The Creative Trinity Experience

This past weekend I had the opportunity to hang out and enjoy the creative trinity – women, writing and wine!  Far be it from me to pass up such an incredible moment.  Skirt’s inaugural creative conference delivered all of the above in true Skirt form – the women were sassy, the writing was inspiring and the wine was inebriating. 

There were a variety of speakers who engaged us in mind, body and spirit workshops geared towards helping us live our best, most creative life.  Here’s my rundown of some of the speakers I heard. 

Emily Giffin, author of Something Borrowed, and most recently Heart of the Matter, delivered a dynamic speech full of spot-on spunk.  She talked about her attempts to have a “real” job (a lawyer) and her realization that her passion was writing, not litigating.  She assured us that she still struggles with her creativity like the rest of us, and she encouraged us to pursue what we love.  Oh and she also revealed that she considers Jennifer Aniston her homegirl.  Emily is the kind of person you’d hang with over a bottle of wine as you discussed the advantages of the latest celebrity gossip.  Anyway, I loved her and want her to be my BFF.

Robin Spizman, New York Times Bestselling author of over 80 books (you go girl!), was a compact dynamo.  Full of energy and chutzpah Robin left us all feeling a bit more confident in ourselves as creative forces to be reckoned with.  What do you get when you don’t get what you want?  You get experience.  It’s your story.  Her advice was to find our stories.  And we all have them.  So what are you waiting on?  Tell.  Your.  Story. 

Claire Cook, author of Must Love Dogs, and her latest Best Staged Plans, was absolutely lovely.  She’s the neighbor who would bring you sherbert, ginger ale and your favorite magazine if she knew you were sick, just to brighten your day.  She is grounded and humble, proof that you can be successful and still be one of the girls.  I mean, c’mon she got to hang with John Cusack and walk the carpet and she invited us all to become a part of her network.  Cool beans.  Claire’s knowledge of the writing experience is priceless.  My favorite piece of advice being the writing happens in the rewrite.  She compared it to getting the ball of clay on the table in a messy heap so you can see it and begin to shape each bit and get rid of the shit.  But you have to get the shit down first.  So true!  She encouraged us as writers to be who we are and write the book that only you can write.  I loved her energy, and her honesty. 

Lisa Baron, author of Life of the Party, certainly lived up to her claim.  Indeed, she was the life of the conference as she shared some of her risqué political encounters.  Not being a very politically-minded person myself, I assumed I wouldn’t be very interested in her adventures.   In fact, I’ve been known to say screw politics. So imagine my amusement when I learned that’s exactly what Lisa did!  SOLD!  A Jewish girl with balls.  That’s what she said!  

Stephanie Davis-Smith, danced down the center of the room as Cyndi Lauper sang “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”.  Editor-in-chief for The Atlantan,  and former National Web Editor for Skirt!, Stephanie proved that you can tell the truth and be funny at the same time.  Like the time she discovered, as it was being placed in the ground, that the box chosen to house a family member’s remains was the same box she had in her house – a box from Pier One.  Awkward?  Yes.  Too serious to be funny?  Absolutely not.  Stephanie encouraged us all to “talk taboo and tell the truth of who you are” even if, no, especially if that means sharing embarrassing moments.  It’s the grit that gets the hit.  Talk taboo and watch the comments pour in.  So a big thank you to Stephanie for giving me permission to speak candidly about my bladder in an upcoming post.  Stay tuned. 

There were other speakers  who armed us all with confidence and common sense regarding the creative life.  I was inspired by each of these motivating women:  Literary agent, Abigail Koons; Associate editor Laura Tisdel; and Certified coach, Michelle Goss.  All reminded us that we are a community – and each one reached out to us as writers offering a network of support and encouragement.

That’s what I love about Skirt!  It’s like one big Girl’s Night Out that never ends!  Thanks for putting together such a rock-star lineup and adding a little “Lovely” in between!