Independent together
Creative colleagues inspire, motivate, and keep you sane
Yesterday I revived one of my favourite freelancer traditions, taking In a Friday afternoon matinee. The freedom of starting a weekend early, the naughty thrill of playing hooky (which I never did in school) and of course the extra breathing room of a quiet theatre when everyone else is at work.
Actually, I hadn't been to a movie since the pandemic starred, and might not have yet, but this movie was also a special one: a good friend's feature film debut as writer/director. I am working on screenplays myself, so I'd read the script in an earlier draft, witnessed the journey into production and was thrilled to see Renuka Jeyapalan’s Stay the Night on the big screen (go see it!). When she messaged me that it was finally in select theatres, I went to see it the next day.
So besides celebrating the return of my matinee outing, the other point to make here is the value of supporting other creatives and entrepreneurs. We are independent, but better together. As soon as I started my business back in 2002, I joined my local Professional Writers Association of Canada chapter and volunteered with them (until they folded a few years ago) and then Editors Canada since. I have spent this past year in community with a group of other professional copywriters working on ways to boost my business. I initiated a mastermind of writer pals who are now my go-to people for professional questions. I belong to a poetry group to work on that form, and I'm finishing my first novel draft with a pal who has similar ambitions and is a great writer and friend to make the process as fun as publication (we both have fingers crossed for that regardless).
Finding likeminded people who are working through the same issues not only makes the process more fun but provides great motivation to keep moving forward. We are working independently, but together.
Who are your creative buddies? Maybe finding some new ones would help you to get even more feisty about your next project!