We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Megan Wheless a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Megan, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

I hope that people remember me as being kind, creative, and truthful in all that I do, whether it be as a writer/storyteller, team leader, and as a family member and friend. I am at a stage in my life where I want to bring out all the imagination, love, and soulfulness in all that I do in hopes that I can help ignite a spark in others as they pursue their creativity and find their path to joy and connection.

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.

I’ve been writing since I was about ten years old. I’ve kept a journal practice going for over twenty years. And, I majored in English and taught literature and writing for over twenty years, too. It wasn’t until my middle thirties that I decided to pursue writing and started with a blog that people actually read. When I took a sabbatical from teaching and moved to Asheville, North Carolina, I began doing more freelance writing work while also submitting my creative nonfiction pieces and short stories. I was shocked to have my work published, but it also fueled the desire to continue my writing and using my creative work as a way to bridge connections with people outside of my inner circle. When I started dating my husband, he encouraged me to write a novel – something I had started and stopped for over a year before meeting him. I am so glad I did that as I found a publisher in the summer of 2020 and Guardians of the Keys, my first ever magical realism novel, was published in June 2022. I haven’t stopped writing since. I now have completed 3 novels, one of which is in the hands of a literary agent as I type this, and I am in the process of writing my fourth. I still try and find the time to submit my short stories and essays, and hope to get some of those published as well. Most importantly, I write for myself first. I love the discovery process and I love spending lots of time inside my imagination. I find inspiration in nature first and foremost and I try to engage in other creative pursuits, like baking and gardening. My husband is very creative as well and we often spend times on the weekend working in our home offices (which are across the hall from each other) visiting and creating (he paints and I write). It’s a lot of fun and exciting as well.

As far as my day-to-day career goes, I am the Executive Director of a nonprofit organization called The Literacy Connection, which is based in Elgin, Illinois. We provide free, quality literacy services to adults, many of whom are new to the country and wishing to learn English as a Second Language (ESL). I have a Master’s Degree in Applied Linguistics and taught ESL in Charlotte, North Carolina for three years before moving back to Illinois with my husband. I find working with adults very rewarding and it is so inspiring watching people attain their literacy goals. I also work with a supportive and creative team who are from diverse backgrounds. I learn so much from them and garner a lot of inspiration from their passion and knowledge. Plus, our office is located in an award-winning National Medal library. Can’t beat that!

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The word “goal” means I am trying to achieve or attain something. I tend to stay away from that as I am a Type A person and that word can make me hyperfocus and feel that I have to spend more time “branding” myself than I do creating. Instead, I find my real drive comes from the innate desire to self-express – to take what dreams, ideas, storylines, emotions, and imagery that are swirling around in my mind and harness them into a beautiful story, poem, or essay. If I can bring something new out into the world, I feel like I’ve succeeded, even if my writing doesn’t wind up on the New York Times’ Bestseller’s List.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding part of being a writer is having people tell me they could visualize the story in their minds. That my characters resonated with them, and they felt like they were “inside the story” or that it would make a good movie. Those types of responses let me know that I captured lightning in a bottle so to speak and that my novel, essay, short story, or poem transported them to a new realm, if even for a little while.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://meganjwhelesswriter.com
• Instagram: @megan_wheless_writer
• Facebook: Megan Hoelscher Wheless

Image Credits

I used these photos from my phone and from my website, which I own.