Daily Creative by Todd Henry (Jan. 1- Jan. 5)

January 1st

Yes I am aware it is mid September but I’m going through this book chronically, hoping to get the most out of it. I have always described myself as creative. If it’s not my stories, then it’s my collages. If it’s not collages, it is “altered cards” I made for the ones I loved as Christmas gifts. I’ve never had a problem being not creative (am I bragging too much?) but I feel like one can always be more creative. Here is my first task. Create a “this would blow my mind” list. Todd Henry writes “Don’t sacrifice what’s possible on the altar of what’s immediately practical”. I wish I came up with that quote.

Anyway here is my “this would blow my mind” list:

• Story of Hope being scooped up for a movie

• Story of Hope being featured on Oprah’s book club

• Being hired as a professor teaching writing personal essays and short stories

• People start actually commenting on my blog (the death/ rape threat doesn’t count)

• Going back down to 110 pounds (that’s how much I weighed in college)

• Working tutoring kids in writing and speechwriting

• Interviewing people (maybe even the seniors at the assisted living center) because I find people interesting. If I could create a book for the assisted living center with their interviews maybe I wouldn’t feel so guilty.

                                                            January 2nd

“Those who ask the best questions ultimately win” (I seriously love his quotes).  What uncomfortable questions have you been avoiding? Besides some of the smaller questions which have captured my attention (like what should I wear to my best friends wedding?) here are ones regarding the overall compass of my life:

• Now that I am unemployed (god, I hate that term. I would prefer the phrase “freelance writer”) should I try to find another job? 

• Should I even try going back to school (I decided not to. I don’t really know what I want to do and every day it’s becoming easier to find work and purpose without an expensive college degree and student loans)

• Should I volunteer? I’d like to work with kids/ teens. I’m more comfortable with that and with working with people one on one instead of calling bingo in front of the entire room.

                                                            January 3rd

Is there any place you are making things more complex than they need to be?

My future. I don’t have to figure it out all overnight. I can take a few months looking for freelance jobs while writing to publish books of essays and short stories. If I’m having trouble finding jobs (due to AI or certain people who have taken work from me deliberately due to petty personal essays. I’m not going to name her), I’ll look into tutoring or daycare. If that doesn’t work out, maybe I’ll resort to retail. I promised I’d never go back. But I guess I sometimes break my promises. Yeah maybe I am making this job thing more complex.

                                                                     January 4th

Is there any conflict you’re experiencing due to missed or unspoken expectations? How can you resolve it?

Not really. My therapist wants me to go back to my old job. He encouraged me to take some time but make sure the job is still waiting for me. My boss really wants me back. He texted me saying (even after I ran out after leaving a note on a post-it) he thinks I’m good at the job and wants to work with me. Today I met with my psychiatrist for the first time since I left the job. He said he was impressed: how I got the job (I was running a volunteer book club and they wanted to hire me), how I worked when I had the job (I think I was there 2 ½ months) and how I knew when I needed to leave. He was one of the few people I didn’t have to do acrobatics to convince that I needed to leave for my own sanity. He understood that I really wasn’t up to it (my parents and Justin understand too). I still miss parts of my job but I know I did the right thing.

                                                          January 5th

What is your definition of success? If you were to define success for yourself this year, how would you do it? How about five? Ten? Your entire career?

Year:

• Establish some source of money

• Get published again (preferably in an anthology or a magazine)

• Handle some freelance work (would aim to make $200 a month at least)

• Hold a successful book launch (at least half the people buy the book) for Story of Hope

• Get positive feedback about Story of Hope (hopefully from strangers as well as friends and relatives).

Five: 

• Publish my book of personal essays (which will be published under another pseudonym so I’m not revealing the title) and book of research essays (this will be my first of it’s kind)

• Hold down some solid freelance work

• Find a consistent gig at a local newspaper/ magazine

• Still work on marketing Story of Hope

Ten:

• Publish a book of short stories and a collection of blog posts

• Have a permanent gig at a place of publishing (whether that is a newspaper column or magazine editor)

• Work on autobiographies (improving my interview skills)

My Entire Career:

• I don’t think I can see that far ahead  but it looks really bright