A former production editor at Condé Nast, I’ve definitely put in my share of overtime at the job. A 14-hour day was not unheard of at closing. But I don’t think I’ve ever worked as hard as I did orchestrating all the elements to pull off this art show. Hard as it was, it was also exhilarating because I had a vision of what a crappy space could transform into, and organically, almost effortlessly the ideas of composing the space just happened in my head. The difficult aspect was physically manifesting my ideas, but I was extremely grateful that I wasn’t hung up on the creative, mental part of putting it all together, and also grateful that the art organization that I was working with just let me do whatever I wanted, and didn’t try to control the process.

Part of why my mental problem-solving was so effortless, I think, is that I knew I had support to back me up, otherwise I would have been paralyzed with fear and botched it. My best friend and spouse, Luke, is my main bastion of support. He was there for me emotionally, there for me in the framing factory, and he was absolutely essential to making things happen.

Another branch of incredible support has been Anne Hubben, of rubycreatives.com. Not only has she given me practical advice like using tumblr for a microblog, and developing an essential work philosophy; but she has a genuine, compassionate interest in my transition from a corporate employee to an artist. Her guidance is light and subtle, but I always feel like I can conquer the world after I speak with her. Tellingly, when I accomplish something like finding a literary agent or getting this show, I’ve been specifically working with her—when we had a break, I was in a strange place of ineffectual momentum.