Creative Teacup is a blog for artists, creatives, and dreamers. It’s a place where I share stories of the ups and downs of the creative life to help you keep going towards your big dreams.
I started Creative Teacup in 2015 when I realized I was an artist.
For most of my life I thought artists were “cool” people with tattoos who could draw or paint really well. That certainly didn’t describe me.
I was a former straight-A student in honors clubs who still drew stick figures.
I’d written a popular blog and had a book published, sure, but that was about education. I was writing to inform; I wasn’t an artist.
I continued the education path as “high” as I thought I could go - almost getting into a Harvard doctoral program. I didn’t get in, but was encouraged to apply again. But that’s when I realized higher education wasn’t the career path for me anymore. Something else was drawing me in.
I wanted to write another book. This time, about dreams. Not getting into Harvard crushed me at the time (I cried on the bathroom floor). I wanted to interview people about their dreams come true, to find out what helped them get off the bathroom floor. Inspired by The Alchemist, I wanted to find out what the dream journey looked like in real life. (That book is called The Little Book of Big Dreams and you can read all about my bathroom floor breakdown in this free chapter.)
And as I interviewed people for the book, the people I resonated most with were artists. I realized I’d been one all along. And to grow as an artist, I was going to need to keep learning how to deal with the lows, the rejection, the imposter syndrome, the failures, the uncertainty, and the chaos - things my former straight-A self was not good at.
The stories helped me shape a new syllabus for myself - one where rejection, chaos, uncertainty, and risk were paths to the “A”.
And I couldn’t stop telling them. So I started Creative Teacup to bring you profiles of creatives, artists, and dreamers to instill hope, remind you what you’re capable of, and give you ideas to keep going on your biggest dreams.
I also wanted a place where I could play with my own creativity and share my own creative process, so in addition to profiles you’ll also find personal blog posts from me. You can see those in the “posts” section above.
Going for a dream, making art, or bringing your creativity to the world is exciting, but it’s also scary—and sometimes it’s heartbreaking. I hope this blog reminds you that you’re not alone, and that even when you feel like you aren’t where you want to be, you’re probably still on your way.
Keep going.
PS- That book I started in 2014? It came out November 2023. And it wouldn’t be the book it is if I’d written it one day earlier. I’m so proud of it and you can buy it for yourself (or for a dreamer in your life) right here.
PPS- That teacup logo down there? That was hand-drawn on an iPad by an incredible producer and painter Don Hahn. You might know him best as the producer of The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast.
