Artists for Joy

Season 5 Premiere!   What if inside every creative block is an invitation?   Today on the show: a story about what a chance traffic encounter taught me about responding to block.   Links: The Instrument Is You Episode Mental Health Resource Page Book Launch Call for Art Book Launch Team Sign-Up Form Pre-Order The Artist's Joy Submit your Sounds of Joy video to the show

SEASON 4 Finale!  This openhearted, vulnerable conversation with author and knitter Sarah Bessey is the perfect way to tie a bow on Season 4 of Artists for Joy.  In this interview, Merideth and Sarah discuss:  The spiritual nature of creative practice The important difference between self-care and self-comfort Processing the grief of losing friend and fellow author Rachel Held Evans What Sarah doe...

Emily P. Freeman is a writer and spiritual space-maker. She is the author of six books, including the Wall Street Journal Bestseller "The Next Right Thing: A Simple Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions" and "How to Walk into a Room: The Art of Knowing When to Stay and When to Walk Away." In this episode, Emily joins host Merideth Hite Estevez to discuss discernment, creativity, and joy. They...

This week, Merideth offers a self-coaching exercise to help you create your path. 1. Name what's on your mind before we begin: Is there a fork in the road you see coming around the bend? Is there a question you've been asking yourself about your creative practice or life that you want to explore with gentleness and grace?  Or take a cue from Emily P. Freeman, in her new book, "How to Walk Into a R...

What scripts are holding you back from creating your own unique path? What would you do if you weren't so afraid? What parts of yourself have you been ignoring, squashing down, so you can fit in where you are? Are you ready to move forward but unsure of how or where to go?  This week's episode will meet you right where you are. Inspired by author Emily P. Freeman, Merideth reflects on what role cr...

This week, a coaching exercise we're calling "Rewriting the Unhelpful Story." Take a few moments and fully realize the unhelpful story you're telling yourself. Write it all down in the third person. What does the rejection mean to her? What is the main character in your story currently letting this rejection mean, or what is he/she/they afraid it means? Spend time writing it out in your journal or...

This week's episode explores the challenge of persevering through creative disappointment. We meet Ian, a musician whose band falls apart, and learn the tool that is helping Merideth cope with a recent and painful rejection. Listen for encouragement to embrace your sensitivity and vulnerability and to find ways to move beyond disappointment to create with more joy and freedom.   Read last week's p...

This week on the podcast, Merideth offers three simple (non-judgmental!) steps for taking action when faced with chaos. This episode will help you accept the invitation that life's raw material offers and find more creative joy. Read our content on Substack Submit a question or comment to Merideth: via IG via email: hello@artistsforjoy.org Support us on Patreon  Join the next "The Artist's Way" Cr...

This week on the podcast, the final word-of-the-year installment (less word, more motto): "Order the Chaos." What freedom awaits when we stop resisting the chaos of life and instead embrace it as an invitation to creative possibility and joy?  Merideth explores how this mindset shift is helping her leave guilt and doubt behind and find a more hopeful and gentle way of being in 2024.  Plus, she'll...

Coaching Questions:  1. Think of a time when you transitioned or crossed one of life's thresholds. What was it like for you? Who did you become in the "after"? What gifts were waiting for you on the other side? 2. What creative offerings have you released into the world? And what chaotic trajectory did they take? How did it surprise you? 3. What are you feeling led to give away, to release from yo...

This week on the podcast, the second installment of my words of the year: Open-handed. What are we missing when we hold too tightly to our expectations? What role does letting go play in the creative process and how can we get better at opening our hands and releasing work into the world? Merideth answers a listener's question about how to stay well and inspired on social media and shares a powerf...

3 ways to cultivate abundance in your life today: Enjoy what you have. Say out loud what you're grateful for and what delights you. Give more than you get.  Believe in benevolence. Feed Life's algorithm and watch what happens. Support Artists for Joy on Patreon  Subscribe to our email list

Where is the line between the power of positivity and foolish denial? How do we become more comfortable asking for more, hoping for more, believing there's more? Merideth lets us in on some of her inner chatter this week as she launches a big project, and she'll answer a listener's question about the spiritual nature of creative blocks.  Support our new PATREON!  Join us for the Word of the Year W...

This week on the podcast, Merideth helps you choose your word(s) of the year. Grab your journal and earbuds and explore the prompts paired with meditative music to craft an intentional, creative year with joy. Reflect on 2023: looking through your phone at photos of the last year, ask yourself: what do I wish there had been more of? If you had a word(s) of the year, in what ways did you see them r...

What if all your feelings were welcome this season? This week on the podcast, Merideth offers a meditation on persistent joy, an invitation to a wholehearted holiday where grief + excitement or sorrow + joy can coexist. She'll share a story of when joy appeared in the most unlikely place and answer a listener's question about maintaining creative routines when everybody's home. Wishing you and you...

Have you felt a spiritual stirring during a long walk or a workout? What connection do creativity and movement have? Why did so many famous artists throughout history take long walks in the afternoon?   This week, Merideth explores how movement helps us connect to something larger than ourselves and invites us to practice self-acceptance, deep listening, and completing the stress cycle.   Body Ima...

This week on the podcast Merideth offers 3 ways to thrive this month. "Gigmas," or the holiday creativity vortex that hits freelancers like a polar express, is upon us. Listen for things you can do to keep your head above water during "the most wonderful time of the year." 

This week, Merideth chats with writer Heather Lanier about creating in the cracks, why she writes, and how to become more comfortable with the inherent uncertainty of making a new work of art.  Heather's bio:  Heather is a poet, essayist, teacher, speaker, and thrift-store shopper. An assistant professor of creative writing at Rowan University, she is the author of the memoir,  Raising a Rare Girl...

This week on the podcast, something we all need to remember: no creative act is wasted. If you find yourself wondering what the point of all the tiny efforts are or if you need a reminder of the long game that is being an artist, this one is for you. Buy Merideth a coffee Mental Health Resources Join our email list email Merideth a question for the show: hello@artistsforjoy.org Leave us a voicemai...

This week on the podcast, a Mini-Joys episode all about something that's really helping me recently: an off/on ramp!   Listen to learn more, and tell us on Instagram if this worked for you!   Design your own off/on ramp: Think of something you've been avoiding or dreading, something you've been worried about starting or finishing. Ask yourself: What might future-me need? Is there a task, activity,...

It's hard to podcast when you have no voice! This week in lieu of Ariel from The Little Mermaid (post- encounter with Ursula), you're getting a throwback… one of Merideth's favorite episodes from Season 1. How can letting go be a creative act? What is it in you that only letting go can reveal? Original show notes (updated): This week, Merideth explores the the art of letting go. Is it beautiful or...

In today's episode, a loving-kindness meditation to some music by Franz Schubert. As you listen to each selection, repeat the mantras:  "May I be well."  "May you be well."  "May all manner of things be well."  Pre-order Merideth's book, The Artist's Joy Buy Merideth a coffee Email your question to be read on the air: hello@artistsforjoy.org

This week on the show, Merideth answers a question we all tend to ask when the world is on fire. How can I feel creative joy in the face of violence, injustice, and brokenness? She explores why art matters in these moments, especially, and how our creativity offers us a place to process the pain and turn our anxiety into energy that can make a difference. The late famous conductor, Leonard Bernste...

This week on the podcast, a Musical Meditation for Inspiration featuring music of Chopin performed by Emile Pandolfi, Gleb Ivanov, and Yuval Vilner. Settle in and make some space for quiet time to reflect as you listen.   Self-Coaching Questions When have I felt the most inspired? Remember a time when you couldn't wait to sit down and make something? What transpired that brought this frenzy of cre...

Season 4 opener! Let's discuss the ephemeral, mystical, inevitable miracle that is creative inspiration. Merideth shares about a hobby she is not monetizing (yet) and a powerful story of a chance encounter at Staples. How do we escape the constant pull to monetize our creative work? How do we become the kind of person who is more inspired and connected to the spiritual invitation of creativity?  A...