How This Works: Most weekdays I’ll pull together an Almost Daily Digest for Creative Souls because I am enjoying holding space for ALL of my writing and work and art encounters after the book tour and first couple of months of Spiritual Direction for Writers book launch intensity. And this feels better than sharing incessantly on various social media platforms. I’ll still share on Instagram, Facebook, Threads, and Substack Notes but most of what I share will be pulled from the Weekday Digest. And the Weekday Digest will be the best way to know all the things.
Some of the headings below will appear in every Almost Daily Digest. Some will appear less often. Some might make a monthly appearance. I get to make the call. And I get to change my mind. So, who knows how well this paragraph will hold up.
Here’s What My Process Looks Like: I’m viewing this as an experiment that I’m trying for a few months or so. Maybe it will stick. Maybe it won’t. Anyone who has followed my work for more than a year knows that I often try new things and am always willing to quit them if they don’t work out as I prefer or if I realize I got too far ahead of myself. (It happens to the best of us.)
While working on these entries, I listen to good music and type up the things that have energy for me and pull together the links and whatnot. This is how I have fun. I don’t take recreational drugs. I play with ideas and put myself in the way of a ton of good art and good words. I am a dork but it’s fine.
This is also my work. This is literally what I do for 30-ish hours each week. I write. I provide helpful resources for people who care about faith, art, belonging, and the imagination. I try to promote and market my writing and work. I’m not very good at that part but I do it in ways that I enjoy which is a ton better than doing it in ways that I don’t enjoy.
You may be thinking but Charlotte you do so much how do you do so much why are you doing this too now?
Like I said, this is my work. This is literally what I do for 30 hours or more each week.
My kids are grown and out of the house. This is huge. HUGE, I tell you.
My husband and I have a great marriage, so there’s rarely drama to process or energy that needs to go towards navigating marital strife. Tim brings me coffee every morning. He’s kind. He’s my best reader who says things like “I have no idea what that means. Most people won’t know what that means. You need to revise that.” He loves God. He’s never voted for Trump. I’m winning in this department, and I know this is a huge gift with regard to how much energy and capacity I have for my work and writing. I honestly don’t talk much about Tim and our marriage because it feels like I’m bragging. But damn did I score in this department.
I go to therapy regularly. I meet with my spiritual director regularly. I am in a really healthy place and I’m so freaking proud of myself for how I inhabited my book launch and book tour and the intensity of the past few months. As someone who lives with bipolar disorder, this is so important. If I were to have another manic episode, the past few months would’ve been a great time to have one. But I didn’t. I made choices that honored my body, mind, and soul. I did what I knew would help me stay healthy. And I returned to my book just about every day to remember those things that help me stay healthy. Because I am a human and because life doesn’t always unfold as we prefer, I had two pretty big book launch related freak outs (which were warranted!). I lost my shit, emoted all of the emotions, pulled myself back together, and did the next thing.
I have two or three hours of silence and solitude every day. Seriously.
I do my main nourishing rhythms most days and for some reason I end up with more time to do other things. I don’t know why but the time math gets weird when we give appropriate attention to our bodies, minds, and souls. Time expands. I don’t nourish myself so I can turn around and write or work or care for others. I nourish myself because I am a human and all humans are worthy of body, soul, and mind nourishment. BUT when I am nourished, it affects my energy and capacity and how much writing and work and caregiving I have time for.
Spiritual Direction for Writers® Daily Nourishment is so close to being self sustaining in a way that makes it so so so easy for people to access those offerings without me doing anything else. This is also huge. HUGE, I tell you. SDW Daily Nourishment is one of my most consistent, best, beloved offerings. I have been building this offering for five years.
So, one reason I can do this is because I have been doing stuff like this for so long. For so many years. And I have so much good stuff out there to share and offer to others who care about art, faith, belonging, and the imagination.
So, one reason I can do this is because I have been doing stuff like this for so long. For so many years. And I have so much good stuff out there to share and offer to others who care about art, faith, belonging, and the imagination.
I don’t read a bunch of Substack newsletters or emails from others because I need to have a ton of silence and solitude and prefer to create my own stuff instead. And I prefer to read poetry or novels or whole memoirs. I prefer to watch good TV or not-so-good TV.
I am behind on so many things and I don’t feel bad about it. Maybe I should feel bad about it? I mean sometimes I feel bad. I’m not completely heartless. But here’s the thing. I’d rather publish Take More Retreats Volume One (and subsequent volumes) six months later than I initially planned than never publish Take More Retreats Volume One (and subsequent volumes).
Sometimes my brain works really fast which allows me to do a lot of work and writing in a short amount of time. I am able to harness that energy to do stuff like this. I am also able to harness my slower brain energy to do things like this. Listening to good music helps me do things like this when my brain is not at top speed. Good music makes just about everything better. (Right now I’m listening to Iron & Wine.)
Also I discovered Cook Unity. Or they discovered me. These meals are delicious. I order eight meals every couple of weeks so I have more time to do stuff like this. If you want to check out Cook Unity please use my referral code because I think I’ll get a credit or something. Cook Unity fed me well during those short periods of time in October in between all of the book launch things. I had more time on the sofa because I wasn’t cooking.
I am willing to try this and kill it later because I’m an adult and I cand kill it if I want. It might not always be fun but it could still be good. If it’s ever not fun AND not good, I’ll take a break and recalibrate.
Thanks for being here. Let’s dive in.
A Morning Ritual for Creative Souls
This section will always appear at the top of each Almost Daily Digest. You are invited to use this ritual, too, as a way to honor the beginning of a new day, as a way to begin again.
Light a candle.
Take three deep breaths with a six-count inhale and a six-count exhale.
Read a poem, quote, prayer, or religious text of your choice.
Sit in silence for a minute.
Write down three things that you want to give your attention to today.
Read a poem, quote, prayer, or religious text of your choice. You can use the same one as before or a different one.
Blow out the candle.
Do the next thing.
This week I’m beholding one of my favorite poems — “Perhaps the World Ends Here” by Joy Harjo — during the opening of my morning ritual.
This week I’m using this Collect for Grace from the Book of Common Prayer for the end of my morning ritual:
A Collect for Grace:
Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
While I’ve used this ritual for a couple of years, I have only recently added the element of making a list of three things I want to give my attention to.
My three main things for today are: 1. The follow-up email for those who attended the retreat this past Friday. 2. The resources for those who attended the Advent Mini Retreat this past Saturday. 3. A half hour or so of journaling and reflection on The Great Belonging: Everyday Rituals for Your Writing Life’s birthday. (Happy birthday, first book!)
Of course, there are a dozen other things I want or need to do but I can only do one thing at a time and I can only do so much while maintaining my sanity and overall sense of wellbeing. Maybe I’ll move a few other things forward today. Maybe I’ll fumble those three things mentioned above.
We’ll see.
It’s super important for me to honor my capacity and energy and nourish my body, mind, and soul instead of being in hustle mode. I haven’t been in hustle mode in years. Life’s too short to inhabit hustle mode.
Also, sometimes I wish I was super rich and could hire someone to work with me on all of these things. I keep telling God I’d definitely be a lovely, kind, reasonable super rich person who would be generous and support writers and artists with real money along with everything else but God has yet to make this happen.
Flourish Anyway® Today Reflection
Stay tuned for these almost daily reflections about flourishing anyway that are coming soon.
Today you get all of those words up top instead.
Spiritual Direction for Writers® Daily Nourishment Offering
November 10: When Writing Helps You Discover What You Know
“I write entirely to find out what I’m thinking, what I’m looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear.” - Joan Didion
And here’s a quote from Spiritual Direction for Writers: Everyday Rituals for Your Writing Life on why we write:
One of the reasons we write is to belong...
When you write—and it doesn’t matter whether it’s a novel or a poem, a diary entry or a Substack note—you gain greater self- awareness and self- knowledge. You discover more commonalities between yourself and others. You discern a broader invitation into new and different realms of the world. You realize the divine is more present and approachable. Gaining a greater sense of belonging remains my first reason to write and continues to pique my curiosity when discussing this vocation and calling with others.
That said, belonging will never be the only reason to write. One reason Toni Morrison wrote was because she learned at a very early age about the power of words. Rebecca Solnit writes because she refuses to be silenced by others. Another reason I write is because I enjoy it. It’s fun.
Take More Retreats
This is one of the things I’m super behind on. The for real book launch for Take More Retreats Volume One is going to be in March. (The book can currently be purchased at takemoreretreats.com and a few select bookstores.) And I need to bump this up very soon so we will be ready for that launch. I’m also currently accepting pitches and submissions for Take More Retreats Volumes Two, Three, and Four. I need to adjust those due dates because I’ll extend all of them because I’m behind on this. I also want to send a weekly email with TMR updates to the TMR subscribers but I have not started that yet. Will I start this Friday? Maybe! Hopefully.
If you want to try a 40-minute Micro Solo Retreat, here’s a flow for you:
A Daily Dose of Art
Lee Krasner’s collages and a new book by Lauren Winner.
The Great Belonging Project
The Great Belonging Project: Day 10 (Because today’s date is November 10.)
I’ll share more on TGBP in the coming days! Love this project so much although the web version needs some tidying up. It’s also going to be another Guidebook for the Soul Series soon. (Or not so soon? We’ll see!)
Happy birthday again to The Great Belonging: How Loneliness Leads Us to Each Other. You are such a good little book that has bestowed beautiful things on your readers and me.
Announcements, Resources, & Recommendations
More legit announcements, resources, and recommendations coming soon.
For now, if you’re a writer with a soul, please buy my book. I think you’ll like it.