In this inspiring episode of Deep Dive Creatives, host David McGinness sits down with Steve Hunt—a painter, woodworker, writer, editor, and clockmaker—who shares his lifelong journey of creativity fueled by curiosity, craftsmanship, and purpose.

💡 What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Steve’s hands-on creative process (from thumbnail sketch to finished piece)

• How he finds inspiration in everyday scenes and rural life

• His thoughts on overcoming creative blocks and "failures"

• The importance of having creative mentors

• Balancing artistic passion with real-life responsibilities

• Why embracing who you are is vital for creative authenticity

• His philosophy on creativity, faith, and purpose-driven work

• The biggest threats to creativity (and how to avoid them)

Whether you're a lifelong artist or just beginning your creative journey, Steve's wisdom and humor will challenge and encourage you to keep creating—on your terms.

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Kristen Grainger, is the voice of True North, an Americana string band that hails from the Pacific Northwest.  Kristen is the primary architect of the band’s songwriting.  She was named by The Bluegrass Situation as one of the “Women Who Wrote Our 2020 Soundtrack,” alongside Dolly Parton and Brandi Carlile.

Justin Panneck is a Licensed Professional Counselor with a masters degree both in counseling and education as well as a PhD in health psychology. Through education, experimentation and collaboration, Justin has developed a highly creative counseling practice that not only promotes healthy thinking, but nurtures the creative spirit.

Meet Bentley Michaels. Bentley has been a full-time Voice Talent for the past 15 years. In that time his voice and music have been used by companies like AT&T, NBC, Comcast, Walgreens, Evolution Game Systems, Reebok, just to name a few. Bentley works from his home studio in the great NW doing voice overs and creating custom music for projects that are seen and heard all over the world.

Meet Molly Gracida Beach, a young entrepreneur, wife and mother of two, living in San Antonio de las Minas BC Mexico, who started a cake decorating business in 2024. She also started an Instagram channel called Mollyssweets that has quickly grown to 30,000 followers.

director of the Enchanted Forest, a theme park located in Turner, Oregon.  She counts herself fortunate to have been born into a family dedicated to cultivating the creative spirit.  In the late 60’s Susans father, Roger Tofte, on a 20 acre land site, created and hand built the Enchanted Forest. Susan had a front row seat for the entire experience.

00:00 Creativity is…

00:43 Meet Susan Vaslev

07:25 Defining Creativity

07:53 The Creative Process

14:22 Inspiration for Working In Your Industry

15:26 Creativity Mentors

16:54 Creative Challenges

19:38 Creative Failure

22:55 What Motivates You?

24:19 Creative Philosophy

27:34 Creative Goals

29:00 Threats To Creativity

34:59 An Inspirational Word

Meet Dan Chen, a multi-disciplinary artist who has mastered over glaze painting, charcoal drawing, airbrush painting, oil painting, raku pottery, porcelain and stoneware creation, soft pastel, scratch board and intaglio prints,  Bronze sculpting, lucite engraving, and the list goes on!  Dan considers him self a work in progress, always in pursuit of learning new things and new skills to master.  When asked what his creative goals are, his reply is, “the next thing!”

00:00 Creativity

00:38 Meet Dan Chen

05:14 Defining Creativity

05:56 The Creative Process

08:26 Favorite Part of Creative Process

09:40 Inspiration for Creativity

10:46 Creativity Mentors

12:30 Creative Challenges

15:23 Creativity and Vision Clash

21:10 Dry Spells

22:33 Creative Failure

23:57 What Motivates You?

25:54 Creative Philosophy

27:34 Creative Goals

29:03 Threats To Creativity

30:08 Just Do It.

Meet Steve Gehlen.   Steve has led digital teams at Hollywood Video, Nike, Icebreaker Clothing, Pendelton, OHSU, Brandlive, Costal Farm & Ranch and currently heads up a team at Wilco. Steve is also the Founder of organizations that promote creativity like the Internet Strategy Forum, Keeping the Arts and Oregon Creative Industries. Steve unpacks his ideas about technology.generative A.I  and his own creative process. Let’s Dive In!

Meet Michelle M. Bruhn.  Michelle is a Young Adult fantasy author whose stories focus on outcasts, hard questions, and hope. Michelle is the author of a book series titled the dragon singer chronicles.  The first book in the series, titled Songflight was published in 2020 and is a three-time finalist for the Realm Awards.

Von Glitschka, the founder of Glitschka Studios, located in the Pacific Northwest, works closely with clients from all over the world, collaborating to create design and illustration for global brands, small business and startups. Von has a passion to pass along his knowledge and expertise to anyone willing to improve their creative abilities. He has written numerous resource and how to books. His best selling book, Vector Basic Training, has become an industry-standard teaching resource in art schools and college design programs worldwide.