Welcome back to UNRAVEL your journey: a podcast where we explore what it means to build life outside the confines of conventional work and motherhood.

In our FIRST episode of Season 2, we're speaking with Jocelyn Mathewes, a mixed-media, interdisciplinary artist + mother of three living with chronic illness in rural Appalachia.

Together we discuss Jocelyn's contribution to the book Entwined: An Anthology of Creativity and Motherhood.

We also explore -

• the challenges of balancing art, motherhood, and chronic illness
• the value in finding joy within sorrow + humor in tragedy 
• how Jocelyn built an artist community + curated exhibit from her home in rural Tennessee

ARTIST BIO :: Jocelyn Mathewes is a mixed-media interdisciplinary artist, living with her family in rural Appalachia in East Tennessee, USA. She earned  a B.A. in Studio Art and English Literature from Messiah College. Her work has been exhibited in galleries, museums, and community spaces all over the United States. She has participated in residencies with the Artist Residency in Motherhood (ARiM), Makers Circle, and Stay Home Gallery. In 2020, she founded EAT/ART space, an alternative pop-up gallery, where she curates exhibits. She also organizes artist meet-ups in the southern highlands to foster regional growth, collaboration, and innovation.

ARTIST STATEMENT :: "My work documents the psychology and embodied experience of the unrepeatable moment."

Connect with Jocelyn via her website (https://www.jocelynmathewes.com/) and Substack newsletter (https://jocelynmathewes.substack.com/).

SUPPORT ENTWINED :: Jocelyn is part of a crowd-funded project curated by artist-mother Sarah Shotts. 

• Entwined is an anthology that weaves together stories of creativity and motherhood by painters, writers, potters, visual artists, musicians, poets, and multi-passionates from around the globe.
• Ember is an art journal companion. 

Preorder your copy here (https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/entwined-an-anthology-of-creativity-motherhood#/).

Take a peek inside the book here (https://substack.com/@sarahshotts/p-148368958).

Read the 5-year origin story of the project here (https://sarahshotts.substack.com/p/preorder-entwined-creativity-and?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=post_embed&utm_medium=web).

Connect with Sarah via her website (https://www.sarahshotts.com/) and Substack newsletter (https://sarahshotts.substack.com/). 

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

In this episode, we welcome Sarah Shotts to the podcast to talk about why there’s no one-size-fits-all to creativity (or creative capacity) and the importance of practicing INconsistency.

Key Moments: 

• 8:41 - Re-evaluating creative capacity + self-imposed boundaries
• 17:35 - Creative cycles & seasons: Discover Your Creative Ecosystem
• 30:34 - Being intentional about being INconsistent
• 36:40 - Honoring creative intuition (as neurodivergent artists) 
• 47:09 - Embracing the “messy middle” 

About Sarah:
Sarah Shotts is a multi-disciplinary artist who creates fine art to explore her neurodivergent experience as an autistic mother. She’s also a part-time university instructor of theatre and a homeschooling parent. Sarah has authored and self-published Discover Your Creative Ecosystem. And her latest project is a collaboration of artist/mothers from around the globe!

Dive Deeper: 

• Connect with Sarah via her website and Substack newsletter.
• Preorder your copy of Entwined + Ember. This crowd-funded project weaves together stories of creativity and motherhood by women around the globe - and your financial support will help make it happen! 
• Read the 5-year origin story of this project (and take a peek inside the books!)
• Order your copy of Discover Your Creative Ecosystem. 
• Check out Sarah’s archive of (free) online courses including Self Publishing 101 and Crowdfunding 101.

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

For complete show notes and a detailed description of this episode visit -  www.unravelyourdays.com/podcast/38

JOIN THIS CONVERSATION IN OUR PODCAST COMMUNITY. Available for free on Mighty Networks - www.unravelyourdays.mn.co

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

For complete show notes and a detailed description of this episode visit -  www.unravelyourdays.com/podcast/37

JOIN THIS CONVERSATION IN OUR PODCAST COMMUNITY. Available for free on Mighty Networks - www.unravelyourdays.mn.co

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

We pull apart the structure of The Element by Sir Ken Robinson (what we liked and didn't like) and dive into a conversation about accessibility, whether passion projects can / should be monetized, and the experience of finding creative flow v. allowing for interruptions.

For complete show notes and a detailed description of this episode visit -  www.unravelyourdays.com/podcast/36

JOIN THIS CONVERSATION IN OUR PODCAST COMMUNITY. Available for free on Mighty Networks - www.unravelyourdays.mn.co

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

Let’s talk about how to engage with the seasons of the creative process. This is BOTH a science and an art-form, because it’s not always “cyclical” (and sometimes feels more like ping-pong).

For complete show notes and a detailed description of this episode visit -  www.unravelyourdays.com/podcast/35

JOIN THIS CONVERSATION IN OUR PODCAST COMMUNITY. Available for free on Mighty Networks - www.unravelyourdays.mn.co

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

We interview Claire Venus, a Creative Producer and Mentor who invites creative work into her experience of motherhood (and vice versa). We talk about how to embrace presence inside motherhood (through creative practice!), what it means to make creative spaces more accessible, and the intentional practice of balancing boundaries with flexibility.

Find Claire Venus on her website (www.creativelyconscious.co.uk), on instagram, and through her Substack newsletter (of the same name). 

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

We welcome the seasonal shift from summer to fall within a conversation about the sacred energy of the transitional seasons (spring and fall), plus our individual rituals and traditions to celebrate fall. We talk about balance, burnout, and apple-picking!

For complete show notes and a detailed description of this episode visit -  www.unravelyourdays.com/podcast/33

JOIN THIS CONVERSATION IN OUR PODCAST COMMUNITY. Available for free on Mighty Networks - www.unravelyourdays.mn.co

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

Maintaining consistent (or regular) practice can be deeply challenging. In this episode we work through our individual challenges together.

For complete show notes and a detailed description of this episode visit -  www.unravelyourdays.com/podcast/32

JOIN THIS CONVERSATION IN OUR PODCAST COMMUNITY. Available for free on Mighty Networks - www.unravelyourdays.mn.co

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).

Grief is a universal experience, and yet, we all grieve differently (and on different timelines). In this episode we talk about how to create public space for grief; and we share our recent experiences with grief.

CW: grief, loss, death, miscarriage

For complete show notes and a detailed description of this episode visit -  www.unravelyourdays.com/podcast/30

JOIN THIS CONVERSATION IN OUR PODCAST COMMUNITY. Available for free on Mighty Networks - www.unravelyourdays.mn.co

SUBSCRIBE to the UNRAVEL your journey podcast on Substack. Available for free (or for $5 per month).