Episodes

  • Winter Solstice Reflection with Katherine May

    Winter Solstice Reflection with Katherine May
    Dec 21 2023

    As we honor the winter solstice and step into the season of midwinter we're reflecting on what a slower, softer, more introspective time means for our creativity. 

    This bonus episode is a short conversation with writer Katherine May about rethinking this season and how we might imbue it with a little more meaning. 

    Resources Mentioned & Places to Learn More

    • Katherine May's books The Electricity of Every Living Thing, Wintering, and Enchantment
    • Katherine's newsletter The Clearing
    • Catch up on Creative Fuel Season 1
    • Sign up for the Creative Fuel newsletter
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    8 mins
  • Summer Solstice Meditation

    Summer Solstice Meditation
    Jun 21 2023

    Let the abundance of light infuse your creative process.

    We're entering a new season, and in tandem with the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere - Anna shares a special Summer Solstice Meditation to inspire play, curiosity and, of course, creativity.

    This bonus episode is a short seasonal reflection on what the summer season means for our creative process.

    Resources Mentioned & Places to Learn More

    • Sign up for the Creative Fuel newsletter on Substack

    Are you a brand that wants to sponsor Season 2 of Creative Fuel? Reach out here: hello@creativefuelcollective.com.
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    8 mins
  • Winter Solstice Meditation

    Winter Solstice Meditation
    Dec 21 2022

    Solstices and equinoxes mark a seasonal shift, a change in what’s happening around us. But what does this mean for our creativity?

    This bonus episode is a short reflection on what the winter season means for our creative process, and is a call to contemplate what creative rest and regeneration can look like in this slower, quieter season.

    Resources Mentioned & Places to Learn More

    • Anna’s essay “The Creative Fuel Series: A Midwinter Call for Creative Reflection and Rest”
    • Kenya Jackson-Saulters talking about taking a “break to create” in Creative Fuel episode 6
    • Sign up for the Creative Fuel newsletter
    • Anna’s midwinter creative retreat PAUSE, in collaboration with Freeflow Institute
    • Creative rest, and other types of rest we all need
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    6 mins
  • How Do We Slow Down?

    How Do We Slow Down?
    Nov 29 2022
    In a darker, slower season, our bodies crave rest. Yet all around us, it feels like society wants us to speed up. This time of year can be particularly difficult for working artists, and whether or not we make a living from our creative pursuits, we can often feel the need for a slower pace. But in the midst of systemic forces, how do we take care of ourselves? Artist Antoinette Thomas and Outdoor Journal Tour founder, wellness leader and author Kenya Jackson-Saulters help us to better understand the forces that we’re up against, and what we can do when to slow down and to pause. Head over to CreativeFuelCollective.com for more creative inspiration, prompts, online workshops and a robust creative community.Hosted by Anna BronesCo-Produced by Anna Brones & Gale StraubTheme Music is by cleod9 musicSeason 1 is Made with Support by Big CartelFeaturing: Kenya Jackson-Saulters: Master workshop facilitator, Kenya Jackson-Saulters, MS, is a five-time published self-help author, certified spiritual coach and reiki master. Kenya is a thought leader in the wellness community and has been recognized for her work integrating outdoor activity into the mental health process. In 2015, Kenya along with partner Michelle, blended the health benefits of exercise, meditation and writing to form a custom personal development experience for women called The Outdoor Journal Tour. The Outdoor Journal Tour uses each of the aforementioned elements to provide clarity, healing, and connection for participants. Soon after, Kenya created the outdoor wellness phenomenon #wehiketoheal, and authored the best-selling Nature Meditations Deck. Kenya holds dual undergraduate degrees in Sociology and Psychology from Xavier University, and a master’s degree in Policy Analysis with a concentration in Nonprofit Management from Georgia State University.Links: Outdoor Journal TourAntoinette Thomas: Antoinette Thomas is a multi media artist that works as an illustrator and painter. The comic strips Thomas creates move between meditations on daily struggles, as well as a more direct social commentary that addresses the audience head on. Subjects like race, being a woman, the work place, etc. are all tackled with a whimsical humor. For the artist, being able to experience representation of Black people outside of a lens of oppression and strife, is imperative. Thomas aims to build a world of works that normalizes the image of Black people and celebrates their bodies, experiences, and culture.Links: Antoinette ThomasResources Mentioned & Places to Learn MoreAntoinette Thomas’ Instagram“Survival Season for Small Businesses”Outdoor Journal TourWe Hike to Heal “Ecopsychology: How Immersion in Nature Benefits Your Health”“The Mental Health Benefits of an Inclusive Outdoor Escape”“Why Doctors Are Prescribing Nature Walks for Stress”Effects of nature on wellbeing, cognition, mood Kenya Jackson-Saulters’ Nature Meditations DeckSign up for Creative Fuel newsletterSponsor LinksBig Cartel believes you don't have to sell out to sell online. With their simple stores for artists, makers, and creators, you won't be surprised by hidden fees and they don't take a cut of your sales like some other platforms. The sky's the limit on your sales and your success. Open your own shop at bigcartel.com. 
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    34 mins
  • Dose of Creativity: Cheryl Strayed

    Dose of Creativity: Cheryl Strayed
    Nov 22 2022

    Writer Cheryl Strayed draws some thoughtful parallels between grief and a creative state.

    In our last episode of Creative Fuel, "How Do We Get Through Hard Times?" we took a look at the topic of grief - and other difficult times in our lives that we move through. As always, we covered more in our conversation than we could share in the episode. So for this Dose of Creativity, we'll hear how grief can be a rebirth, how it changes us on a cellular level, and how Cheryl Strayed recommends moving forward in the face of it.

    Each episode of Creative Fuel starts with one question. In the course of researching, writing, and talking with our guests, we obviously come up with many more questions along the way. They leave us with a lot to ponder, and there are many things we don't have the space to include in our full episodes. Which is where these little doses of creativity come in.

    Featuring:  Cheryl Strayed

    Head over to CreativeFuelCollective.com for more creative inspiration, prompts, online workshops and a robust creative community.

    Hosted by Anna Brones

    Co-Produced by Anna Brones & Gale Straub

    Theme Music is by cleod9 music

    Season 1 is Made with Support by Big Cartel.

    Featuring: 

    Cheryl Strayed: Cheryl Strayed is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, which has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide and was made into an Oscar-nominated major motion picture. Her book Tiny Beautiful Things is currently being adapted for a Hulu television show that will be released in early 2023. In 2016, Tiny Beautiful Things was adapted as a play that has been staged in theaters around the world. Strayed is also the author of the critically acclaimed debut novel, Torch, and the collection Brave Enough, which brings together more than one hundred of her inspiring quotes. Her award-winning essays and short stories have been published in The Best American Essays, the New York Times, the Washington Post Magazine, Vogue, Salon, and elsewhere. She has hosted two hit podcasts, Sugar Calling and Dear Sugars. She lives in Portland, Oregon. 

    • Links:
      • Cheryl Strayed
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    7 mins
  • How Do We Get Through Hard Times?

    How Do We Get Through Hard Times?
    Nov 15 2022
    There are moments in our lives when we are stopped in our tracks. Moments where something out of our control impacts us in a way that can fee insurmountable. These are moments of sadness, of stress, of darkness, of feeling broken. We may lose someone, we may experience a great change in our lives. Or we may be in a moment where we struggle to find the drive to create like we want to. What do we do when we’re in that place?When Cheryl Strayed was 22 she lost her mother to lung cancer, and words became a way to carry her through. In this episode, with the help of Dr. Girija Kaimal, the current president of the American Art Therapy Association, we explore how creativity can serve as a tool for helping us grapple with those moments in life when things feel unstable and unknown. Head over to CreativeFuelCollective.com for more creative inspiration, prompts, online workshops and a robust creative community.Hosted by Anna BronesCo-Produced by Anna Brones & Gale StraubTheme Music is by cleod9 musicSeason 1 is Made with Support by Big CartelFeaturing: Cheryl Strayed: Cheryl Strayed is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, which has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide and was made into an Oscar-nominated major motion picture. Her book Tiny Beautiful Things is currently being adapted for a Hulu television show that will be released in early 2023. In 2016, Tiny Beautiful Things was adapted as a play that has been staged in theaters around the world. Strayed is also the author of the critically acclaimed debut novel, Torch, and the collection Brave Enough, which brings together more than one hundred of her inspiring quotes. Her award-winning essays and short stories have been published in The Best American Essays, the New York Times, the Washington Post Magazine, Vogue, Salon, and elsewhere. She has hosted two hit podcasts, Sugar Calling and Dear Sugars. She lives in Portland, Oregon. Links:Cheryl StrayedDr. Girija Kaimal: Dr Girija Kaimal (EdD, MA, ATR-BC) is Associate Professor, Interim Chair and most recently served as Assistant Dean for Special Research Initiatives at the Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions. In her  Health, Arts, Learning and Evaluation (HALE) research lab, she examines the physiological and psychological health outcomes of visual and narrative self-expression. She has published over 60 peer-reviewed papers and has a book forthcoming with Oxford University Press called The Expressive Instinct. Her research has been continually funded since 2008 by federal agencies like the Department of Defense, Department of Education, National Endowment for the Arts as well as foundation and academic centers and has been featured by NPR, CNN, The New York Times as well as a range of media outlets worldwide. In her current studies, she is examining outcomes of art therapy for military service members with traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress, narratives from Gulf war veterans, and arts-based approaches to mitigate chronic stress among patients and caregivers in pediatric hematology/oncology units. Additional international research projects include examining the therapeutic underpinnings of indigenous and traditional artforms and the creative self-expression in times of adversity across the human lifespan. Living out her research  interests, she has been a lifelong  visual artist and her  art explores the intersection of identity and representation of emotion. She is currently the President of the American Art Therapy Association (a member organization of over 4,000 members) Dr. Kaimal has a doctorate from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, Master of Arts from Drexel University and Bachelor's in Design from the National Institute of Design in India.  Links:Girija KaimalResources Mentioned & Places to Learn MoreAmerican Art Therapy Association and the art therapist locatorThe Health, Arts, Learning and Evaluation research labSome of Girija’s studies: impacts of artmaking in patients undergoing radiation, professional and informal caregivers of patients in a radiation oncology unit, and active duty military service members with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuryGirija Kaimal’s new book, The Expressive Instinct“The Fog of Grief” by Pam Weintraub“How Grief Rewires the Brain”“Heroin/e” by Cheryl StrayedCheryl Strayed’s books: Brave Enough, Wild, Torch, and Tiny Beautiful ThingsMental Health ResourcesIf you are in crisis, get immediate help: call 911 or 988 Suicide and Crisis LifelineCDC Mental Health ResourcesAmerican Psychologist Association psychologist finderBlack Art Therapist NetworkOpen Path Collective - Affordable TherapySponsor LinksBig Cartel believes you don't have to sell out to sell online. With their simple stores for artists, makers, and creators, you won't be surprised by hidden fees and they don't take a cut of your sales...
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    30 mins
  • We Need Another Week (Or an Invitation to Take Time)

    We Need Another Week (Or an Invitation to Take Time)
    Nov 8 2022

    We’re slated to have a new episode out today, but we needed a little extra time to work on it so we pushed it out a week. We’ll be taking a look at the question “how do we get through hard times?” and this deeper, heavier topic has simply required a bit more space. This short message from Anna is an invitation to slow down when it comes to creative projects.

    Head over to CreativeFuelCollective.com for more creative inspiration, prompts, online workshops and a robust creative community.

    Hosted by Anna Brones

    Co-Produced by Anna Brones & Gale Straub

    Theme Music is by cleod9 music

    Season 1 is Made with Support by Big Cartel
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    3 mins
  • Dose of Creativity: Bonnie Tsui

    Dose of Creativity: Bonnie Tsui
    Nov 1 2022

    How creative flow was modeled for us when we were growing up has a lot to do with how we seek it out today. And  writer Bonnie Tsui strives to achieve a more balanced approach to her creative pursuits so that her children feel empowered to do the same.

    In our last episode of Creative Fuel, "How Do We Find Flow" we took a look at the topic of flow. As always, we covered more in our conversation than we could share in the episode. So for this Dose of Creativity, we'll hear how flow and creativity were modeled for Bonnie through her father's relationship to art.

    Each episode of Creative Fuel starts with one question. In the course of researching, writing, and talking with our guests, we obviously come up with many more questions along the way. They leave us with a lot to ponder, and there are many things we don't have the space to include in our full episodes. Which is where these little doses of creativity come in.

    Featuring:  Bonnie Tsui

    Head over to CreativeFuelCollective.com for more creative inspiration, prompts, online workshops and a robust creative community.

    Hosted by Anna Brones

    Co-Produced by Anna Brones & Gale Straub

    Theme Music is by cleod9 music

    Season 1 is Made with Support by Big Cartel

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    5 mins