Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nikki Taguilas-Morales. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Nikki, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I actually just talked about this with my husband the other day. Writing was always there for me, but it felt more of a hobby than what could be a career. I wasn’t really taught growing up that creative endeavors were something to be pursued in order to make a living. It was kind of the thing that kept you sane while you pursued something else to make a living. But from the 5th grade, when I was first published (shout out Iowa Test of Basic Skills!), I knew I loved doing it. I would write mini-stories in my journal, never a true diary entry. Make up stories with my grandpa. And once I got older was able to take creative writing courses in both high school and college. I wrote for both the school and town newspaper, and when I got my first check in high school from the small town I lived in, I knew I wanted to make it work. However it could be possible.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Becoming a writer has been a meandering path for me. I’ve written sketch and corporate comedy both in-person and through online media, satirical articles for online publications, sports recaps, editorials and features for newspapers, TV pilots, animation, and most recently I finished my first feature. Having years of experience in these different outlets has really helped me narrow down what it is I love to write about. Given that I am able to adapt to different mediums, I’ve found I can portray my voice in so many different ways, lending my silly side to animation, my love and focus of mental health to series or articles, and my more creative storytelling side to the world of features. The one thing they all share is my sense of humor. I tend to gravitate toward women-led, diverse stories, and deliver them in a light, funny way. If they say write what you know, then a funny, diverse woman is who I am. Well, I think I’m funny anyway. And a few others have, over the years. But funny is subjective, I guess. So I just try to be relatable in an honest way, and hope people can find humor in that. Or maybe everyone’s just been laughing at me all these years. Who knows. I’ll take it.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I think it’s so easy to ask, “If it’s so hard to break into, and you have so much financial insecurity, and a lot of times your hard work goes unpaid and unnoticed, why don’t you just do something else?” I have a lot of thoughts on the “just do something else” mentality, and how it ultimately comes from a place of privilege, but I won’t sidetrack on that. I usually just smile and simply say, “There’s no other option but writing for me.” I’ve tried it. I’ve tried doing things I don’t want to do professionally in life, and it’s miserable. I don’t tell people in construction, “Well, if it’s so hot during the summer, and your body hurts at the end of the day, why don’t you just find a job inside where you can sit at a desk?” or a teacher, “Well, if you want to be paid and appreciated more, why don’t you just stop teaching kids?” You’re allowed to have frustrations at any job you have, regardless of what you’re doing. And when you have a passion and are pursuing it, the frustration doesn’t feel like a sacrifice. It feels like part of the journey, and ultimately the reward. I know so many people who go to work just to make a paycheck, and they’re happy and that’s fine. But some of us can’t do that. We have to do what we absolutely 100% love, or we’ll run ourselves into the ground mentally.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I write with the intention to tell stories that are underrepresented and focus on topics that are not easily talked about. I am from a biracial background, and there is so much that goes into that as far as feeling like you do or don’t fit in properly to both sides’ expectations of you. I also live (and thrive) with bipolar disorder, so breaking down the mental illness stigma is something I’m super passionate about. I hope that one day people have more access to diverse and difficult content. I would’ve really benefitted from it growing up.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @nikkinikkitm
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikki-taguilas-morales/
• TikTok: @nikkitaguilas

Image Credits
@gregorywallacephotography for the first photo