Struggling to make time for your creativity?
The Conspiracy Sessions help you make the shift from thinking about creativity to actively practicing it. For two hours every Saturday, we gather on Zoom to breathe, create, and reflect in community. Grab a mug of your favorite beverage and join me in jammies or Get Shit Done mode from 9-11 am Pacific.
What to bring
Your presence — physical, emotional, and spiritual.
Your favorite mark-making tools.
Honesty about what you’re feeling.
Curiosity to explore where this feeling lives in the body of your creative work. Everything belongs somewhere!
Your presence
In a world of 24/7 distraction, it’s phenomenally hard to be in just one place and one moment at a time. The Conspiracy Sessions are a chance to practice presence — to “be where our feet are” as the saying goes. On the other hand, sometimes we need distraction because the world is too much and the overwhelm is real! However you arrive, you’re welcome here.
Your tools
The Conspiracy Sessions are about practicing creativity. For most participants, this usually means writing or drawing, which is why I encourage you to bring mark-making tools like pens, pencils, paints, and papers. But maybe your creativity is about something else! Bring your laptop into the kitchen and hang out with us while you bake; sing your favorite showtunes at the top of your voice. Do yoga. Don’t feel obliged to limit your expression just because the prompts I offer are geared toward written or visual art.
Your honesty
This is a time to “name and claim” whatever it is you’re feeling today. Putting language around our emotions helps us to feel seen, cultivating a relationship with ourselves that increases trust and creativity. For many of us, this does not come naturally; we need the container of a ritual space in which to practice this vital authenticity.
Your curiosity
One of the best writing prompts I’ve ever encountered is, “Where does this feeling live in the world of your story?” No matter how challenging an experience is, creativity is the point of alchemy at which the lead of our pain gets metabolized into gold — but it’s not a process we can force. There’s no comfy equation to tell us “if I do X amount of art then I will have Y amount of relief from pain.” It takes trust and surrender to ask our difficult emotions what they contribute to what we make.
I explicitly encourage healthy boundaries. There is no obligation to share your thoughts or your creative work before you’re ready.
What to expect
On Friday night, you’ll get an email from me with the Zoom link. Sometimes there will be an additional creativity prompt. This is for inspiration, not obligation! If you’re already on fire for your current work in progress, by all means bring that project. If you’re deep in your feels and just need to journal or draw about it for a while, that’s all kinds of fine too. The prompts are merely there to encourage curiosity.
On Saturday, we’ll gather on Zoom and take the first few minutes of our time together to connect, share a word about how we’re feeling today, and take a few deep breaths together. (Remember there’s no pressure to share if you don’t want to! “No” is a complete sentence.) Then, we’ll get to work! I’ll mute all participants at this point to facilitate focus, but you’re always welcome to share in the chat while we create.
Arriving late? No sweat! This is a looooow pressure get together. Hit that mute button, say a little blessing of your own, take a deep breath or few, and let your curiosity & creativity drive the bus for the remainder of our time. Leaving early is also fine.
At about ten to 11, I’ll unmute and wrap things up with an invitation to share any last thoughts or reflections. Where did you experience movement? What still feels stuck? What feels like it’s asking for attention during the coming week?