We were lucky to catch up with Kelichia Wellons recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kelichia, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

One of the most meaningful projects, I’ve worked on, is my stage play production, The Men That Stole My Soul. This production took me many years to prepare and layout. I initially wrote my script as a screenplay. I originally had a movie in mind. I thought about how I wanted to approach turning my book into a film. I sat on the script for many years before I decided to rearrange it and re-write it as a theatre performance.

I enjoyed going to stage plays and seeing the actors bring the words to life, on stage, in a dramatic way. I knew, then, that I wanted to test my own skills to see how far I could take my talents. I wanted to see, first hand, what it actually takes to produce and direct my own works.

Once I had a working script, I arranged a table reading to hear how all of the parts sounded. I took in the critiques, from the readers, made updates, and went forward with planning a theatre performance of it. Though there were many challenging moments, it taught me a lot, and I’m thankful for it.

My book set the foundation for what I could push myself to do.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I published The Men That Stole My Soul in 2007. I had finished my Iraq deployment the previous year. That’s where I started writing my book. Becoming a self-published author placed me in a mindset to understand that I could accomplish anything that I set out to do.

I’m a visual person. When people tell me their stories, I’m already imagining how it would play out on the big screen or on a stage. If I feel that it can captivate an audience, then I move forward with my customers and create an outline and budget.

I’m most proud of my determination to be a great writer, in the arts and entertainment industry. I want my clients to know that I understand where they’d like their ideas to take them.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative, I’d say, is inspiring other people to fulfill their own dreams and desires to create for themselves. I enjoy meeting people from different walks of life. It keeps me inspired to keep creating meaningful stories that capture the hearts of people who may have gone through, or may be going through, what I have.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I believe that even non-creatives have a story to tell. Whether they know it or not, there is something that every single person can highlight that’ll be beneficial to someone.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: HTTP://Instagram.com/Kelichia

Image Credits

All photo credits: L. Alston Photography.