In today's episode, I welcome Will Blaine! He is an artist as well as the author and illustrator of the short story series, "Wildly Inappropriate Stories for Children," which feature common scenarios of adventures kids get themselves in, such a getting lost at a beach, or getting covered in jam while making themselves breakfast. Will's interview is funny, inspirational, and insightful, and he shares about all the twists and turns his artistic journey has taken him so far. (Fun fact: the cover image to this episode is Will's company's logo!)

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Episode 65 - Will Blaine

Lindsey Dinneen: Hello, and welcome to Artfully Told, where we share true stories about meaningful encounters with art.

[00:00:06] Krista: I think artists help people have different perspectives on every aspect of life.

[00:00:12]Roman:  All I can do is put my part in to the world.

[00:00:15] Elizabeth: It doesn't have to be perfect the first time. It doesn't have to be perfect ever really. I mean, as long as you, and you're enjoying doing it and you're trying your best, that can be good enough.

[00:00:23] Elna: Art is something that you can experience with your senses and that you just experiences as so beautiful. 

[00:00:31] Lindsey Dinneen: Hi friends, whether you are just getting started or you're a seasoned professional looking to up your game, I have an exciting opportunity for you. Did you know that I am actually the creator of 10 different courses online that range from ballet, jazz, tap. They also include a mindset detox course and two Stretch and Tone courses. So if you're looking to start a new hobby or get a little bit fitter, or you're looking to do a deep dive into your mindset, really perform a true detox, I have the course for you, and I would love to help you out with that. So if you go to elevateart.thinkific.com, you will see all of the different courses I've created.

[00:01:26] You don't have to step in a classroom to take your first dance class. I teach a signature 20 Moves in 20 Days course that allows you to learn 20 steps in just 20 days. It's a lot of fun. We have a great time together. And I think you're going to absolutely love the different courses. And artfully told listeners get a little something from me. So if you go, you'll sign up and use the promo code "artfullytold," all one word, and when you do so you'll get 15% off the purchase of any and all your favorite courses. All right, listeners, enjoy that. Again, it's elevateart.thinkific.com. See you there.

[00:02:11] Hello, and welcome back to another episode of Artfully Told. I'm your host Lindsey, and I am very excited to have as my guest today, Will Blaine. He is an artist as well as the author and illustrator of the short story series, "Wildly Inappropriate Stories for Children," which I am so excited to find out what that means. So I am just delighted to have you here. Will, thank you so much for being here. I definitely appreciate it. Can't wait to chat with you about arts.

[00:02:42] Will Blaine: Thank you. It's a pleasure.

[00:02:43] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. I would love if you wouldn't mind sharing a little bit about your background, maybe what got you involved in art in the first place? A little bit about your life journey, if you're okay with that.

[00:02:55] Will Blaine: Yeah, of course. I, I've always been kind of an, an artist and an author. I have always done that since I was a kid and I don't know why, after I break out in my twenties and everything like that, I I don't know. I didn't do it as much, but I always told stories to my, to my daughter. And, and I think this is kind of my-- if anybody knows me, they know this is true about it-- when I read my daughter books. When she was younger, I never actually read the words. I just  made up stories as it went along. And the same went for like games, my daughter to this day, she still gets on me because she goes, "You used to cheat at Candy Land." When she was little, she didn't understand what the rules were, so I just made them up as I went along because she didn't know them anyway. So I was just kind of having fun with her, just time, you know, spending time with my daughter and everything. And she, she was about five years old and she realized that I was not following the rules, when she learned to read and understood how the game works. She's like, "Hey, that's cheating!" And I've never lived it down. So I've always just kind of made up stories and, and liked drawing and, and things like that, pretty much all my life. My grandfather was an artist. And he was mostly doing landscapes and he would draw people's farms and things like that. And I think it probably had a little bit of an influence on me as to what I would like to do when I grew up as, as far as my art is concerned.

[00:04:08] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. So kind of having had the opportunity to grow up around it sounds like it was inspiring to you because you liked what you saw and you were like, "Oh, maybe I could do this too." Did he ever have a hand in helping teach you any of, of what he had learned himself? Or did you learn through others?

[00:04:26] Will Blaine: Yeah, he didn't really have that much of an influence on me. Though he did, he did give me lessons a few times, but it was mostly, mostly on my own that, that I've been doing this, the artwork. And I think that I, I need a lot more practice for sure that. Very happy with doing what I'm doing. It's just turned out pretty, pretty well. And I, I like it myself, if nobody else does, at least I do.

[00:04:45] Lindsey Dinneen: Well, and there's a lot of value to that, for sure. I was talking recently with somebody on the show who was talking about just creating art for art's sake for yourself. And it doesn't have to be shown to anyone. I mean, if it is, that's great, but if it's not, that's fine too. It's just about the process of creating and allowing yourself that outlet and you know, it, it just in the end it's, it's that. That's what matters.

[00:05:10] Will Blaine: Yeah. And it's been, it's very therapeutic in many ways too. I mean, it's just, it has a calming effect and, it's a form of expression an outlet that most people don't take advantage of. I think anybody can become an artist really. I mean, just because you don't think that you can draw up a particular thing doesn't mean that you can't draw. You know, I think with a little like practice and some lessons, I think anyone can be a pretty decent artist.

[00:05:31] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. I agree. And I think like, I really like what you said about it. It's maybe not so much about that particular thing. So me, for instance, if I were to sit down at a table and look at this bowl of fruit and try to recreate it through a painting, I would fail miserably. And I know that because I've tried and I'm so bad. But if I just sit down and create like whimsical, sort of fun art work that I do paint that's just like my imagination coming to life, I can totally do that, but yeah. Yeah. All about finding the right medium for you, I think. Or the right expression. Yeah. I love that.

[00:06:09] Will Blaine: Right.

[00:06:10]Lindsey Dinneen:  Yeah. So, okay. I have to find out all the things about your, your book series, because that just sounds like so much fun. So tell me about that.

[00:06:19] Will Blaine: Yeah. So the wildly "Wildly Inappropriate Stories for Children" book series is about all of the things that parents do not want their children to do, but all children do invariably. So my first book is called "Vlad and the Vast Beach" is a little boy, about a little boy that runs wanders away from his mother during the day at the beach. The second story of my series is called "Sticky Fingers from Jam." It's about a little boy that wakes up early in the morning and decides to make himself breakfast, and all these are based kind of loosely on my own experiences in life. So "Vlad and the Vast Beach" is based on my experiences going to New York City in the Brighton Beach area.

[00:06:56] I don't know if you know anything about Brighton Beach, but Brighton Beach is an area of New York where everything is Russian. All the people are Russian. All the signs are Russian, the restaurants are Russian, the stores are Russian. Everything's Russian.  So my wife and I speak Russian incidentally, so we would, we would go there a few times a year, take a walk along the boardwalk and walk to Coney Island in the evenings. And there would always be people out on the beach, you know, you know, having a good time. And that's where I got the idea for " Vlad and the Vast Beach," having that urban beach setting and having, having Vlad wander off and have a little adventure on his own.

[00:07:27] Lindsey Dinneen: Nice. Okay. So how many books have you published so far?

[00:07:32]Will Blaine:  I've only published two, I've written probably 10 or 12, but I haven't published them. And my first two books are not illustrated. I just put them out there just because most people were, a lot of people were saying, "Hey, I want a copy of this." And I got tired, tired of emailing people. So I put it on Amazon and you know, it's just selling decently, but yeah,  my next story that's coming out is called "The Glorious Gizzard of Roz." It's about a little chicken and it will be fully illustrated. So I look forward to that. That's going to be the first time that I've had a fully illustrated book.

[00:08:04] Lindsey Dinneen: Great! That's exciting. And so I'm curious to know, so your background in creating art and drawing and all those kinds of things obviously has prepared you for this now, but you know, it's interesting to me that that has been something that you've kind of developed into an illustrator role. How is, you know, creating just art for you different than creating art for your own story? Do you find yourself just thoroughly enjoying the process? Are you more critical or?

[00:08:37] Will Blaine: I think it's, it's more restrictive. Once you write the story and you're writing illustration or drawing illustrations for it, you're limited in scope as to what you're going to draw to some extent, because of the story. You have to follow the storyline. If you're just, you know, get my digital notebook out or something like that and start drawing something, I can draw anything I want to. That's one thing that I really appreciate about art. Anything can be art, it doesn't have to be fancy, or it doesn't have to be a particular thing necessarily. It could just be a series of shapes or colors. And, you know, I mean, not that it is all the time, it's usually I do draw something, but it doesn't have to be. You know, just to have a good balance of light and dark and color and, and, and space is-- there's a lot of beauty in that.

[00:09:21] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. I was, oh gosh, I think I was reading something. Oh, what was it? Anyway, the author was talking about how shadows bring out the light and you need the shadows in order to express the light that's that's there too. And how that's just can be such a beautiful metaphor for life. You know, it's not-- yeah, the darkness maybe isn't what we would choose, but it is what gives light it's radiance. And there's, there's beauty in that contrast too. That's cool.

[00:09:53]Will Blaine: Something that I noticed lately in some of my art is the use of blank space. What you don't draw, it says a lot more than what you do draw. I've just come to that conclusion more recently in that I've always thought it was kind of ridiculous when people, people said, "Oh, it's on the page already. And it just, it just came to me." That I always thought that was kind of ridiculous. But if you, if you think about it in a way that you look at where the blank spots are as opposed to what is drawn on the page, I liked that, I liked that concept. It's, it seems more valid than anything that I've actually put down with my pen or a stylus or whatever. And I'm, I'm learning to appreciate not having to fill up every little area of the, of the canvas.

[00:10:39] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, no, I, I am right there with you, I think, especially... So you know, as a, as a dancer and choreographer-- so I've come at it from a little bit of a different artistic perspective-- but I've always believed in the power of stillness, because I think when used well, sort of like your blank space idea, it actually gives a lot more meaning and credence to what's happening in the movement or in the painting or whatever it is because it allows the audience or the, the viewer to take a little bit of a breather and to absorb better. Yeah.

[00:11:13] Will Blaine: Yeah. And I think that applies to music also. I don't think we appreciate times in songs where there's nothing happening. You know, not that you want us to listen to total silence obviously, but there has to be an intermittent to the note. There's, there's notes and then there's, there's times in which there aren't many notes. So, you know, those are just as important as the spaces or is it just as important as the sound?

[00:11:34]Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah. Well, okay. So I know you are also now illustrating coloring books. I'd love to hear more about that too.

[00:11:45] Will Blaine: Yeah, I was, it was kind of a shock to me. I didn't know that, that I didn't really plan on doing this, but I was illustrating my second, er, no, it was my first book. I'm going back to "Vlad and the Vast Beach" and I'm going to illustrate it for a future edition. It's going to be fully illustrated, but I was, I was doing some of the drawings and I was developing one of the characters. His name is Carl. He's a seagull. And I had posted it on my Instagram account and I was using this app that allows you to do like a whiteboard animation so people can follow what you're drawing. And, and I got a lot of positive feedback about that. You know, people, people seem to like it. So I started putting a few things on there. So I did a few of those drawings. And then I, I was just doodling one day and in the application and it looked to me like one of those adult coloring books. You see them at the store all the time, you know, for people that they are adults.

[00:12:38] And they're a little more complex than just a basic cartoon that you would color as a kid. And this, this art started looking like that. And I was like, you know what? I bet I could write and, and draw an entire coloring book. So I started just tinkering around with different things and, and now I've got 27 drawings toward a coloring book and they're just rich, random shapes. And I don't know what the representations of different things that I think using shapes and, and I don't know. I think it's artistic and, and fun. And I've, I've had people tell me that it's just therapeutic just to watch the whiteboard animations on, on my Instagram account. You know, people just like watching things appear from blank space. You know, it's enjoyable for me. It's something that I think is pretty easy. It allows me to express myself. It's, it is kind of therapeutic for the artist as well as the person that's enjoying.

[00:13:34]Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. That's awesome. Well, and I know, especially, I think coloring books have gained more popularity lately because, like we were talking about briefly before we even started recording, it's kind of a trend now, even for adults to have coloring books, but you know, it's, it's so fun. It's, it's fun, especially if you don't consider yourself to be a fine artist and you just enjoy kind of coloring in the already  established lines. Yeah. I mean, I'm, I'm that way. So I mean, I'm curious, from your own experience or your own opinion, why do you think coloring books resonate so well with people as a, as a hobby?

[00:14:16] Will Blaine: I think it's, it's kind of like a mindless activity. It doesn't take a lot of effort. And I think, I think it's a way of relaxing. I think it's the same reason why people watch television. You sit there and it just, it takes minimal effort. You don't have to think about anything particularly. And, you know, I, I think when you have, you know, if you use markers or crayons, it doesn't matter. I think that the colors are impactful on your psyche, I think. I work on my, in my day job, I'm a process engineer for a large company. We will build the big trucks and some areas of the factory are very dark and there's not much color. And in other areas of the factory are bright and lit and shiny. And, and I think people are in much better moods typically in the areas that have color, that have light. And I think that's the same with coloring. You have those colors, you have those brightness, it allows you to express yourself if by no other reason or way, by what colors you choose. You can, you can make a coloring sheet a gray dismal mess, or you can make it flourish.

[00:15:20]Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. Well, and you brought up an interesting thing that I'm curious to ask you more about. You know, you mentioned having a day job, and I think there are a lot of us out there that have their day jobs in addition to pursuing their art. What advice do you have for somebody who maybe either feels like they don't have enough time to devote to their art or how, how do you balance that? And what advice do you have for someone who's interested in that?

[00:15:50]Will Blaine: I think whatever you choose to do, you have to buy out the time from something else. You know, I I've, I'm basically an efficiency expert at my job, my day job. So I am very much into efficiency type things. So I do, I did a time study on my life and I was looking at things, like how much time do I spend watching television each week? How much time do I spend checking email? How much time do I spend playing a game on my phone? Or how much time do I spend exercising? And I started looking at all these things and I was like, "Wow, is that how I want to spend, spend my life?" You know, if I'm, if I'm sitting down and literally, it's not uncommon for people to watch, you know, five or six hours of television every day. You know, you multiply that times a week and there's your time. You have, you have plenty of time. Yeah, it's just that you have to buy the time out from something else. If you want to spend your life watching television, that's your choice. But if you think that you might want to be an artist, that's, that's your practice time right there too, you know?

[00:16:52] And, and anymore, I, for several years now, I don't think I've watched very much television at all. In fact, I don't have, I don't have cable or anything like that. We have like a regular antenna that picks up several stations, but even then I don't watch it that much. I just, for the most part, I think it's kind of boring. I don't really, I couldn't even tell you who is a famous person on television right now. I don't, I just don't know their names. I haven't watched television in that long. So it's a choice. I think people can choose to do what they want to. And I think many people just get sucked into a routine or a rut and you know, they don't make the choice to be an artist or to be an author or to be a musician or a, or a choreographer or whatever. Yeah. We choose how to spend our life and you just have to really do a a gut check and just take a look at your life. Go around with a stopwatch and see how much time you spend doing different activities in your life. You'd be surprised.

[00:17:48] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. I think that's fantastic advice and really resonates, I'm sure, with a lot of people, because you're right-- it's, it's not that you don't have the time. You just spend it in a different way. So it's just a matter of prioritizing. I mean, what do you want to do with your life? Like you said, do you, do you want to just watch TV? And if so, you know, that's, that's your choice, but if you're trying to carve out time, that's a great place to start. Yeah, absolutely. Well, you talked earlier about, you know, storytelling and making up rules as you go along with your daughter and I'm, I'm curious, how much has your daughter influenced the work that you do as an artist?

[00:18:30]Will Blaine: I think that we're very much an influence on each other. In fact, she, she tells me that I resonate in her head all the time, just from different things that I told her growing up and advice that I'd given and things like that. But she also influenced me a great deal as well. You know, it instilled in me a love for reading, for instance. Read her, read her a story every night before she went to bed and I instilled in her a love of reading and really helped along with her education as well. But it also helps you. The more you read, the more you will be able to write. I, I really believe that. And it's the same, same way with art. I think the more that you're involved in activities and, and drawing and, and other artistic expression, I think the more likely the more inspired you'll be, and the more likely you will be.

[00:19:19]Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. So what is the-- and I know this is kind of a far reaching question-- but what does the future look like to you? Are you planning to continue publishing and, you know, creating new books and illustrations and maybe coloring books? Or do you, do you have other things on the horizon as well?

[00:19:40] Will Blaine: I, I do. I have, I have so many ideas. It's just, it's not enough life left to accomplish everything, all the ideas that I already have. So yes, I will continue writing. I've, I've got lots of ideas for books. I've I would like to write a book of memoirs of my travels. Like right before the pandemic, I spent a month in Europe, we went to Germany and Switzerland, Italy and Croatia, and really enjoyed ourselves. There's lots of experiences that I've, I'd love to write about, lots of situations I've found myself in, in life that were kind of unique that would, each of those would make a story themselves. And of course, I've got a lot more kid stories that I've already written that I just haven't published yet. And then I've got a lot more to that. I'm currently writing, I think, every, every day that I walk around and I see something, I write a story about it. It's, it's seems like something that I don't know if it comes naturally to me, but it's, it's pretty easy for me and I like doing it. So I think it's something that I'm probably going to continue to, to to write.

[00:20:35] My wife and I were at, went to a park several months ago, and we were taking a walk due to the COVID, you know, was trying to keep isolated from, and as well as get our exercise. And we saw this large oak tree that had tipped over and she's, my wife was kind of telling me, I don't know, teasing me a little bit. And she was like, "Do you think you can write a story about that?" You know, 'cause it just says this old oak tree that's leaning over. And I actually did write a story about it. It was called "Gary the Great." It's about a little woodpecker that thinks that he has knocked this tree down and he gets a little bit of arrogance in his, in his life, because he thinks that he's done this great thing, but it's a fun story. And all of my stories always have a lesson at the end of it, too, for kids as well.

[00:21:15]Lindsey Dinneen: I love that. That sounds so, so fun. I really-- yes, that, that, that resonates with me. Like those kinds of things. Oh, fantastic. Well, yeah, so I'm sure that, you know, you have tons and tons of stories to share, but I wonder if there are a couple that really stand out to you as either maybe witnessing someone interact with your own art that was really impactful, or you participating in somebody else's art, and it was just this moment to remember because it was impactful?

[00:21:51] Will Blaine: I think life experiences are very impactful. And sometimes you don't know how to express them at the time. And I, and I'll, I'll give an example. And my second story is called "Sticky Fingers from Jam." And it's about a little boy that gets up early in the morning and makes himself breakfast. And that was actually inspired by my cousin. So I was raised on a 120 acre farm in, in rural West Virginia. And my chores involve getting up at six o'clock in the morning, going out to the barn and feeding the animals, which involve me walking past my uncle's house. So it was six o'clock in the morning. And my cousin emerged from a cornfield and he was probably three years old at the time, which would have made me around eight or nine years old at the time. And he was completely naked. And he was covered in butter and sugar from head to toe, absolutely covered. And I didn't think anything of it at the time, I thought nothing of it. And he proceeds to tell me that he's made himself breakfast.

[00:22:50] And you know, I'm looking back, you know, when I turned like 40 years old, I was thinking to myself about that situation, you know, how you reflect on your life sometimes. And I was thinking to myself, his house must have been covered in sugar, that his parents probably had ants for years. I mean, if you had that much sugar on you, how much did you get all over the kitchen and your bedroom and where, wherever else you walked before you made your way out of the house completely. But, but those, those things are impactful, you know? And sometimes, sometimes you just take, it takes you a while to be able to express those things. So I wasn't, you know, I was, I was well into adulthood before I even thought about that again, those experiences. And at that point, you know, I could look back with the experiences that I've had in my life and what would have happened if it was my child in that situation. And I was able to make a story of, formulate the story out of it and that, that's what creates the art. And not only the, you know, the visions that you have for the work that you're going to do as an artistically, but also the, and the authorship, how you're going to write about it and, and how you're emotionally going to interact with the situation.

[00:23:58] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. That makes complete sense. Well, I'm sure that there are some of our listeners who are going to be super curious to read those awesome books that you're writing and, you know, follow your artistic journey. Is there a way for them to do that?

[00:24:14] Will Blaine: They certainly can. If you want to see what I'm doing just day to day, I typically will post at least once a week on Instagram. It's Curious Mind of Will. That's my company's name. C U R I O U S M I N D. And you can also look for me on Facebook. I just use my personal account as Will Blaine, and I think I have the Curious Mind of Will there as well. I don't post to that as much, but if you want to, if you want to take a look at my books and stuff like that, they're on Amazon. You can, you can look me up. Will Blaine. Just type that in there. And you can type the titles of my two books that I have published so far. That's "Vlad and the Vast Beach," " Sticky Fingers from Jam." Those are the two that are published so far. Coming soon is going to be "The Glorious Gizzard of Roz."

[00:24:52] I think that's, this is my favorite book by far, this far. I guarantee you that you won't understand what the story's about until the very last word, even adults. And it's, it makes everything tied together. Yeah. So that's one of the, one of my favorite stories that I've written. And I really, really enjoy reading that to kids. I, I read at story times and different things like that too for, you know, like libraries and things like that. And I really enjoy the reaction when I want to have a, you know, like a Facebook live or a story time or anything like that. The kids, kids love that story.

[00:25:26] Lindsey Dinneen: Awesome. Well, thank you so much for that. Yeah. I'm personally excited to read those books because they sound awesome and I can't wait to continue following what you do 'cause that's right up my alley too. So yeah. Thank you for sharing that. And I do have three questions that I always like to ask my guests if you're okay that.

[00:25:46] Will Blaine: Absolutely, let's go..

[00:25:47] Lindsey Dinneen: Awesome. Okay. So first of all, how do you personally define art or what is art to you?

[00:25:52]Will Blaine: I think that, that art is tied up in an emotional expression, for me anyway. I think many people do art for different things, but I think it is always tied up with the emotion that you're feeling. It's very, it's very deeply emotional, whatever it is and that's, and that's why I don't think that art has to be anything particular. You don't have to draw a tree or a bush or a person, you know, you can just-- you'll see how the colors blend, and you can see how the shapes go together. You can see what space there is and, you know, whatever you're feeling that day, it affects what you're going to put down on that page. And it that's, that's, that's so fundamental to what art is. I think that defines what it is.

[00:26:36]Lindsey Dinneen:  Yeah, absolutely. And then what do you think is the most important role of an artist?

[00:26:41]Will Blaine: I know that artists do different things. I think that many artists like to make political statements and, and things like that, but I, I don't think that's the most important rule or role. I think that that artists should do it for themselves primarily. I, I've, I've seen people that are artists that want to become famous. I don't particularly want that myself. I, I mean, I don't, I never desired to be famous. I just like entertaining kids, basically. But I think that a person needs to do it as a, as a way of expressing themselves. That's the most important thing above everything else.

[00:27:15] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. And then my final question, and I will define my terms a little bit, but do you think that art should be inclusive or exclusive? And what I mean by that is inclusive referring to an artist who puts their work out into the world and provide some context behind that, whether that's a title or program notes or the inspiration. Versus an artist who does not, who puts their work out into the world and doesn't provide context so it's left solely up to the viewer to interpret it the way that they will.

[00:27:48] Will Blaine: Well, I going to say that depends. And the reason I say that primarily I liked the, to know what is beyond behind the artist and what they've done. But I've seen a lot of art that I had no idea what it was or who drew it or, or whatever, and I've still liked it. So I think there's room for both, but at personally, I, I prefer to get some background. It helps me to understand what's going on in your mind, and it helps you to help me to understand the emotions behind the art. That's really the fundamental part of it.

[00:28:23]Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, absolutely. That makes complete sense. Well, thank you so very much for being here and chatting art with me, Will, I really appreciate it. I'm very excited about what you're doing and what you're bringing to the world. I think that obviously you bring a lot of fun and joy to kiddos, but also to adults, I'm sure, who are enjoying these stories as well. And I'm excited for the, this new coloring book to emerge and all those different things. So just thank you for sharing your art with the world. I think that's really important and I'm glad you're doing it. And, seriously, thank you for being here. This has been a lot of fun.

[00:29:02] Will Blaine: Yeah. And I enjoy your format too. And I like getting out there and being able to be on, on shows like this, and you're doing a great service for the community and for the world. I, I really appreciate being on here and you're doing a great job.

[00:29:15] Lindsey Dinneen: Thank you! I really appreciate that. And thank you so much to everyone who has listened to this episode. I highly encourage you to check out Will's , go onto Amazon, buy those books, follow him on Instagram so you can kind of keep updated with all these new, exciting endeavors that he's embarking on. And if you're feeling as inspired as I am, I would love if you would share this episode with a friend or two, and we will catch you next time.

[00:29:43] If you have a story to share with us, we would love that so much. And I hope your day has been Artfully Told.

[00:29:53]Hi friends. I wanted to share with you another podcast that I think you're going to fall in love with just as I have. It's called Harlem with a View, and it is hosted by Harlem Lennox, who was a previous guest of mine on Artfully Told and a dear friend. Just because it looks easy doesn't mean it is. There is so much that goes into the work of your creative. She wants to know how the artists got into their line of work, what inspires them, but most importantly, what keeps them going? She'd asked them about how they make it through the blood, sweat, and tears. She wants to know what it's like to live this creative life: the good, the bad, the ugly, and even the magical. So she goes behind the scenes with creatives, from different genres and she explores their history, their take on life and talks about the business of art and the dedication of making art. She has a brilliant, brilliant platform. I think you will fall in love. I highly recommend that you search for Harlem with a View. Thanks!