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

Hi Novo, thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I guess we could say that my career in the arts began when I started giving a lot of thought to my mortality. That this could all be over one day. So then—how do I leave my mark on this world? What will become of my legacy? I’ve always had an artistic side, but never quite nurtured it too seriously or seriously enough, until the day I realized how precious life is and so very short. That was the day I started to put myself out there – creatively – see if I could leave my mark on the world through art, which eventually led to creating Novo Dé Productions.

Novo, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

The thing about Novo Dé Productions is that it will always be a multimedia venture. Never could put myself in a box or stick to one thing, so I thought—why not do it all. Since then, and with the help of my manager and team of course, we’ve gone on to release novel “The Entropy Sessions,” Novella “Adul(ter)ation,” short stories “Post Meridiem” and “Cancel Culture Lotto,” and on the horizon, new novel “Til the Bitter [End]emic,” as well as audiobook adaptations of some of my pieces. We’ve also had the pleasure of creating talk show podcast “Art of the Beholder,” to always stay in the conversation, where I get to nurture the other sides of my craft, including producing, directing, performing, acting, and even editing. In the years to come, we plan to release music and even some video content one day, maybe a film or limited series, as well as auxiliary works like painting and photography.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

The concept of legacy and through the art–immortality–is definitely a driving force. But, I have no delusions of grandeur. I don’t think I’m going to make some thing and it just suddenly become the “next-big-thing.” No. Thus, my desire of acquiring legacy or immortality through my art is not rooted in this unbelievable compensation or notoriety, but in being able to touch the lives of people–and that that may be just a few or even one–but knowing that my work could have a positive effect on someone, or make someone think of things differently, or help them just find a new path for themselves…is powerful. And sometimes, enough.

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 think what surprises people the most is that the journey itself can be just as rewarding as the final product. And that we sometimes do it…just to do it. Because we must. No other reason than that; we just feel compelled. So sometimes, I can’t explain it, and though, I know I gave you a driving force in the last question, I think it’s important for people to understand that we also do it from just sheer will to want to create something sometimes. And that’s it. Thus, we really have no idea how the audience may take it or interpret it. Now don’t get me wrong, we still want an audience; we just don’t need some crazy amount of compensation or notoriety. A fair amount–sure–but it seems like the “content creators” want to be rich and famous over night and the true artists don’t really care what happens. They just want to make things. Nothing wrong with the former. To each their own. Go after your dreams, whatever they may be. But do some soul-searching and really figure out what you want. Because trust me, you’ll know exactly where you lie when you put something out in the world and you get what we all get in the beginning–nothing.

Contact Info:

• Website: novodeproductions.com
• Instagram: @_novo_de, @novodemedia, @aotb.podcast
• Facebook: Novodemedia
• Twitter: @_novo_de, @novodemedia, @aotbpodcast
• Youtube: Novo Dé Productions @novodeproductions
• Other: Threads: @_novo_de, @novodemedia, @aotb.podcast

Image Credits
Novo Dé Productions