Interview Tuesday: Tasra Dawson

Angie here, with another interview with a Creative Blogger.  This is my last interview as April's host (though I might have to "renew", I've enjoyed it so much!)

This week's interview is with author Tasra (Tahz-ra) Dawson.  Her latest book and weekly videocast, Real Women Scrap, is wow'ing women across the country.  She writes and speaks on how to find (or develop) balance in your life.  Visit her blog at http://realwomenscrap.typepad.com/

What's your day job?

I’m an author, speaker, and scrapper. I write about scrapbooking, speak about the lessons we can learn from scrapbooking, and scrapbook professionally and personally. It’s something that I love for many reasons, two of which are leaving a legacy and being creative. I believe that we all have a story to tell and scrapbooking is an amazing and powerful way to capture and preserve those stories for generations to come. Creativity is something that helps me reconnect with who I am and why I exist...creating something from nothing brings me such joy and a sense of accomplishment.

I don’t know if my job was made for me or if I was made for my job. It seems to be a bit of both. The way that I know I’m right where I’m supposed to be is that I see evidence in my life and the lives of others that what I do is making a difference. It has been through my “job” that I’ve been able to get more clear about who I am and how I am uniquely created to do what I’m doing. That feeling is confirmed when I received email messages like this, “I think you are a refreshing jolt of life, much needed by the scrapbooking world. Finally I hear someone and see someone who shares my reasons for scrapping and with active fervor. You are a very much needed reminder for me of how beautiful life can be when you follow HIM.  Thank you does not cover my gratitude to you:  simply for being YOU.”

How do you define creativity?  What does it look like in your life?

Creativity is hard to define because I think it’s different for everyone. We are all creative, some are just more liberated than others. I see stay at home moms who come up with the most creative ways to discipline and entertain their children. It just amazes me. In my own life, I am creative whenever possible. From the way we live our lives and schedule our work hours, to the time we spend with one another. Creativity is a way of life, a different perspective that allows you to see things in a new way. Often my creativity is fueled by the imaginations of my children who are still free to share the zany and wild ideas that pop into their minds and hearts.

What allows you to be most creative?

Time, space, and silence allow me to be most creative. Our lives tend to be so busy that it takes some down time for me to get in a creative space. Whether it’s to write or scrapbook, I find that I need a buffer of time from the real world to the creative one to really be productive. Space is so important in creativity. I cannot create in a messy space. As I create the space will become messy, but it can’t start that way. Often what I start out doing is getting everything together, organized, and cleared so that there is room to be creative. And silence...it doesn’t always have to be silent, but when I’m really facing something new or want to be at my most creative, I like the silence to be able to think and listen to what my heart is saying. I know it sounds a little corny, but silence allows me the opportunity to tune in to my own thoughts and feelings and express those in new ways.

When did you start blogging?  What prompted you to start?...

I started blogging at the end of May last year (2006). It was shortly after Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference where I met Laura Christianson after her blogging seminar. Laura has a very successful blog, Exploring Adoption, and taught other authors and writers about the value of blogging. Her teaching style made it so clear how easy it was to get started that I decided to give it a try. As a non-techie with little time, I was concerned that it would begin taking too much time with little return, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. Blogging is now part of my life and business. I’ve even begun teaching it to others at national conventions and conferences. I never would have guessed it was possible, but in a very short time I’ve been very successful. Honestly, I think the key to success is authenticity...being real, having an honest voice, and something of value that you bring to the table. And my secret weapon was Angie Pedersen’s blog coaching! [Editor's note: I swear I didn't ask her to say that! ;) ]

Do you consider yourself an artist? Why/in what way or why not?

This is an interesting question for me to answer because if you had asked me just five years ago, I would have said no, I’m not an artist. My brother is an artist and paints and draws breathtaking works of art. My mother is an artist and used to paint barnyard boards in the 70s and 80s. My daughter is an artist with an incredible eye for detail.

But then something happened to shift my perspective...I began looking at my work as a scrapbooker, author, and teacher and seeing how I infused creativity and art into everything that I did. From the lesson plans I put together for my students to the BLOG LOG I created out of an altered lunch tin, I was creating art everywhere around me. I can honestly say now that I do consider myself an artist in a non-traditional sense of the word, but an artist nonetheless.

Your time must be limited with all your varied roles - mother, author, speaker, etc etc - how do you find time to still be (and feel) creative?

I’m a true WAHM (work at home mom). My office is in my son’s former bedroom. Our kids now share a bedroom and have a large playroom. In my office at home, I’m surrounded by books and scrapbooking supplies. My husband has an outside office about 15 minutes from our home and every once in a while I’ll go there to get some solid quiet working time, but generally I’m at home with the sounds of the kids playing in the background.

For me to be and feel creative, I need to stay connected to who I am and what inspires me. That would be faith, my family and my friends. As an introvert by nature, I have to find quiet time during the day to remember why I do what I do. When I don’t find that time, I get out of balance and it’s not pretty!

Who/what are your major influences and inspirations in your blogging?

As I mentioned above, Laura Christianson and Angie Pedersen were major influencers in getting me started blogging.

How many blogs are in your blog reader?  What blogs are your "must-read's"?

I have no idea how many blogs are in my blog reader, but it’s enough. On top of that, I have blogs bookmarked in categories so that I can go back to them frequently. And then there is always my blogroll and blogrings that have more than enough blogs for me to read and review.

Must-reads is a hard question because I don’t like playing favorites. So, I’ll just tell you my top 10 most frequently and recently read and visited blogs:

1. 5 Minutes for Mom
2. Angie Pedersen’s The Blog of ME
3. Writer Mom Interrupted
4. Wedding Flix
5. Mommy Life
6. Ramona Williams Design
7. Camy’s Loft
8. Simple Photo Life
9. CAN Blog
10. Real Women Scrap TV

How does blogging reflect (and/or feed) your creativity?

Blogging really reflects my creativity in more ways than I would have imagined. Here are just a few of those ways:

• Blogging allows me to write on a regular basis and receive instant reader feedback.
• Blogging provides me a place to connect and interact with my readers.
• Blogging gives me an entry into the blogosphere where I can make connections and friendships that seem as real, active and alive as any in-person friendship.
• Blogging inspires me in my writing and photography so that I have something of value to give to others.
• Blogging introduces me to new ideas, thoughts, and people that inspire me to think about things differently.
• Blogging provides answers to questions, solutions to problems, and entertainment for boredom.
• Blogging gives me a view into the heart and mind of my readers and lets them see my heart as well.

Comments

[Camy Tang]

Aw, I'm one of Tasra's fav blogs! {feeling the warm fuzzies}

Thanks for the interview, Angie!
Camy

[Laura Christianson]

It's nice to learn more about Tasra from this interview. She's a very cool woman and a terrific writer and photographer!

[Melba]

Angie,
I loved all of your interviews. Great questions and you introduced us all to some amazing Creative Bloggers.
Thank you!

I would Love to have you host again...just let me know!

XO,
Melba