My dear writing friends and family–it’s spring! We made it! I hope your spring creativity is emerging from the cold, cold ground (ahem, at least here in the northern hemisphere!), and you are feeling excited about the blossoming all around.
You may have seen that I recently took myself on a three-day writing and spring visioncasting retreat to: Carhenge!
(Oh yes, it’s as weird and wonderful as it looks!)
It was a much-needed time for me as a writer–as you know, I’ve been having so many life transitions that my writing and I had become estranged. It happens. Thankfully I know from lived experience how creativity ebbs and flows, so I wasn’t panicking…too much.
BUT it was time to reunite and reconcile with my work. If our work is a kind of relationship (and I believe it is), then I needed a Manuscript Encounter Weekend.
So…off to Alliance, Nebraska for three days. Which doesn’t mean I wrote for 8 hours a day–that’s not always what’s needed when you go on a writing retreat. Sometimes what’s needed is time to think. Then write a little bit. Then go for a weird Carhenge walk. More thinking. An insight or even a breakthrough while wandering Main Street. Or staring at the hotel wall. And then write a little more. Plus the multi-hour drive through the Midwest, empty highways under the drama of a spring sky and remembering why you cared about this story to begin with.
Does this resonate for you? Maybe you’ve become distant from your work. Or maybe you’ve recently ended a big project or had a life change and you’re now filling up your well again, looking for new inspiration. Spring has a way of doing that; clearing out the cobwebs is always an invitation to take creative stock, too.
I’m happy to say that my manuscript and I fell back in love and we are going to stay together! Whew.
But it was a good reminder that the creative relationship and the creative life takes constant care and loving diligence. It’s easy to become estranged from your work when life gets demanding (and she does, doesn’t she??)…but it’s also easier than you think to get back on track. Sometimes you just need a little nudge. Sometimes you need a big adventure. Sometimes you need both.
So to that end, let me plant some spring seeds (pun intended!) that may be just the thing you and your work need to freshen up your relationship:
First: If you need an adventure with lots of inspiration and camaderie with me, Kathy Fish, and an inspiring cohort of your creative colleagues–I’ve got 4 spots left in our upcoming Grand Lake Colorado Writing Retreat this July 23-28.
Maybe this is finally the year you join us?
Maybe you can’t wait until July? (I can’t xo) So, in the spirit of Carhenge, I’m also offering a 90-minute live Spring Visioncasting Check-in Workshop next Friday, April 19.
Details for both of these below.
Check these out and see if they might be a perfect fit. But either way, consider this a personal invitation to prioritize your best creative life this year. Listen to your heart, talk to your creative work, and see if you can give yourself and your sweet writing relationship something to look forward to this spring.
Whether that’s an in-person retreat, a crazy Carhenge adventure (wink!), or a spring visioncasting workshop to get you back on track: It’s always better together!
I look forward to working with you soon!
xoxo
WHERE DO YOU WANT TO WRITE THIS SUMMER?
How about Grand Lake with me and Kathy Fish?
FOUR SPOTS LEFT
High Altitude Inspiration
in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains
July 23-28, 2024
Imagine yourself high in the Rocky Mountains: wildflowers, blowing aspens, dramatic clouds, hummingbird visits, a stunning mountain view overlooking a deep, natural lake, and you…. finally focused on your writing!
Imagine how it would feel to sink deeply into your creative work with like-minded others, in a beautiful location that will inspire fresh perspectives and the opportunity to take new creative paths.
Sound wonderful? It is! Join us!
AND….how are your creative goals coming?
Could you use a spring check-in?
SPRING CREATIVE VISIONCASTING 2024
a special 90-minute workshop and strategy session to envision and implement a year of creative clarity, confidence, and courage
PART TWO: Taking Stock, Working Well, and Navigating the Unexpected
LIVE: Friday, April 19 at 11 am MST
I’ve heard from so many of you since our January session! You’ve shared many insights, shifts, and creative a-has! And, of course, life is an unending series of shifts and adjustments--no matter how beautiful our original vision, or how well we laid out that map in January…it’s time for a check-in. A time to assess where we are, where we want to be, and how to get ourselves there with curiosity, clarity, courage and compassion. No judgement!
As I shared before, I regularly take myself through this process of revisiting and re-orienting–not towards blatant productivity, but towards my deepest creative visions so I don’t spend my life just staying busy but not moving the needle on what really matters. And it’s time to check-in.
In this 90-minute session we will take stock of your 2024 goals, discover insights, make adjustments, and keep you reaching towards the life you want. I’ll share my own process these first three months, including some radical reshifting and some gentle reorganization when life gets unexpected.
We will also continue to brainstorm and identify our creative priorities, decide how and why to choose, and revision a realistic and empowering plan to move forward.
Remember: this is NOT a one-size-fits-all-strategy but a living conversation and method of interrogating and knowing ourselves in order to reorient toward what we value most.
And if this is your first time–welcome! We will work, yes, but the work will be fun–creativity is our job after all! So let’s re-convene for 90 minutes this April and continue 2024 with more creative confidence, clarity, courage, and camaraderie.See you April 19!(registration comes with access to our January video recording)
use code 24for2024 to join us for 50% off
P.S.S. Interested in a Private Coaching Session to get you ready?
I’m opening my books next week for a limited amount of 30-minute private sessions for just $99 before we gather together.
Email me to grab a spot!
Other questions? Email me or respond to this email.
Your cheerleader,
Nancy Stohlman 