So, what’s a Renewing Your Creative Roots Session?
Well, first and foremost, it is a conversation with me, where we sit down together over Zoom and we collaborate to build a tool that you can use at your own, when you are making whatever it is that you are choosing to make at that day.
The reason that I call it the creative roots is this: we tend to focus, as a culture, just on the creative process.
The creative process is all that active, above-ground work. It is the procedure, the tips: you do this-this-and-this, and then you get this.
What we don’t talk a lot about are the hidden roots that go into that process, the things that stabilize us, the roots systems that bring nutrients, water, and stability to that creative process.
I like to say: If you look at a tree, half of its biomass is the roots. What you see above ground—that’s like the creative process. That’s the trunk, the branches, the leaves.
What you don’t see is that invisible work underneath, and that’s what we usually focus on in these conversations, these creative roots sessions. It’s not just that you are creating, because of course you’re creating.
I come from the place of believing that your creativity is really natural to you. However, if it is not working in your life, then there’s a way to root down deeper so that you can better flourish.
Maybe it’s that you already have this skill in another area of your life, and you just need a little bit of space and clarity, or maybe another pair of hands and another pair of eyes, in order to see how that skill can now be used.
You just need to transfer what already works for you to the world of books and perhaps publishing.
That is, in essence, what these sessions are all about.
Creative Roots Sessions.
Collaborative Toolmaking:
You + Me, together
at the threshold
to your creative dreams.
When would you need a Creative Roots Session?
Well, I specialize in thresholds, and here’s what I mean by that: you are at your edge. You are at the edge of the known, at a new corner of your creative dreams.
And that’s going to look a little bit different for everybody.
Maybe you’ve already got the publishing contract, and your editor has your manuscript, and you have just gotten your editorial letter.
Or maybe you have just finished that manuscript, or that book proposal, and you are sitting there in this sea of research about agents, and you are gathering your courage to send out that first query letter.
Or maybe you’ve been in the business for a while. You have a lot of books under your belt, but you have this new genre that you are trying out, and you can just feel this newness—both giddy and terrifying—rushing at you for wandering into new territory.
Or maybe you have already self-published a book, and you didn’t quite have the experience that you hoped you would have. And you are just now building up the courage to go back to your desk and try again.
All these sound really different, but I promise you that they feel the same.
They feel like you are standing at a door, this threshold, and you feel like you can not go any farther because the door is locked.
Maybe the door is locked, maybe it’s not.
What I can promise you is that I don’t have the key. It’s you that has the key.
And maybe all you need to find it is another pair of hands and another pair of eyes, somebody who has been there, at whatever phase that you’ve been in, to help you find it.
So, maybe this is not for you, and if so, I commend your clarity. There is a whole bunch of other tools at the JourneyPen project, and I hope you find one that works for you.
No matter what you choose, I hope you truly enjoy making your creative dreams come true.
A little more on Shelby Bach, your co-Toolmaker.
You can read the full bio here, but here are some quick highlights:
25 years of writing experience.
2 years working in the editorial department in major New York publishing houses (and several more working freelance for the same houses).
Author of the Ever Afters, a complete four-book series, published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.
Watch this video if you’re interested in learning more about Shelby’s perspective on publishing.
The Process
To help you know what to expect, here is what happens for every Creative Calibration Conversation:
a) You book your appointment through this website.
b) I’ll send you a questionnaire for you to fill out at least 24 hours in advance of our appointment, which gives me time to look it over.
c) I review the questionnaire.
d) We meet together over Zoom.
You bring your situation and your optimism.
I bring my experience. (If you want, I can also bring in some astrology or some cards, but we don’t need them—I just like them as fun ways to focus in during our discussion.)
Unless you would really prefer that we didn’t, I record the session so that you can review + rewatch later. That way, you don’t feel like you need to take notes.
e) after we finish up and say goodbye, I reflect and consider everything we’ve discussed.
f) Then, within a week of the session, I send you a Creative Roots Letter. You can think of it as like a podcast episode of your very own or a pep talk you can listen to during the long, quiet hours, sitting solo at your writing desk.
FAQs
Are there any requirements to book a Creative Roots session?
Yes. It’s best if you have two years of creative experience and/or you’ve brought some sort of creative project into fruition. It doesn’t have to be specific to books. Maybe you’ve had a thriving business. Maybe you’ve created and maintained a podcast or an online course. Maybe you have already written an entire book, and you’ve revised it a few times.
The reason behind this requirement is quite simple: it’s hard to dive deep into your own creative roots if you don’t see the results of your creativity somewhere in your life.
If you haven’t yet reached that stage of creative fruition, then this offering isn’t yet the best fit for you. Instead, you might be better served by the Journeypen Project’s Creative Toolkit or the YouTube channel.
Is there an age limit for the Creative Roots Sessions?
Yes, you definitely need to be eighteen or older, and you’ll get the most out of the session if you have some experience under your belt.
If you’ve gotten to know Shelby Bach through The Ever Afters, and/or if you’re still a student, that’s fabulous—this offering probably won’t serve you as much as others will.
What if I can’t afford the full price of the Creative Roots Sessions?
If you can’t afford the full price of the Creative Roots Sessions, then you may want to be able to participate in The Journeypen Project’s Community Harvest Fund.
A third of each full-price offering goes into the Community Harvest Fund, which is intended to supplement part or all of the price of the Journeypen Project’s offerings for those who require that support in order to make the investment.
You can learn more about the Community Harvest Fund here.
If you would like to be included in the Community Harvest, please sign up for the Community Harvest specific newsletter below.