We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Traci Vanderbush. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Traci below.

Traci, appreciate you joining us today. Has your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?

Creatives are often misunderstood, but we must move forward with our art.

Traci, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Storytelling is my passion. I’m an independent, self-published writer who’s authored several books, both fiction and non-fiction. I’m currently writing movie scripts and pursuing open doors in the film industry. The stories I create are infused with messages of hope and renewal in the midst of seemingly impossible situations.

I spent a couple of decades raising my children, leading book clubs, women’s small groups, and serving people through ministry; now that I’m an empty-nester, I pour myself into life-giving writing while traveling with my husband.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Being a writer requires vulnerability and the willingness to lay your heart on a canvas for others to see. Whether you’re writing fiction or non-fiction, painting, or creating another form of art, it’s a part of your soul. Unfortunately, we live in a society that seems to thrive on having an opinion and casting judgment on others, so when you put your art into the world, it’s like taking your heart out of your chest and presenting it to strangers, not knowing if it’s a safe space or not. Sometimes that’s rewarding, and sometimes it’s a brutal experience.

I had to unlearn my tendency to keep my craft to myself. As a young child, I remember kids making fun of me in school, so I developed habits of protecting my heart from peoples’ opinions and judgments. I didn’t want to talk, connect, or share, for fear of being ridiculed, so my creativity became something I only shared with God. Beauty stirred inside of me, worlds of fantasy and light moved within, but I didn’t dare speak of it. I made up stories in my mind and held it close.

Many years of slowly and painfully allowing the insecurities to be peeled away; learning that I didn’t need to fear the opinions of others, and thanks to my husband for cheering me on, I learned that I am free to put my stories into the world. When I dared to do that, I found that beyond the criticisms, there are many people who are touched in life changing ways by my words. That means everything.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

If society can learn to love others and consider others above themselves, that would change everything. If we, as humans, can learn to care for the hearts and souls of those around us, and lean in to hear their story, and consider what that person is experiencing in life, we’d be richer and more compassionate. Being a safe space that allows vulnerability without judgment, will inspire creativity that can change the world.

Contact Info:

• Website: tracivanderbush.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tracivanderbush/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tracivanderbushwrites/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/traci-vanderbush-b55848205/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/TraciVanderbush

Image Credits
Headshot photo by Hanan Exposures