Your Transformational Journey with Fiction
The way of the mystic and the way of the artist are related
“The way of the mystic and the way of the artist are related, except that the mystic doesn’t have a craft.” — Jean Erdman (1916-)
I love this quote for a few reasons.
Jean is pointing to how being a mystic and being an artist are cousins or siblings. What separates them is a pathway.
We artists have the practice of our craft, where we can improve, learn, and grow.
I take solace in that and I hope you do too.
I write my novels to bring my readers on a journey of change. But I didn’t know when I was starting out as a novelist, that I was crafting a transformational journey for myself as well.
I wasn’t new to the self-awareness arts, but I thought learning to write a novel was about understanding and crafting a story.
Little did I know that it was also about confronting my greatest fears, expanding my sense of self, and being challenged to go ever deeper with every book.
I didn’t take me long though to realize that I’d signed up for more than learning craft.
Twenty years ago, I realized that I needed to give up on my dream of being a novelist or do something about it — because I wasn’t doing anything about it. Not writing fiction at all, only daydreaming.
I looked around for help and joined a local writing group that got me writing — the very thing I wanted and the scariest thing to face.
I realize now that being an artist of any kind is about facing one’s fears and growing one’s self — both as a person in the world and inward as a soul.
I’m not a meditation teacher, though I do include meditations in my classes.
I’m not an NLP practitioner, though I’ve been trained as one, and do include adaptions of that training into fiction teaching and helping writers.
(Some of those tools are part of our upcoming Plan Your Novel October 2018 workshop. Registration closes Sept. 30th.)
Some writers already have a practice of self-awareness integrated into their lives. Others may seek still to integrate one more deeply into their creative practices.
If you’re looking to explore a self-awareness path or just expand your toolkit for self-knowledge, there’s many paths to explore.
You can explore self-awareness alone or with others. Or both. You can received the help and support of a teacher or peers, or both. You can do your learning live or online.
You may also seek a different modality than the one you may be currently practicing.
Contemplative
— meditation
— prayer
— soulful movement
— reading/study
— changework
— psychotherapy
Creative
— any art form
— journaling
Active
— sports
— walking
— social dancing
— conversation
— activism
What other modalities are there?
As an adult, we have the opportunity to broaden and deepen our relationship with ourselves throughout our lives.
Which path do you choose, if any? What steps will you take on your journey into self-awareness? I’d love to hear.
