Characters have been battling it out for airtime in my brain and through my fingers.

The follow-up to my novel, which is half-written, is pulling me like a buggy behind a pack of horses.

From nowhere (actually from a sexy dream ;)), came a whole new set of characters, in their own story. (A mystery writer, a hot neurologist, and a gay couple meet on a cruise.) That’s the one that’s woken me out of a deep sleep and kept my fingers tapping for hours and hours everyday.

Of course, there’s the serious writing, with deadlines and expectations from a variety of sources, that also needs to get done.

Sometimes my characters are born from my dreams and imaginings. Sometimes they are the actual human beings whose suffering compels me to create an article, audio or course. Sometimes it’s just me, wanting to be seen and heard.

How to manage all these stories and lessons that want to pour out of me at the same time?

The only solution is to talk to them. My characters, that is. My stories, even.

Which one feels the most ephemeral and needs to be captured ASAP, lest it vanish into thin air? (It’s been known to happen.) Which one can stand a bit more time in the oven, to stew and rise and meld into deliciousness? Which one will have the greatest positive impact on the most people?

They always answer me nicely, no matter how chaotic the initial discussions began. All that’s left is for me to plug in, buckle up, and let myself be carried by mermaids, architects, writers, neurologists, kitchen counters, starched sheets, stilettos, and a single mom with big dreams and too many words.

It’s a lesson in allowing. In letting go of ‘shoulds’ long enough to surrender to our need to create. You may think artistry can only be accessed by artists without realizing that we are all artists. In our kitchens, offices, bedrooms and with those who long to see us fully expressed.

How to bring an idea to life?

Listen. Just listen.

Underneath the din of a full, busy life always lies the small voice of our creative impulse. All the characters that lie within us (even when those characters are ourselves) long to tell us their stories, to be acknowledged and perhaps even documented.

To create is to say yes to their whispers. Whether we are drawn to words on a page, colors on a canvas, notes on a stanza, or a form unique to you, the impulse is always there. It rarely appears when convenient, but always in perfect time.

Have you noticed what your creativity sounds like? Have you noticed when it’s most conspicuous? (The shower seems to be a popular space.) Have you let the seedlings of your imagination take hold and root?

Perhaps today is the day that you choose not to disregard the stories your soul wants to tell, the solutions it proposes and the love it wants to share.

Will you heed the call? How about right now?