We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Bridget Boland a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Bridget thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you tell us a bit about who your hero is and the influence they’ve had on you?
My number one hero is Audrey Hepburn. Many know Audrey as an iconic movie star whose images still frequently grace the media even over thirty years after her death. But what most people DON’T know about Audrey is that in her later years she was a humanitarian who served with UNICEF, speaking out and bringing the world’s attention to the plight of children in peril all over the globe.
Twenty years ago, I saw some photos of Audrey taken in Somalia. Audrey was dressed in a simple polo shirt, cotton pants and Keds tennis shoes, a grim haunted expression overshadowing her beautiful features. Seated on her lap were some of the many emaciated Somalian orphans who were starving to death from the famine. Those moving and disturbing images continue to haunt me.
Audrey was determined, courageous and brave, from her childhood in Nazi-occupied Holland during WWII, when she aided the allies in getting messages to soldiers, throughout her service to UNICEF in the last years of her life. She even agreed to go to places in Somalia that US troops wouldn’t step foot in.
From her I’ve learned that grace and beauty are cultivated from the inside out, and that helping and loving others is the most important “job” or “career” we can do.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
According to my mother, I basically spent my childhood with my head stuck in a book! I wrote my first book at age 7, and have been a voracious reader for as long as I can remember. After a brief detour through law school and a few years in medical malpractice litigation, I went “lawless” when I went back to school and earned an MFA in creative writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2000.
For nearly 25 years, my writing, editing and coaching business Modern Muse for Writers has been serving authors and those with stories they know the world needs to hear craft what I call “illuminated manuscripts” – books that shed new and inspirational light on the human condition and encourage conscious evolution.
We serve clients writing business books, self-help and spirituality, memoir and fiction. Our popular “Map Your Manuscript” 2-day private retreat provides our clients with an opportunity to receive a clear vision of their project, eradicate limiting beliefs, doubts, and resistance to the process of writing their books, and to craft a detailed scene-by-scene outline for their manuscripts.
I’m so proud to support business authors share their expertise, help memoir writers who have overcome incredible odds inspire readers, and aid novelists in crafting compelling fiction that sheds light on what it means to be human today. As a published author myself I know firsthand what it takes to create an original, meaningful manuscript. I love helping others express their most powerful truths. This is a pathway to changing the world.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
In my late twenties (late 1990s) I was miserable in my legal career as a medical malpractice litigator. While the stories behind many of my cases were dramatic and interesting, my clients were never happy to see me as it meant they were either injured (plaintiffs) or being sued (defendants). Every case was essentially a pyrrhic victory, every “win” bittersweet at best.
After several years of practice, I was burned out, disillusioned and eager for work that I felt passionate doing while it made a positive contribution to others. I longed to make a living as a writer, not a lawyer.
The stakes were high, as was the failure potential. I had law school loans to pay off, as well as a mortgage and other living expenses. For a while I stuck it out in my legal practice but eventually I decided to apply to some MFA programs. When I was accepted to the School of the Art Institute, I was certain that I wanted to attend. The question was HOW?
The Universe answered that beautifully, providing me with an acquaintance I met in a Twelve-Step meeting who offered to cosign on my loans for the MFA program. And my boss at the law firm convinced her partners to create a part-time position for me so I could pay the bills while I went back to school. It was a tremendous lesson in how Life lines up for us when we are fully committed to our passion and purpose.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
The mission that drives my creative journey is to shed new light on the human condition – to explore what it means to be human in our very complicated world today, and to contribute to conscious evolution. We learn so well through stories and examples. I love inspiring others through my writing and by supporting other authors who seek to do the same.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.modernmuseforwriters.com
- Instagram: modernmuseforwriters
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/bridgetboland
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/bridget-boland-4125603
- Twitter: @thedoulanovel
Image Credits
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