The Sober Creative

What do you do when you have all the skills to create art, but can't bring yourself to pick up a brush? When success in your creative career feels hollow because you've lost touch with your personal artistic voice? In this episode of Clear Conversations, I sat down with Leeanne Brennan , a creative artist who spent two decades mastering technical skills in the fields of video games and motion grap...

This week, I sat down with Edward Zaydelman , who's spent over 20 years building intentional communities in Costa Rica while navigating his own journey with sobriety. What started as a conversation about alternative living quickly became something deeper—an exploration of how sobriety doesn't just change what we create, but how we experience the creative process itself. Edward's story challenged e...

In this episode of Clear Conversations: Creative Minds in Sobriety, I had the privilege of speaking with Ellie Nova , a sober coach, mentor, and writer whose journey from shame to liberation mirrors what so many of us experience in our relationship with alcohol. Ellie's story begins with a familiar struggle—using alcohol to escape emotional pain and feeling trapped in a cycle she couldn't break fr...

In my latest episode of Clear Conversations, I sat down with Kaitlyn Ramsay , whose journey from corporate burnout to spiritual guide exemplifies how sobriety transforms not just our health, but our entire creative expression. After quitting her corporate job and buying a one-way ticket to Australia following a devastating breakup, Kaitlyn found herself in Thailand where her relationship with alco...

In this powerful conversation with former Times picture editor Discover Still By Paul Sanders , we explore the profound connection between sobriety, mindfulness, and authentic creativity. Paul shares his journey from rock bottom to creative rebirth, revealing how eight years of sobriety transformed not just his photography, but his entire relationship with the world around him. Paul's story is a t...

In this first episode of Clear Conversations: Creative Minds in Sobriety (title was recently rebranded from Focal Points) , I spoke with Ula , a photographer and writer from Vancouver Island, about sustaining creative energy while running a business. The conversation explored: * Substack as a Creative Platform: We spoke about Substack's effectiveness for building creative community. Ula described...