"In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit."

a potentially long-winded introduction

I wasn’t sure how to begin this new sojourn here on Substack, but I’ve decided to just trust the stream of consciousness and see where it takes us.

So… this is me.

I’m a writer. I’m an artist. I’m a world builder. I’m a book nerd.

I’m a relative unknown - I’m not published (I’ve not finished anything yet - more on that later). I went to art school and majored in concept art but I’m not working professionally (Again, yet - and more on that later). But I have been writing, drawing, and world-building all my life, and I figure those nearly 38 years count for something.

I’ve always been a multidisciplinary creative - writing and drawing are my bread and butter and have always been just as inextricably linked. Either I’m drawing to enrich and unveil moments of my stories or I’m writing to enrich and unveil details behind my drawings.

Which leads to the world building. It’s my favorite part of the creative process and the thing that has always come most naturally to me. It is also the thing that attracts me most to any art that I consume - books, movies, artworks, music - if there’s a deeper world to be discovered and learned, I’m all in!

This then leads of course to the books. I’m a voracious reader of mostly adult fantasy (with a dash of some other fiction genres and age demographics tossed in) but when that world-building side of me takes hold I’ll just as readily pick up a history or a biography or a non-fiction about the development of the silk trade (True story. This one is sitting on my tbr bookcase as we speak).

Why Substack?

The honest truth - a friend told me to.

But also I’m looking for a fresh start.

In the past on other platforms I’ve tried to separate all of my creative pursuits - partly because I thought it would help me focus on one thing at a time, partly because I was listening to the “they say” dialogue of niching down so as not to confuse my audience. But it’s never really served me or sat right, and in this chapter of my life I’m coming back to that inextricable bond between all of my interests.

I guess what I’m saying is I’m approaching Substack with an “all of the above” mindset. I want to share every piece of my creativity and inspirations in all of their seemingly random yet connected glory.

As we go, I’ll share more about each of my individual disciplines to bring you up to speed on where I’m at presently.

But for now…

Second Sundays

Why Sundays?

Well, for some reason Sundays have just felt right as a day to set aside for creativity. It’s always been my day to rest into my writing, my drawings, or my books.

Why specifically second Sundays?

Partly because when I originally conceived of a newsletter, I felt like the middle of the month was the best time for updates, as the beginning and end of the month always seem to be the busiest. And partly (and perhaps mostly) because it sounds like “second breakfast” - the longer you spend with me, the more you’ll realize what a big Tolkien nerd I am. Any and all excuses to use a reference, it’ll happen.

I created a Second Sundays newsletter 2 or 3 years ago and have tried various different formats and content. But here, I’m deciding to release myself from the structured bars I made. I may post more or less than once a month, and not always necessarily on the second Sunday of the month - but I love the name, and I feel that we could all use an extra abundance of Sundays, so it’s staying. =)

I plan to share writing updates, artwork, inspirations, book acquisitions, favorite songs, and life moments that I think others would enjoy or appreciate.

So to conclude…

I want to say thanks for being with me on this new pathway through the Substack world.

I’m hoping that here I’ll get more settled into who I am as an eclectic creative - and maybe this will be an encouragement to other multidisciplinary creatives to embrace themselves and their pursuits as a gloriously diverse whole as well.

Mostly I just want to shake off the tired old stories I’ve told myself about this way of life and stretch my legs.

On that note, I’ll end with this:

It’s a dangerous business, Frodo - going out your door.

You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.

Let’s get swept off together.

- V.M. Therrien (a.k.a. FableTale of FableTale Creations)