Let's Call It In
Celebrating Mother's Day with community dream projects!
Happy Mother’s Day, Friends!
I hope you are feeling celebrated and spending the day in whatever way feels right to you.
Nebula Notebook is a place to meet kindred spirits and get inspired, and today we are hearing from readers who are dreaming big!
Below you’ll find heartfelt ideas from writers, as well as a weaver, a podcaster, a retreat host, and more. It was a privilege to pull this issue together. I wish I could set off fireworks for every project. But we can still support each other!
Find a project you’re excited about and cheer someone on in the comments.
Reach out if you can help someone bring their vision to life. Make introductions, recommend resources, or offer help. Just knowing someone else is excited about an idea can be encouraging.
Share your own ideas in the comments. Maybe you’ll find a collaborator—or simply surprise yourself in a beautiful way.
I believe in us!
“My dream project for the past few years has been to write a book like the Lost Words by Robert Macfarlane - but about the plants & animals of my local environment (Lake Erie basin). I’d also love it to be collaborative - maybe with local students writing the poetry or painting some of the illustrations?”
“I want to exhibit my hand-woven tapestries inspired by the nature of my
home: Chilean Patagonia. It is a small collection and small and medium format (obviously, since I live in a motorhome!) so I don’t need a very large room.”
“I would love to write a book on Women in the Old Testament that somehow weaves in narrative from their perspective, research about their stories, and prayer inspired by their experiences. I dream of collaborating with other writers and poets who love spirituality, theology, prayer, and strong women!”
“My dream project is that I’d love to lead a reading retreat in Greece. Just holing up in a beautiful space to read, enjoy delicious food with other bookish people, take long walks, and read some more.”
“My dream project (well, one of them) is to create an interactive zine. I LOVED the Highlights magazines as a kid. I want to make something like that but more editorial for adults. I imagine people doing crosswords, spot the difference, sudoku, etc. along with beautiful interviews and articles/designs while traveling or in the waiting room!”
“My dream project is something I’ve just announced. It’s exciting, but it’s only going to work if I allow others to help me make it happen.
I imagine mothers logging online to join in on live discussions on mental health. I imagine them doodling together with their kids while listening to a woman talk about art therapy. I imagine another mom on a walk six hours ahead in a different country listening to a speaker share ways to make addiction recovery possible. I see mothers catching up to the discussion after work and being able to do a guided yoga break with their children.
2024 Motherhood & Mental Health Virtual Conference’s topic: How can we treat ourselves with compassion?”
“My dream project is to write a book for women who grew up with a mother who was hurtful, abusive, or unsupportive (or all of the above) and became mothers themselves.
I want to collect their stories about how their childhood shaped them, what becoming a mother was like for them, how different they are doing things with their children, etc.
I want to tell the stories of women, like me, who statistically are set out to live painful lives but who have found ways to move through the pain and create beautiful lives.
It is the book I have been searching for about women hurt by their mothers, how this shapes them and how motherhood gives them a chance to heal.
I am open to people sending me a message here or sending me an email (delreyen@gmail.com). Right now, this is all in my heart and I want to talk with others and see where it leads!”
“My idea? Offering a space (online to begin) for people to Make Friends with Poetry.
I independently published my first book of poetry in 2021 and my recent volume of poems was released last September.
I would love to offer people--women of all ages who are interested--the guidance, permission and poetry basic how-to’s to write their own poetry.”
“I’m working on a dream project now! Collaborating with James Buchanan of Orchard Writing. It's a podcast for "midlist" professional creatives who are curious about how to move up. We've been having a ridiculous amount of fun. I've always wanted a radio show about books and other creative stuff...this is it!”
“My dream project is to open a children’s author/illustrator writing retreat in a beautiful location in California or Oregon where creators can escape from real life for a few days and not worry about anything but their work.”
PS
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PS—The fastest way to grow as a writer is to book a manuscript critique or a creative coaching session with an expert.
My clients get agents, sell books, and win awards. They also learn how to find ease and joy in the creative process, so they can keep going when life gets hard.
What a mother's day treat read! These creators are so interesting. I'll link to this in my post this week!
This was beautiful. Thank you for sharing and creating a space for this. <3