Soul On Fire ~ by Tracy Krauss

I came across this quote, attributed to Jennifer Lee: “Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.”

To me, “soul on fire” is a figurative phrase for “passion”. I’m going to make a generalization: for most of the folks who frequent this blog, writing is one of your passions. 

Recently I’ve been conducting contributor interviews in preparation to promote InScribe’s newest anthology CREATIVITY & CHAOS: ARTISTIC ENDEAVOURS FOR TRYING TIMES. 

Over and over I heard the phrase, “I can’t NOT write,” or, “I’ve always been a writer.” I get it because I feel the same way. Writing sets my soul on fire and it seems it does the same for you.

One poet even spoke of a physical “Hum” she experienced while composing a poem—an almost euphoric state brought on by the creative process. If that’s not a soul on fire, I don’t know what is!

I was also interested to hear the various forms of writing that each person gravitated toward. Even people who primarily write in one genre often use another form as an outlet or therapy. Poetry and journaling are high on the list, even among non-poets, but others talked about blogging, devotionals, journalism, speeches, and even writing sermons. One person writes short descriptive pieces about nature for a real estate magazine, while another talked about speaking at “Celebrations of Life” as her sweet spot. Wow! I was blown away by our writing community's depth and breadth!

Inevitably, we also talked about other creative pursuits, and again, I was astounded by the variety. While writing was high on the list, most people have other passions, too. Painting, watercolours, sketching, and other traditional visual art forms were prevalent. Music—listening, playing an instrument, singing, leading worship—were also common. Add scrapbooking, sewing, baking, gardening, making “junk journals” (which are anything but junky!), woodworking, remodeling & renovating, making models… The list goes on! Two of the most unique that I came across (at least in my mind) were building with Lego and voice acting/audio mixing. We are one creative group!

Of course, it was also evident through our conversations that a “soul on fire” also has a spiritual side. As followers of Jesus, that is the ultimate passion in this life! 

You can watch all of these wonderful interviews starting in the middle of August as part of our promotion for the anthology. 

To end this piece, I invite you to enjoy a song by Third Day, one of our household’s favourite Christian bands. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7lv9oMjv_0

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Tracy Krauss is passionate about the creative process and writes, paints, draws, sews, teaches & preaches from her home in Tumbler Ridge, BC.  Visit her website: fiction on the edge without crossing the line: https://tracykrauss.com