submitting

Sometimes we must submit to our fears in order to come to a place of acceptance before moving on. I believe I recently accomplished this. And so I am doing some submitting of a different kind now.

In the past two weeks, I have begun at least three new stories, one of which has some great potential, and I have written two new poems. I have also begun to introduce readers to my NaNoWriMo novel from last year. This is in an effort to resume work on this piece toward finishing it, as it is my most complete work at the moment. And I have submitted nine separate pieces (including six of flash fiction and three of poetry) to three different publications. The freelance editing/writing project I accepted months ago is also finally moving forward, with a positive response from the clients so far. Even my jewelry has received my attention again after a long hiatus from the repurposing craft.

It's been a great period of productivity, and yet I feel that I am not creating enough. My current disappointment is that my house is in disarray, still the cottage of a brand-new tenant, rather than the freshly decorated home of a recently settled resident. I suppose that is always the case, that some project somewhere is unattended. Without them I would feel useless. And yet, the presence of such unfinished business makes me feel as if I am not accomplishing anything at all. Is there a happy medium in creativity? I'm beginning to think there is not.

Here's hoping the rest of you have been producing much work, as well. Feel free to share with me your projects. I'm full prepared to edge anyone from a "happy medium" toward a "super-sized ecstatic."

a place to share

I've finally decided to start a blog, apart from all the networking sites, in order to share with others the process of my creations. I intend to write about each of my crafts: writing, music, and making jewelry. I am hopeful that this blog will be as revealing to myself as it is to others about what goes into each creation.

Currently, aside from doing some recording at work for Kjos, I am seeking the opportunity to play my saxophone more often. I have been communicating with someone about the possibility of helping complete a '30s and '40s band, and I'm excited about seeing where this can lead. Someday, I will also get back to recording my own music, when I have a moment to try to sort out my "home studio." Time seems to be the missing link for most of my creativity.

I have not been as productive with my writing as I had hoped recently. Other than doing some random editing for a friend, and contributing as much as possible to Kjos editorial projects, I have only been rereading and revising my novel-in-progress called A Stealer's Hands. I'm very excited about this story about Reiki Lee, but I seem to be in a rut when I try to think of how to write all those missing in-between sections.

The most successful of my creative ventures recently has been the one in the most beginning of stages. Only about five months ago, I started creating jewelry and other handmade items, using mostly upcycled, recycled, and repurposed materials. I've been listing these pieces on Etsy at http://shannonbatescreates.etsy.com/, and it seems to be going pretty well, especially for not having done this sort of thing for very long. Here are some samples of my work:

Please feel free to comment on my blogs now and in the future. I would love to have some feedback from others in the process of sharing creativity.

Welcome! :)