I Am A Creator: Recent Episodes
ConvertKit
Hosted by Isa Adney, I Am A Creator brings you inspiring stories about what it really means to be a creator. Each story features a creator who found a way to connect with an audience and do work they love.
Danny Gregory triumphed in the advertising world before tragedy struck. But his resilience and passion for creating helped him bounce back to scale his newsletter to 20,000 subscribers and inspire artists around the world. Visit https://convertkit.com/resources/creator-stories/danny-gregory for show notes and more information.
Hayley Solano was born to read. But she had no idea her passion would take her across the world, building a community of book readers and leading a popular paid book club.
Visit https://convertkit.com/hayley-solano for show notes and more information.
From 21 friends to an audience of 25,000+ subscribers, this is how storyteller Lawrence Yeo went from corporate to creator. Visit https://convertkit.com/resources/creator-stories/lawrence-yeo for show notes and more information.
Terry Rice was on a good path with his business, speaking on stages around the country, and saying “no” to work that didn’t fit. But then his kid’s gymnastics class led to a chance encounter that changed the trajectory of his career. Visit https://convertkit.com/terry-rice for show notes and more information.
Like most actors, voice actor Carrie Olsen relies on multiple streams of income for stability. For her, building an engaged email list was the key to helping her build longevity into her creative business. Visit https://convertkit.com/carrie-olsen for show notes and more information.
Artist Chris Legaspi lived the hustle lifestyle creating caricatures and video game graphics until burnout made him step back and figure out how to monetize his courses on autopilot. Visit https://convertkit.com/chris-legaspi for show notes and more information.
When Chris Howes became a dad, his priorities changed. He traded in his fast-paced, highly successful NYC touring schedule to move back to Ohio and teach music online. Visit https://convertkit.com/chris-howes for show notes and more information.
Anne-Laure Le Cunff started a newsletter to help her study neuroscience. She had no idea it would turn into 40K subscribers and her own business. Visit https://convertkit.com/anne-laure-le-cunff for show notes and more information.
Bird blogging may not have seemed like the “smart” choice, but Scott Keller loved it and put in hard work to create a community and new way of earning a living. Visit https://convertkit.com/scott-keller for show notes and more information.
Find out how design expert Charli Prangley keeps both passions running as ConvertKit’s Creative Director and creator of her design-focused YouTube channel, CharliMarieTV. Visit https://convertkit.com/charli-prangley for show notes and more information.
Find out how Tori Mistick of Wear Wag Repeat turned her love of fur babies into a full-fledged business supporting other women in the pet industry. Visit https://convertkit.com/tori-mistick for show notes and more information.
Drew Holcomb thought his music career was over until he trusted his instincts, sat in his grief, and wrote his first hit song in 10 minutes. Visit https://convertkit.com/drew-holcomb for show notes and more information.
Learning that a number doesn’t define success or worth helps Aileen Xu continue creating out of authenticity, even when the numbers are down.
Visit https://convertkit.com/aileen-xu for show notes and more information.
When Dan Runcie began sharing the why and how of hip-hop mogul’s business moves, he found a devoted audience—and a thriving business. Visit https://convertkit.com/dan-runcie for show notes and more information.
After quitting her engineering job and taking her travel blog full-time only two weeks before the pandemic shut down travel, blogger Gabby Beckford wasn’t about to give up on her dream.
Visit https://convertkit.com/gabby-beckford for show notes and more information.
Serein finally found true joy when she stepped out of the background of TV cameras and found her spot front and center as a beauty vlogger.
Visit https://convertkit.com/serein-wu for show notes and more information.
Rejection couldn’t stop Jennifer Keishin Armstrong from taking any road possible to realizing her dream of becoming an author.
Visit https://convertkit.com/jennifer-armstrong for show notes and more information.
Music producer Kato On The Track never gave up on his music. From working side jobs as an exterminator to learning the music business, Kato turned his dream into a career.
Visit https://convertkit.com/kato-on-the-track for show notes and more information.
How Chef Daniella Malfitano niched down her audience to stay true to herself and her food philosophy.
Visit https://convertkit.com/daniella-malfitano for show notes and more information.
It’s not just about budgeting. For Nick True, sharing his lifelong passion for finances is about helping people win the game of life.
Visit https://convertkit.com/nick-true for show notes and more information.
Not even the slow-paced fashion world of the Midwest could keep Whitney Manney from dreaming big and creating freely, boldly, and brightly.
Visit https://convertkit.com/whitney-manney for show notes and more information.
When Shelby allowed herself to do the “irresponsible” thing and add some color to her bullet journal, a small rebellion of art turned into a career.
Visit https://convertkit.com/shelby-abrahamsen for show notes and more information.
Rebecca Dekker wanted to focus on the data, but quickly learned that if you really want to make an impact and connect with your audience, you just have to tell your story.
Visit https://convertkit.com/rebecca-dekker for show notes and more information.
When Noa Kageyama realized he didn’t love the thing he’d dedicated his life to, it was time to decide if the resistance he felt was the kind you push through or the kind that helps you choose a new path.
Visit https://convertkit.com/noa-Kageyama for show notes and more information.
What happens when you give up traditional expectations to fund your biggest dreams? Find out how Teela from Every Tuesday went from crying during her commute to covering her family’s living expenses for a year with one launch.
Visit https://convertkit.com/teela-cunningham for show notes and more information.
Cara had always let her analytical side run the show. But when her government job of 10 years slowly deteriorated her health, Cara knew it was time for a change. She never could have guessed that in a short time she’d not only be handling her favorite band’s social media, but that she’d find the freedom to be creative.
Visit https://convertkit.com/cara-chace for show notes and more information.
When the illusion of security leaves you feeling trapped, how do you break free? Find out how author coaches Steve and Azul turned down big career advances, packed their life into 2 suitcases, and found their freedom 10 years in the making.
Visit https://convertkit.com/azul-and-steve for show notes and more information.
When an unknown illness took Mayank out of work, he and his wife Prerna bet on themselves. Instead of sticking with traditional jobs, they took an intentionally different path to build something of their own - a lifelong dream coming true.
Visit https://convertkit.com/prerna-mayank-malik for show notes and more information.
How watercolorist Angela Fehr, a girl from a small town in the middle of nowhere, learned to trust the process of believing in herself.
Visit https://convertkit.com/angela-fehr for show notes and more information.
To find true success, you need to push past the standards of what you’ve always seen and lean into who you truly are. When Austin Church gave himself permission to be the fully-feeling creator he is, he connected more deeply with his audience and built a successful business helping creatives achieve their dreams.
Visit https://convertkit.com/austin-church for show notes and more information.
Changing perspectives and unveiling clarity are qualities that can’t be taught. While creator Vannesia Darby was successfully building her digital marketing business, her innate ability to draw people out started bringing her new clients and more joy.
Visit https://convertkit.com/vannesia-darby for more information and show notes.
How parenting blogger Nina Garcia dreamed the impossible dream and quit her job.
Visit https://convertkit.com/nina-garcia for show notes and more information.
How do you start your journey to your dream job when it feels too big or you have no idea what it even means? Bonnie Christine first googled “How to become a fabric designer” and then learned that with 10 seconds of courage, you can take on big goals one step at a time.
Visit https://convertkit.com/bonnie-christine for show notes and more information.
How muralist Eric Friedensohn owes his success to losing everything.
Visit https://convertkit.com/eric-friedensohn for show notes and more information.
Depending on luck alone may have worked for a young Ed Latimore. But when this writer and former Heavyweight pro boxer learned to bet on himself, he found self-respect and the capability to dictate his own future.
Visit https://convertkit.com/ed-latimore for show notes and more information.
How web designer Chaitra Radhakrishna found the beautiful side of failure.
Visit https://convertkit.com/chaitra-radhakrishna for show notes and more information.
Designer Kelsey Baldwin had two life-changing events happen on the same day. But instead of letting the weight of a world-turned-upside-down keep her down, she looked to the one thing she knew she could control — her business.
Visit https://convertkit.com/kelsey-baldwin for show notes and more information.
How embarrassment gave motion designer Austin Saylor the motivation and courage to overcome procrastination and perfectionism.
Visit https://convertkit.com/austin-saylor for show notes and more information.
When Srini Rao turned a blog into a WSJ bestseller, he thought his life was set. But when faced with setback after setback, he had to learn to let go of the opinions and expectations of the world and get back to the man who was happy to sell 300 copies of his book.
Visit https://convertkit.com/srini-rao for show notes and more information.
When you have no one to look to, you blaze your own trails. This is the story of how travel blogger Gloria Atanmo went for her dreams and paved the way for others to follow.
Visit https://convertkit.com/glo-atanmo show notes and more information.
Musicians today have to be multifaceted creators. Ryan Baustert of Throw the Fight learned that building a music career was a lot like building a business.
Visit https://convertkit.com/ryan-baustert for show notes and more information.
How fine artist Kimberly Brooks continues to embrace the digital age by seeing technological shifts as an opportunity to communicate the things that never change.
Visit https://convertkit.com/kimberly-brooks for show notes and more information.
When you’re burnt out on your calendar, but not on your mission, what’s your next play? For fashion designer, Brandice Daniel, stepping back with a “if it’s meant to be” mindset brought the biggest opportunity of her life — leading a team of women designers to create a shoe for Nike.
Visit https://convertkit.com/brandice-daniel for show notes and more information.
How Courtland Allen, founder of Indie Hackers, didn’t let five years of failure or burnout stop him from pursuing his dream.
Visit https://convertkit.com/courtland-allen for show notes and more information.
After getting an engineering degree, running a record label, and then a marketing agency, Chris Craft landed back at the art he loved as a child—writing.
Visit convertkit.com/creator-stories-chris-craft for show notes and more information.
Homesteader and author Deborah Niemann never dreamed that her love of goats could turn into an online business, the ability to save goats all over the world, or security in her own self-reliance.
Visit convertkit.com/creator-stories-deborah-niemann for show notes and more information.
When Wall Street money wasn’t patching up the hole in his soul, online coach Khe Hy left 14 years of the “dream job” to write to his 36 email subscribers.
Visit convertkit.com/creator-stories-khe-hy for show notes and more information.
What happens when you ask yourself, “What if?” For creator Jenell Stewart, the answer was the freedom to be herself, a new understanding of her value, and the start of a new business.
Visit convertkit.com/creator-stories-jenell-stewart for show notes and more information.
After 30 years of working in her craft, cartoonist Jessica Abel realized she had taken a grassroots marketing approach to build a full-time business and now teaches other artists how to do the same.
Visit https://convertkit.com/jessica-abel for show notes and more information.
Online video coach XayLi Barclay learned the best lessons from her grandma—one including the limitless potential of a creator. Find out how giving her 110% to everything led her to creative possibilities she didn’t even know existed.
Visit https://convertkit.com/xayli-barclay for show notes and more information.
With a nickname synonymous with stubborn relentlessness, it’s no surprise that editor John Fox takes each rejection as a chance to improve his craft. Find out how knocking on all the doors finally opened the right one.
Visit https://convertkit.com/john-fox for show notes and more information.
For writer Jessica Pena, every day is a gift. “I can’t be hurried,” she likes to say. This is her story about chronic illness, trauma, and how a conference changed her life.
Visit convertkit.com/creator-stories-jessica-pena for show notes and more information.
It never occurred to Dave Barnes to not write songs when he picked up a guitar. But he didn’t think of himself as a songwriter; he was just having fun. And two decades later, with many hit songs and a Grammy nomination under his belt, he still struggles with the same self-doubt that all creators experience. But what makes a creator is the willingness to live in that space.
Visit convertkit.com/creator-stories-dave-barnes for show notes and more information.
A story about taking chances, struggling with self-doubt, and how one lawyer-turned-full-time-food-blogger didn’t let that (or the haters) stop her.
Visit convertkit.com/creator-stories-tanya-harris for show notes and more information.