Welcome to Third Coast Creatives

For the past six years I have had the pleasure to write for Halfstack Magazine, the last several as Entertainment Editor. Jen, Halfstack's Founder/Editor, allowed me a wide portfolio to cover most things indie.  I interviewed musicians, authors, dancers, designers, and creatives of all sorts.  I had the pleasure to write about Sara Bareilles joining Broadway's first all female creative team to create the music for Waitress and her dream to be part of the Broadway community.  When Kristin Bell grabbed her not so voluntary pianist friend to sing songs from Frozen to people trapped in a shelter during a Florida hurricane, I shared how she was upstaged by a dancing policeman. Sundance's Liz Manashil and I spent literally hours on the phone discussing indie movies and sharing stories about projects past.  The years I spent writing for Halfstack (as well as guest hosting the magazine's podcast) were truly rewarding.  Not only did I get a chance to meet some amazing creatives, I could always count on these assignments to provide a spark of artistic energy when "real life" got frustrating and stagnant.

This past spring, Jen made the difficult decision to retire the Halfstack brand as she pursued new professional challenges.  While strongly supported her decision, it left a creative hole in my life.  Deadlines may sometimes be stressful but I soon realized I missed talking with all the creative people I came across and sharing their stories with others.  Following the advice I give my clients, it was clear that if I wanted to continue to write about creatives and their stories, I should just get off my rear and do so.  Thus Third Coast Creatives was born.

The mission of Third Coast Creatives is share the stories of musicians, actors, artists, dancers, authors, and other creatives and how they overcome the obstacles life places in front of them as they pursue their creative dreams.  The journey is rarely easy and not all of successful.  But at least they tried.  I learned long ago there are many talented people in the world but too few are willing to invest the time and effort in order to be successful. 

The Third Coast can mean different things to different people.  People often refer to the Third Coast as not the East or West Coasts. Sometimes it can refer to the Great Lakes or as far south as the Gulf Coast.  Chicago's connection to Lake Michigan has been called the Third Coast.  Personally, I am an advocate that you can be a successful creative without relocating to New York or LA.  Chicago has a working person's persona and grit with an attitude that if you work hard enough, you can make anything happen.  My experience has been that Chicago provides creatives opportunities to collaborate and support each other than is alien to the NY and LA communities.  More practically, the internet has opened great possibilities and Chicago is becoming a technical hub.

I hope you enjoy Third Coast Creatives.  I look forward to the challenges of launching and maintaining a successful blog to share the stories of creatives that come across my radar with others.  In the mean time, keep hustling and follow your dreams.