Welcome to ✨Multifaceted✨

Celebrating the messy, imperfect creative journey. No matter how it looks or where it leads.

In case you missed it, I (finally!) shared the batch of articles I wrote last year via this new-new newsletter, Multifaceted. 

I'm using this space to write all about what I call multifaceted creativity. The type of creative energy, curiosity, and effort that know no bounds – for better and (sometimes) for worse.

I'm SO appreciative of the warm welcome this project has already received. I've heard from a few people who said what they read made them think, laugh, and dust off their own creative projects once again. 

I even received a generous pledge for if/when I upgrade this newsletter from being free to premium. How cool is that!?

I can't tell you how hugely inspiring all of this is, and how it makes me want to keep going. To keep writing, sharing, connecting. To keep finding ways, no matter how small, to offer inspiration or motivation to my fellow creative humans.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

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Where did “Multifaceted” come from? 

Like many good things, it was hiding behind the door that opened when another one closed.

When I quietly finished my last chapter in fine jewelry design, I felt a huge sense of contentment and closure. That project was literally a dream come true. I got to bring my dazzling vision to life and achieve what I set out to achieve.

And then I was ready to move on. But… some people didn't understand. 

Questions about my jewelry line, no doubt intended as nice conversation starters, went a little sideways. When I explained that I’d stopped selling my designs, I got some funny looks. A few people responded with an air of sadness, as if I’d experienced some kind of loss. 

There was even a fair-weather friend who quipped about my change in direction being a failure. 🙄

I guess some people see switching creative gears as quitting or giving up – evidence of some big weaknesses. But the way I experience it, being able to follow all the odd twists and turns of my creative path is a hard-earned strength.

My new project – writing about multifaceted creativity – is for anyone out there who can relate. 

Renaissance people and jacks of all trades.

Scanners and multipotentialites.

Serial hobbyists and side hustlers.

Multipassionate dreamers and doers… you're in the right place.

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Having many different creative interests and pursuits can be amazing. But it can also be confusing, challenging, and frustrating at times. 

Especially when we're constantly inundated with messages about finding and following your “one true” passion. Or niching down to satisfy the algorithm. 

If you’re the type of person who happily buzzes from one creative endeavor to the next, it’s no wonder people get confused about what you’re doing and what the point is.

And that's not to mention all the pressure we feel about what “real” creativity should look like: It's not good enough unless it generates more social media traction and sales year over year. It has to be aesthetically consistent and exquisitely produced with professional-grade tools, in a glorious studio flooded with morning light.

This might sound silly on paper, but it actively holds people back from making progress on their ideas.

That right there makes me sad – and, frankly, annoyed. The world needs our weird, messy, imperfect creative journeys. No matter how they look or where they lead.

With that in mind, I'll be over here sharing my own weird, messy journey and hoping my voice of encouragement helps drown out the ones holding you back.

Why am I worth listening to?

I've spent years exploring the depths of my creativity and bouncing from one project to the next. Along the way, I've made some discoveries that have helped me embrace my multifaceted creative journey and identity. 

I've taught, managed, and mentored creatives — from college students to senior-level professional writers. In a variety of settings, too — from an art center in Chicago, a costume shop in NYC, and a lecture hall in Paris to a slew of Google Meetings with attendees from around the globe.

And I've been inspired by a bunch of really cool, multi-talented people who have carved out their own paths.

There's a lot of material there. Enough, I hope, to help you push through your uncertainty and confusion.

Maybe even enough to inspire you to launch feet-first into your next creative adventure or passion project. 

As a subscriber, you can expect weekly articles written with those ideas in mind. 

Old and new posts will live on my Substack page here. And, if you’ve been on my email list for a while, you’ll know that I’ve written blog posts about a bunch of other topics before, from crafting to fine jewelry. I decided to transfer articles from those old blogs to Substack under a tab called “Other Facets.” 

Why? Because it was super easy to do. And because erasing the previous pages of my proverbial sketchbook and reinventing myself would be missing the whole point.

Creative living is a journey, and the stops along the way might as well be celebrated. 

This isn't a do-over, I'm just doing something new. And that in itself is what I've always been doing. 🙃

Photos by Jess Barker