Jesus take the wheel

This was a really good week for me. I am definitely one of those people with "weather-dependent personality disorder" and we had beautiful sunny DC weather to bring in the official start of summer.

My more laid-back approach to life and business has manifested into something really great. It seems that the seeds that I have already planted are getting the chance to grow since I stopped overwatering and planting too many new seeds in the same garden.

Connecting/Reconnecting with People who God Brought Into My Life

A major "Muse" gift I have is recognizing and attracting artistically/creatively/spiritually gifted people. I have learned to trust my instinct because it never steers me wrong. Case in point, my husband Alex who I knew that I would be with for the rest of my life the moment I saw him and who is the most artistic, creative and spiritually gifted person I know or know of. Being with an artist for the past 11 years has really prepared me for the unique experience of working with true artists...believe me, it is not an easy task.



Sheldon Scott

Just yesterday I got an email from Sheldon saying that he is ready to get going on his wonderful project that I am so excited to be a part of. Sheldon is definitely someone who God sent me and I was smart enough to recognize it right away. Some people just have a light that is hard to ignore and I pride myself in my ability to blindly go toward the light without question. I believe I met Sheldon at his building since it is where George lives and, therefore, my second home. I was instantly attracted to his style and swagger and knew that he was special. My first real encounter with him, besides stopping him to mention how fabulous he looked, was when George took me to have dinner at Marvin. At this point I did not know that he was an Artist, but I knew that he fit into my Muse vision somehow.

We saw eachother all the time and one time he mentioned that we should get together to talk about possibly working together. I was excited about this prospect because without even knowing what he did, I already knew that we would be working together. When we finally had an official meeting, my instincts (once again) proved superior...lol. Sheldon is a "Storyteller" and actor with an amazing life story and an undeniable spiritual connection to Marvin Gaye. Our project involves the preservation and presentation of Marvin Gaye memorabilia and the story behind that effort. I am really excited about this journey that we are embarking upon and I believe that something truly special is going to come out of it.

Kymone Freeman

Earlier this week I received a message from Kymone reminding me of his press conference re: "Saving Black Radio" taking place tomorrow at Busboys and Poets. He also reminded me of the date of the reading of his 3rd play, "God is on the Devil's Payroll" which will be part of DC's first Black Theatre Festival running from August 1st-8th. I am excited to be part of helping him promote the play and further solidifying himself as a voice in theatre and media.

Bernard Demczuk

So my nutritionist Tricia McCauley is an avid gardener and one of my Muse advisory board members, Bernard Demczuk, has an amazing garden oasis on the Eastern Shore where he runs a guest gardener program. I had mentioned this to Tricia a few months back and now that she has graduated from her Master's program, she decided to reach out to him to see about being part of the program. Luck would have it that Bernard called me to get her number and we were able to talk a bit about a project he wanted me to help with. He has a vision for what he will call "The Choptank School" which will be a program that he administers through the schools that surround the Choptank River and brings kids in to learn about gardening and the history of the surrounding towns in Talbot County which were founded by ex-slaves and free blacks.

Really BIG opportunity for Muse

On Thursday I received a call from George about a possible opportunity to help re-brand/market a premiere night club in DC. Today I had a really great meeting to talk more about it and I am presenting my official proposal tomorrow, so I am crossing my fingers since this is the type of opportunity that would help put Muse on the map.

Thinking through my book

The Agent Stage

Yesterday I had a really great lunch with my girl Aimee Agresti who is a writer in the advanced stages of getting her book published. It was very encouraging and helped me build my confidence as I enter into this writing process. She also made me realize that I actually had a process. This realization made me think that I need to be more deliberate and organized about that process if I want to make it to my end of year goal.

The Newly Published Stage

My girl Helena Andrews's book, Bitch is the New Black, hit bookstores on June 1st and she will be having a big DC launch next Tuesday. She has received great reviews, amazing press and she already sold the rights to have her book adapted into a movie (and she will be writing the screenplay...Go girl!). It has been very encouraging to see her journey thusfar and how she has devoted her life to her book (her baby) and all the greatness that has and will come from it.

The Promotion Stage

My friend Harold Fisher's book, Two Weeks Until the Rest of My Life, has been out for awhile now and he has been on a whirlwind of promotion ever since. I had an opportunity to speak with him earlier today about his writing process and get his initial reactions to my book concept. This was a very enlightening conversation and lets me know that I am on the right track in terms of my process. I am doing a lot of "free writing" in order to get all my ideas out so that I can present them as a coherent theory. He expressed to me that because my book is presenting a new idea it is imperative that I am very clear and very aware of my audience. This is my main task and I am getting there on paper, though sometimes less so in words. Definitely a work in progress, but I am confident that the end result will be something great

The Iconic Writer/Theorist Stage

Because The Tipping Point is the book that I believe The Other N Word most closely resembles in terms of theory and the radical rethinking of basic concepts, I have been breaking it down to its simplest form in my effort to organize my thoughts in much the same way as Gladwell was able to organize his. This has made me fall in love with his book even more and, simultaneously, understand the work that needs to be done to complete my book successfully.

The Interest Stage

So, Sheldon had a performance on Thursday and afterwards he was approached by a Literary Agent who was interested in his story. This, of course, did not surprise me since, as I mentioned earlier, he really does have an amazing story and he is a gifted Storyteller. This news was also very inspiring because it let me know that the more you put yourself out there, the more people will recognize you.

The Beginning Stage

This leads to where I am. Having all of these great encounters this week has really been eye-opening and, I believe, the universe's way of pushing me forward. I am more encouraged than ever to get my full outline completed by July 15th and then begin tackling each Chapter of my "masterpiece". Needless to say, with all that is going on with my clients, my business, and my personal life I will be spending some time this weekend putting together a schedule for myself for July at the least, but hopefully a rough schedule for the rest of the year. If the weeks to come are anywhere as delightful as this week has been, I am in for a great ride and I look forward to bringing you all along.

-The Muse