The Creative Courage Project

creative routine gotten stale?

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 13:56:56 GMT

Nothing is forever. What rules, rituals, and practices are no longer supportive of your creativity?

Note from Ryn: I can tell a ritual needs replacing when I start to dread doing it everyday.

💬 What are the signals that your creative habits need a bit of tending?

Want support refreshing your creative routine? A Creative Reset might be what just what you’re looking for.

New here? If you could use regular reminders to let your playful, artistic, creative self take up space—that don’t gloss over the ways that’s hard, I write The Creative Courage Project for you:

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“I just want to be DONE with this project already” + COVER REVEAL

Ryn Kingsley — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 13:53:02 GMT

My wife and I have been at work shaping my debut poetry collection into a book you can hold in your hands and it’s almost ready!! I’m waiting on the proof copy so I can make sure it’s all good to go before finalizing the release date. But...

as I was working on the cover art I was struggling with wanting to be done with this project already. Cue: exasperated sighing

It felt like I’ve been working on this book forever.

This is not the energy I want to have around releasing my art into the world. I’m glad I noticed it, slowed down, and talked to my wife about it. She invited me to reconnect with why I wanted to put it out in the first place, because the reason wasn’t to “get it done.”

It’s because I think the poems might make someone’s day better or help them feel not alone or like the thing they’d do if it weren’t impossible is possible. It’s because I made something cool and I want to share it!!

So I’m excited to share the cover below! And while I was thinking about how I wanted to celebrate the book’s release, I thought an Art Show & Tell because I wanna know what you’ve been making too!

Because the reason you make art isn’t to “get it done” either.

I’m using the term “art” broadly, so if you’ve got something you’ve made or a work in progress that you’d like to share with some fellow humans, I’d love to see/hear about it.

Question for you:

I’m think of hosting a LIVE virtual Art Show & Tell to celebrate the release of my poetry collection. I’m envisioning that I’d read one of my favorite poems from the book and many of you would share something you’ve made or are making, and we can celebrate ourselves. This would not be recorded, so it would be a more private place to take the tiny risk of sharing.

Is that something you’d want to be part of? If so:

1: Reply YES to the email.

2: Then tap the ❤️ at the top or bottom of this message to help others folks find it.

The Creative Courage Project, front cover

The Creative Courage Project, back cover

Thank you so much for supporting my work and I’m excited to hopefully see some of your faces soon!

Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

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the dreaded blank page

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 13:55:57 GMT

‘No ideas’ isn’t a real creative block. What might happen if you went with the one that’s “bad,” “too small,” or “been done already”?

Note from Ryn: I don’t struggle with “no ideas” when it comes to writing, but I used to be intimidated by a blank sketchbook page because “I don’t know what to put on it.” Or so I thought! I took a drawing class with , and it turns out “no ideas” isn’t a real block with drawing either. (If you’re a visual artist or want to be, I’d recommend checking out their classes.)

If this helped, tap the ❤️ below to help others folks find it.

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procrastinating anything?

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 13:58:57 GMT

Procrastination is never a sign you need to be more disciplined. It is a sign you need something. If you looked with the eyes of a close friend, how would they see your procrastination? A sign of fear, a call for rest, a need for the work to simmer…?

Note from Ryn: I was procrastinating writing these June newsletters when I saw this in my list of ‘notes from the muse’ and I realized I was trying to create the “perfect” sequence of messages. Love a well-timed message from my past self!

If this helped you move through your procrastination, tap the ❤️ to help others folks find it.

Want to make progress on your most important creative project—now, not “someday”—without bypassing the reasons it’s hard? A Creative Reset might be what just what you’re looking for.

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💬 how do you balance your creative projects with your life?

Ryn Kingsley — Fri, 29 May 2026 12:04:07 GMT

They say writers get their butts in the chair and write! But this writer has chronic pain and other invisible medical conditions that make it difficult to show up for their art. And yet, I’ve finished a book of poems that will make its debut soon and I’m at work on a new book.

You don’t have to have big pockets of time or an abundance of energy to make progress on the creative work that matters to you. It would be nice! But you don’t need it.

In the comments, let’s share our best tips for completing big creative projects (like writing a book, building out a new business offering, or painting a gallery-showing’s worth of art) when you don’t have the luxury of taking a sabbatical from life. I’ll go first…

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Until next time,

Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

creative balance

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 26 May 2026 13:53:51 GMT

“Balance” is an unachievable standard. What can you let slide this week?

Fun fact—I used to be a massage therapist and the name of my business was Restoring Balance. Even back then I knew it wasn’t a static thing to be achieved and also it’s always been a challenge to let things slide. So if the idea of letting something slide gives you hives, maybe just try letting something tiny slide.

If this helped, tap the ❤️ below to help others folks find it.

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💬 I hate Big Hairy Audacious Goals, let’s talk about goal setting...

Ryn Kingsley — Fri, 22 May 2026 12:37:09 GMT

If you’re struggling to take even tiny steps toward your goal, the problem is not you, it’s probably the goal.

Maybe you’re moving toward something you don’t actually want. Maybe you didn’t account for the needs of the human body you live in. Or maybe, just maybe, you’re using an approach to goal-setting that doesn’t work for you.

Big Hairy Audacious Goals do not work for me. I’ve tried them, but they’re just stress-inducing things to fail at. Big Hairy Audacious Dreams, though, can get me out of bed.

But dreams without goals are a recipe for aimlessness. So let’s share our different approaches to goal-setting so we can find the ones that work for us.

In the comments, I’ll share what’s worked for me & I’d love to know what’s worked (and what hasn’t for you):

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Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

P.S.: Want to move toward your Big Hairy Audacious Creative Dreams—without waiting for more time, money, focus, or energy? A Creative Reset might be what your inner Artist is asking for.

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on impossible goals

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 19 May 2026 13:56:53 GMT

If you’re struggling to take even tiny steps toward your goal, maybe the goal needs reevaluated. Are you moving toward something *you* actually desire? Did you account for the needs of the body *you* live in?

Note from Ryn: If you’re struggling to take even tiny steps toward your goal, there is a valid reason & it’s NOT that you are lazy or weak or not trying hard enough. (If you’d like help finding a way forward, a Creative Reset might be what your inner Artist is asking for.)

If this helped, tap the ❤️ below to help others folks find it.

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💬 let’s talk about how we handle the fear of rejection

Ryn Kingsley — Fri, 15 May 2026 12:15:21 GMT

It’s a very human thing to want to avoid pain. And so, many of us don’t share our art, our hopes, our ideas to avoid the pain of rejection. But we’re not avoiding rejection, we’re only changing who is doing the rejecting. And I have the unfortunate experience to know:

Decades of rejecting yourself hurts a whole lot more.

In the comments, tell us how you take the sting out of putting your (he)art out there where just anyone can reject it. I’ll go first…

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Until next time,

Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

what’s worse?

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 12 May 2026 13:52:26 GMT

It’s scary to put your (he)art out there where just anyone can reject it. But when you hide it away, you’re the one rejecting it, and in the long run that hurts a whole lot more.

Note from Ryn: I don’t wanna tell you how long it took me to learn this one.

If this helped, tap the ❤️ below to help others folks find it.

These Notes From The Creative Courage Muse are a newer addition to The Creative Courage Project. As President of The Creative Courage Club, I solemnly swear to never send you an email just to stay top of mind, but if you don’t want these, but want to stay subscribed, click the button below and scroll down to adjust your notifications:

(The regular newsletter which will remain a mix of more interactive Creative Courage Club meetings, behind the scenes of what it looks like to show up for your art even when it’s hard, and poems, sent 1-5 times a month.)

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if you knew it would work…

Ryn Kingsley — Fri, 08 May 2026 13:52:07 GMT

➡️ If you knew it would work out, what creative risk would you stop wavering over?

I love this question because it cuts though the indecision spiral to show us exactly what we want to do.

This week’s note from the muse asked you to consider the possibility that you already have enough [time, money, confidence, courage, or skills] to start. Today, I’m inviting you to consider the possibility you already have enough information to decide to either take the risk or stop thinking about it (at least for the next X months).

Give this post a ❤️ when you’ve freed up some indecision energy.

Until next time,

Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

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🌱 starting

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 05 May 2026 13:44:07 GMT

What if you already have enough [time, money, confidence, courage, or skills] to start? Not enough for forever, enough to start.

Note from Ryn:

I used to be the gender-neutral monarch of using all my creative energy to chase “earning a living” until I realized:

1: in a world where the cost of groceries can double over a summer and a medical emergency can bankrupt you, ‘financial security’ is not obtainable (security in other ways? yes, I talked about that a bit here and here).

2: my life won’t always be there to earn.

That dream you’ve been delaying—you have enough to take a tiny step toward it today.

If this helped, tap the ❤️ to help others folks find it.

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The antidote to powerlessness

Ryn Kingsley — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 13:54:53 GMT

In The Creative Courage Club, we spent time this month doing things that feel too small to make a difference and noticing what happens.

If you did even one, you likely noticed that doing small things makes a BIG difference because it connects us with our own power to influence our mood, to make something out of nothing, to get ourselves unstuck, and to reach out and connect.

In a world where there are so many BIG things to feel powerless over, noticing and using your own power is an essential skill for not just surviving, but thriving.

With that in mind, I’m experimenting with a new cadence for these Creative Courage Club meetings:

A reader once shared that one of my superpowers is writing short, inspiring, and powerful missives, so in May, I’ve given myself the challenge to keep all of my messages to you SUPER short: less than 250 words. (After that, I’ll probably send some longer ones, but I’ll continue to take the same time and care shaping them into something that will leave you feeling like your creative dreams are possible now—not “someday”—without glossing over all the ways that’s hard.)
Each Tuesday, I’ll send a short Note From The Creative Courage Muse as a quick way to (re)orient you to prioritizing your creative desires before the week’s gotten away from you. (I’ve been having fun sharing these on Substack Notes & Instagram, and I think it’s a different energy when you receive something gift wrapped in your email inbox.)
The regular newsletter will remain a mix of more interactive Creative Courage Club meetings, behind the scenes of what it looks like to show up for your art even when it’s hard, and poems, sent 1-5 times a month.
As President of The Creative Courage Club, I solemnly swear to never send you an email just to stay top of mind, but you can now Choose Your Own Experience (see the instructions below).

🧐 Until next time: Where do you avoid even trying because you think what you’re trying to achieve is impossible? Consider this your invitation to do one tiny thing toward the impossible thing anyway.

Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

Choose Your Own Experience

The Creative Courage Project is the main newsletter. It’s a mix of more interactive Creative Courage Club meetings, behind the scenes of what it looks like to show up for your art even when it’s hard, and poems, sent 1-5 times a month.
Each Tuesday, I send a short Note From The Creative Courage Muse as a quick way to (re)orient you to prioritizing your creative desires before the week’s gotten away from you.

Right now, you’re all signed up for the full experience, and if, at any point, you want fewer emails, you can customize that by clicking the button below and scrolling down to notifications:

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tiny act of creative courage #4

Ryn Kingsley — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 13:52:49 GMT

Most of us crave connection, and yet it can be a challenge to stay connected to the people we don’t see regularly. Maybe one of you dropped the reply ball and it’s been a really long time. You don’t want to “lose touch,” but what do you say?!

Maybe this...

I was thinking about you today, so I thought I’d send a hello & how are you 🙂

[I also like to add something like this so my friend doesn’t feel pressure to respond or respond quickly] If you don’t have the capacity to respond, I totally understand. Just wanted to send a hello and hope you’re doing well :)

I used to have to talk myself into hitting ‘send,’ but recently a friend replied that they were happy to hear from me, and it was a relief to be reminded reaching out doesn’t have to be systematized & “regular.” It can be as simple as “hey, you popped in my thoughts today! How are you?”

If someone popped in your mind while you were reading this, consider this an invitation from the universe to send a quick message. Once you’ve done that, what did you notice?

Leave a comment

Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

Some cool people I know are offering some free things you might like….

If you’ve been following all the business advice and not seeing progress: You might like ’s free guided journey You Don’t Need Any More Advice

If you dread going to work: , Career Self-discovery & Leadership Coach is teaming up with Barb Hubbard, EFT Tapping Practitioner & ADHD Coach for a free workshop to help you get through the work day with more ease. Get the details and sign up here.

tiny act of creative courage #3

Ryn Kingsley — Wed, 15 Apr 2026 14:43:13 GMT

Morning pages, one of Julia Cameron’s tools for blocked artists, can be helpful for hearing yourself and getting unstuck. They can also be cumbersome—three pages, hand written!

You don’t have to spend the entire morning journaling to get a new perspective. One of my favorite tools for seeing a situation more clearly is a single-card tarot pull. Wanna give it a try?

1: Start with a question like: what am I missing? what’s another way to see this?

2: If you don’t have a deck: here’s a random card generator or reply to this email and I’ll pull one for you. Otherwise, shuffle your deck and pull a card.

3: Get curious about the image on the card. What stands out? How does it make you feel?

4: Optional: Read the interpretation of the card and get curious about how it answers your question. If it doesn’t seem to apply, how might it? (You could go down a rabbit hole of interpretations, but for our purposes today, either start here or use the guidebook that came with your deck.)

If you took a bit of time to see a new perspective, what did you notice?

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Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

tiny act of creative courage #2

Ryn Kingsley — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 13:49:43 GMT

Let’s say you want to make something because making things feels good. But you’re having trouble starting because the blank page or the mound of clay or the bits of picture you’ve saved for collage could become anything! And you want them to become something good!

I made a mini zine to get myself unstuck in just such occasions, and you can get a free, printable version by clicking the button below. If you’re new to zines and need folding instructions, of catmothcrow has a tutorial and printable mini zine here.

30 Seconds to Unblock Your Inner Artist

Sidenote: This is my first zine! And it wouldn’t exist if I hadn’t discovered the work of at Commonplace Zines. If you think you’d like to experiment with zine making, I’d recommend her “how to get started” here.

If you don’t have access to a printer, here’s the steps in a slightly less fun format:

1: Get a piece of paper and draw some squiggles and random shapes. (This is a drawing exercise, but you don’t have to be a visual artist to have some fun with it)

2: Do you want to make a magical or mundane creature? (can’t decide? flip a coin)

3: Choose one of your squiggles or shapes & draw the appropriate number of eyes.

4: Add a nose, a mouth, ears.

5: Complete your chosen creature as poorly as possible.

*Inspired by: Lynda Barry’s “Scribble Monster Jam” in the book Making Comics. (If this was fun, you’ll probably like the book!)

If you took a bit of time to make some “bad” art, what did you notice?

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Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

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tiny act of creative courage #1

Ryn Kingsley — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 13:51:47 GMT

You’re cultivating creative courage to do something. Probably something big. Maybe something that feels on the edge of impossible. Maybe with a whiff of urgency.

You’ve got Stuff To Do, only your mood is not onboard with doing anything. Usually you put your butt in the chair and power though. Stuff gets done, but you feel kinda shitty at the end of the day.

What if, just this once, you tried something different? See what happens…

You’re crunched for time, so it’ll have to be quick: five minutes to listen to some music and see if it shifts your mood.

You’ve got five minutes to try, right?

If you don’t have a favorite mood-shifting song, here’s mine.

If you took a few minutes to listen to some music, what did you notice?

Music is my most reliable mood-shifter and the one I forget about most! ’s Monday Moxie newsletters have been helping me remember to reach for it more often. If you could use a regular reminder to do the same, I recommend subscribing.

Also: I’d love to know: what’s your go-to mood-shifting song?

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Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

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💬 what’s your least favorite self-help-y saying?

Ryn Kingsley — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 16:04:10 GMT

The directive to Stop Playing Small almost broke me because there was a reason for my instinct to shrink, and instead of being met with care, it was met with “just stop” and “feel the fear and do it anyway.” So in April, I’m inviting you to experiment with doing things that feel too small to make a difference and noticing what happens.

But today, I’d love to know: What’s your least favorite self-help-y saying? The one that makes you feel a bit broken because it makes getting your shit together sound so simple.

Share in the comments the one that makes you cringe the most. I’ll go first…

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Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

there is no proven-to-work blueprint for this

Ryn Kingsley — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 13:52:01 GMT

Blueprints and formulas sell well because they promise the illusion of certainty. And that feels so safe in this very uncertain world.

But when the blueprint or the formula or the process fails, it’s not a far leap to thinking you’re the problem. I mean, it was “tried-and-true” or “proven” or “foolproof!”

That’s why I’ve spent so much time exploring the concept of creative safety and finding an internal sense of safety in my quest to unearth The Slow Artist’s Way.

Creative courage is a skill built one tiny act at a time. And that might feel too slow in a world of flashy promises of huge, quick transformations. But sustainable change most reliably happens when you meet yourself where you are, not when you try to drag yourself toward who you think you should be. (You know, the one who achieves their Big Hairy Audacious Goals without breaking a sweat!)

So for the next four weeks, I’m inviting you to experiment with doing things that feel too small to make a difference and noticing what happens.

🧐 You in?

If you received this in your inbox: you don’t have to do anything special to “opt-in,” but I’d love if you comment “YES!” below, it helps people find this space.

If you’re new here: subscribe below to join us, then comment “YES!” to help people find us.

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Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club

what’s next on the creative courage path?

Ryn Kingsley — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 13:52:46 GMT

I’ve been working out what’s next in my explorations of honoring our creativity and its pace in a world that demands more, faster. My central question is: “What does a trauma-informed path for following our creativity—no matter how slow and inefficient it feels—look like?” Safety and how to find it when the places many of us were taught to find it—money, being the best, and shrinking our needs—aren’t sustainable or accessible, was obviously first.

I have a jumble of ideas for what comes after we source enough safety, so I did a very unscientific survey and asked frequent readers for some insight.

If you’re here, I know you’re cultivating creative courage to do something. I don’t know what that “something” is, but I suspected it could be best described as:

A: I know exactly what it is, the challenge is around doing it.

B: I know I want to do something different, but I don’t know what it is specifically. The challenge is deciding a direction.

But now, I think they’re both the same thing. If the challenge is around doing the thing, it could also be seen as a challenge around deciding what to do with this specific moment of your time…?

I have thoughts on this, but first, I’d love to know:

Where does this resonate? Where have I missed the mark? Reply or comment below.

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Ryn

President of The Creative Courage Club