Today, I’m happy to bring you a guest post from Mary Jo Thome, who is exploring other art avenues, and reflecting on what those ventures mean to her writing life. We’ve talked before about different ways writers can fill the well of creativity. A creative life needs rest, needs reflection and needs joy. I hope you enJOY following Mary Jo’s JOY-ful post.
Filling the well, or digging a hole? by Mary Jo Thome
My love for crazy, messy art projects led me to work on writing kids’ books, about kids who make crazy messes. It also leads me to work on crazy, messy art projects, like covering a giant plaster butterfly with handmade paper and Barbie shoes. And, with my husband, Dave, painting a fire-breathing dragon on a park bench . And, without Dave, making a Halloween castle costume. For our house.
So I happily agreed to turn a beat-up violin into art, to be auctioned at a fundraiser for the Shorewood High School orchestra. Sure, it would take time away from my work in progress, but it would be good for my brain. Making art refills my writing well.
My inspiration – turn the violin into a fairy-size dollhouse—quickly developed the warning signs of a major time sink. Stand the violin on a turntable! Surround it with papier-mache tree branches! Add a fungus stairway. And a crow’s nest. And a storage drawer. Make a family of fairies!
I had two months until the deadline. Two months in which I already planned to road-trip with our daughter, from Minnesota to her new home in California. To line-edit Dave’s romance novel, Fast Lane. And, of course, to continue full-time freelance writing for my wonderful clients.
I decided I would put the WIP aside for two months.
I ended up letting it slide for five.
Now, I love my fairy tree house violin. I loved almost every minute of the 70 hours it took (except for those five frustrating hours drilling and re-drilling as I tried to attach it to the damn turntable).
But as much as the project juiced me creatively, it also fueled my ever-present conflict: Am I making the best use of my time? Should I have spent those 70 hours on my manuscript? Am I a Serious Writer?
Would it be horrible if I’m not?
So much of the writing advice and expectations I’ve internalized focus on getting published, going pro. Yet nobody expects me to go pro as a violin decorator.
I think, for now, I won’t worry so much about fiction writing as a someday source of income. For now, I’ll make it like my crazy, messy art: a right-now source of joy.
Mary Jo Thome is a Milwaukee advertising writer and artist 
who believes you can make anything out of papier mache.
She makes me want to go find some finger paints and have at it!
Do other artistic avenues help your writing life?
Happy #writing, #drawing, violin breaking down, whatever! Smile, smile, smile.
