joined?
my dream is pretty freaking big.
so it needs some pretty solid structures & foundations to support it.
two of the ways i build those structures are to create maps & collages. i never really did anything like either of these (at least in the ways that i do now!) before joining Andrea’s Circle.
i never would’ve thought that activities that seemed so simple would lead to the insights and clarity that they do. but it never fails. they always do.
what i find most helpful about The Circle is that the group calls (the Playdates & the HOLYdays) always have this amazingly luscious energy about them. this energy that i just cannot seem to conjure on my own. and when i listen in on the calls, i become part of that energy. i feed into it, it feeds me, and we have this gorgeous regenerative & interactive cycle that transports me to a place within me, where the magick just freely flows.
What’s your favourite part of the Circle?
that’s not an easy question given all the luscious resources & connections available!
i think when it comes right down to it, though, my very favorite part of the circle is knowing that i can participate as much or as little as i am able / would like to… and that regardless of my participation level, i always feel included and welcomed.. and i always benefit.
so if i’m able to be on a call live, rock on. if i’m not, i can look forward to the recording & playsheets. either way, i feel like i’m part of the circle, and never feel slighted for not participating in the way someone else would like me to.
(this is such a big deal to me because so many other group facilitators {in my experience} tend to be so concerned that folks participate in the way that *they* want to happen, that i end up feeling guilty or otherwise less-than if i don’t connect in the way that i’m expected to. blegh.)
Let’s peek inside Angel’s journals!!
I am so grateful that Angel was open to sharing some photos of her creative journals.? We go pretty darn DEEP and PERSONAL with our work in the Circle, and most members (understandably!) prefer not to share such delicate work in a public space.
So it’s always a special treat when we get to take a peek….
Since I’m offering all of this for one low price when you join the Creative Dream Circle, you can take small bites from here or there, focusing only on the parts that inspire you right now.? Or you can totally pig out on creative awesomeness – your choice.
Creative Dream Incubator, Creative With Money and Treasure-Mapping all have links to their description pages because these are all classes I have run before.? The other classes listed here are brand sparklin’ new, with longer descriptions to come…
My master-class in the art of bringing ANY dream to life – with creativity, sparkle and joy.? (This is almost over, but you’ll still get all the course material whenever you join, so you can grow your dreams at your own pace.)
Harness the superpowers of your creativity, imagination and sense of PLAY to help you bring more ease, flow and freedom into your relationship with money.
This class has been called “*so* full of brilliant I?m still seeing stars and glitter, hours later!”
Bringing your creative magic into how you do money changes EVERYTHING.? You’re going to love how this class opens up new possibilities – right before your eyes.
May 13: Make Your Own Creative Genius Inspiration Cards
Inspiration cards are the bomb but your very own unique-and-just-for-you inspiration cards? Pure genius.? I made this short video about this for the Creative Dream Circle:
In this class I’ll lead you through the whole process of creating gorgeous inspiring cards, including how to find the Exact Perfect Thing for your cards to say by exploring the essential qualities of Living An Inspired Life.?
You’ll create a deck of deeply inspiration cards that speaks the language of your soul.
June 5: Love Your Life Creative Journal Course
A Book Of Inspiration, made just for you.
In this class you’ll call in and activate Inspiration, Joy, Enthusiasm and Delight.? I thought about calling this one Creative Journal Your Way To Happiness or Creative JOYnaling.
A treasure-map is like a vision board on 100% organic super good for you steroids.? We map out how to get from where you are to where you want to be – using meditation, intuition and creative magic.
August 5: The Magic Journal Creative Journal Course
A Book of Magic, made just for you.
In this class you’ll be diving deeper into unique and powerful journaling processes for healing and transformation.
September 15: The Mandala Journal
My How To Draw Mandalas blog post is one of the most popular and well-loved things I’ve ever written.? In this class we’ll dive deeper into the magic, joy & healing potential of playing with mandalas.
You’ll get 30 unique & insightful prompts for working with Mandalas in your journal.
October 23: The Superhero Journal Creative Journal Course
In this class you’ll be exploring your own Superhero nature AKA your Creative Genius.
You’re not going to learn to leap buildings in a single bound or grow strange new body parts or anything.? You will learn about courage, transcending fear, kicking obstacles to the curb and getting yourself un-stuck faster than a speeding bullet.
November 26: Peaceful Happy Holiday Season
Every day, for 30 days, you’ll get a 10 minute meditation. Easy-peasy, creative and fun meditations that help bring more authentic peace and joy into your holiday season.
You’ll get 30 10-minute guided meditation audios – 1 per day for 30 days.
It’s a total feast.
Of course, you’ll also get: The Creative Business Incubator, The Un-Sticking Station, the Creative Genius Mojo-Dojo, The Advanced Creative Badassery Resource Library and everything else included in the Creative Dream Circle.
Marketing experts would say that today is the day I’m supposed to write one last mind-blowing post to convince you that not signing up will be the biggest mistake of your life.
I’m not going to do that.
If you aren’t interested, I want to encourage you to trust your instincts and not join.? This isn’t for everyone!
Isn’t that kind of obvious?? I only want to play with people who want to play with me!
So if you’re not feeling that pull to join… that is totally OK – me and the Incubator are still sending you and your dream all the love.
What’s NOT OK is that so many people tell me they want to sign up BUT….
But I’m not sure I should spend money on dreams…
But I don’t know if I have enough time…
But I’m not sure I will fit in…
But what if I find out my dream is impossible…
But I think I’m doing ok on my own…
But I already know all about all this manifestation/healing stuff…
And don’t I HAVE TO do this on my own anyway?
Oh sweetie!? Yes, but is so ICKY!
The heart speaks in desire.? And the heart is wise.
A clear yes is a beautiful thing.
I clear no is a beautiful thing.
But your but is just that… a but.? There is no magic in butting!
BUTS are excuses that come from the part of you who is afraid of stepping into something new.
This is a valid fear!? New = scary, it’s true.
But having a BUT doesn’t mean your YES is actually a NO.? It just means you’re nervous about stepping into something new.? Which means you’re human.
I’m sure you already know that it’s actually impossible to GET your dream with ever stepping into something new.
So at some point, the YES has to become bigger than the BUT.? It’s up to YOU to decide when that point is.
There is MAGIC and HEALING and MIRACLES and POSSIBILITY in the Circle for you – if you want them.
There is SPACE in the Circle for you and your dream – if you want it.
At only $100/year – you do NOT have to participate in everything in order to get your money’s worth.
And if money is an issue – you can use the Incubator to create more financial abundance in your world (plus we’re going to do the Creative With Money course this year, and you’ll get that too). You can invest in creating a better future for yourself.
It’s your call, I just want to make it super clear: No matter what your but is, you and your dream will be ADORED, CHERISHED, CELEBRATED and SUPPORTED IN GROWING in the Circle.
How happy can you be?
I didn?t grow up planning to be a writer. I was never one of those kids scribbling stories in a notebook, or submitting to the school paper. But I?ve always been a voracious reader.
In the world of Science Fiction and Fantasy, there aren’t a lot of young adult and middle grade books for girls that don’t have a romantic sub-plot. Its as if we’re telling girls that sure, they can go off on adventures, they can have a ‘hero’s journey’ – but its not complete until they find true love, or something like it. Even great books, with totally kick-ass heroines seemed to always have some level of romantic tension.
