The Making of Awesome Things
Your weekly thread, events, live interviews, & guest wisdom!
One of the most difficult things about being a creative business owner is all the decisions I have to make every single day: what to start, stop, continue, tweak, spend time on, don’t spend time on…
I get overwhelmed because I feel the pressure to both ask the right questions and have the correct answer.
Previously, in my corporate job, I always felt there was someone to consult for a second opinion: a boss, a teammate, a mentor. But, on my own, it feels different and much harder.
Earlier today, I tuned in to a conversation with Magali Mathieu and Leslie Wall. They talked about what it’s like to share unfinished/ unpublished excerpts of their book manuscripts with their communities: the emotions that come with it, but also the benefits of listening to what resonates (and what doesn’t).
Their conversation made me remember that, for a while now, I’ve been wanting to get your feedback on this publication, community, and the experiences I’ve been hosting:
What’s been awesome?
What could be more awesome?
I started a lot of new things this year, from the community chat (come join this week’s thread!) to substack live interviews, monthly community coffee chats, guest articles, and going virtual with our Possibilities Club workshop.
So, I’d love to hear what you think!
If you’ve resonated with anything I’ve created (or if you’re new and want to help shape this space), please take 60 seconds to share your thoughts in the brief survey below. It would truly mean a lot. 🙏
Now, to catch you up on the latest…
Recent Happenings
First, I’m feeling really grateful that a lot of new humans have joined this community in the past month. Maybe we met at the panel I spoke at Adobe. Or, perhaps we chatted at a Creative Mornings event, a virtual meetup, a Local Economy gathering, or somewhere else in the wild.
Wherever we may have connected, here’s a little summary of how to plug in!
Our Weekly Community Thread
Every Wednesday, I post a thread on our Tomatokind subscriber chat that invites candid shares about your creative multitudes, projects you’re working on, daily rituals, book/podcast/ small business recommendations, creative blockers/ dilemmas, community resources and offerings, and sometimes just something silly.
For those new to Substack, community chats are exclusive conversation spaces for subscribers of a specific Substack publication. For ours, think of it as a casual chatroom where you can hang out with other multi-passionate creatives.
This week (as it is a new month), I’m asking everyone to re-introduce themselves. So, come say hi and let the community know who you are!
Possibilities Club
Possibilities Club is our signature workshop, combining improv and visioning exercises to invite your most limitless self to the table to pursue those creative projects and life dreams that have been collecting dust in your notes app.
We’ve run Possibilities Club both in-person and virtual, and each format comes with its own magic! Our next one is virtual and its on June 24th from 5:30-6:30 PST. Open to paid subscribers only!
Live Interviews
If you’ve been here since the beginning, you’ve probably thought at some point: “Is Vanessa still interviewing small-business owners, artisans, storytellers, and brick-and-mortar shopowners?”
The answer is: yes.
Previously, we featured editorial interviews with creatives around the world every single month, but have been pausing to re-imagine what type of conversations to reserve for our podcast (launching later this year) versus here on Substack.
Just another one of those creative decisions that don’t mean much to you, but that I’ve spent endless hours racking my brain about…
Good news…starting this month, interviews are coming to you as live events on Substack! Because, as much as I love sharing stories of others’ journeys in my editorial voice, there’s just nothing like hearing about someone’s experiences in their own words.
June 12: Live Conversation with Mary McGreevy (12pm PST)
Mary McGreevy (creator of the viral account Tips from Dead People) will be joining us for a live conversation (June 12, 12-1pm PST). Mary will share the stories and people that make up who she is, the unexpected journey of how sharing her lifelong fascination with obituaries with the internet nearly broke it, and her latest endeavor: writing a book.
June 16: Live Conversation with Krystal Lauk (12pm PST)
Next, we’ll be chatting with Krystal Lauk, a creative leader, curator, and artist based in San Francisco. In 2025, Krystal founded Pissed Off Moms (POM), an art collective and gathering series for women reclaiming their creative authority. POM is part exhibition, part ritual, part rallying cry; a space where mothers and makers to come to remember who they are.
IRL Events
I hear you. We need to be in-person!
Last week, I was invited to speak on a creative panel at Adobe’s SF office. And, the energy in the room was amazing. If we met there, you know. So, as summer arrives in the San Francisco Bay Area, you bet we’ll have some fun gatherings to attend! Stay tuned.
For now, mark your calendars for a Substackers Meetup I’m hosting with Sophie Davies, founder of CUPPA Culture, at one of my favorite community spaces: Local Economy (Oakland, CA) on June 20th from 2-4pm.
Guest Contributors
While I’ve called Tomatokind a digital “magazine” since the beginning, it actually took me a while to invite guest writers. But, we are finally at that point!
Last month, fellow creative Rebecca Hass (composer, collaborative pianist, creative coach) guest-published a piece for us that was a huge hit!
This month, we’re having another gem of a guest writer: Morgan Jackson, founder of Light 56®, a community and accountability practice that supports women struggling to make time for themselves and feel lighter in their body, mind, space, and spirit. This feature will be open to paid subscribers only.
Monthly Community Coffees
Community Coffee Chats are also a newer addition to our ecosystem. These are monthly candid Substack live conversations with members of the community.
In May, we invited Emery Tran and Prerana Gurubasavaraj to chat about how they navigate high-stress 9-5 jobs (as a designer and regulatory affairs manager, respectively) while simultaneously pursuing their creative dreams as storytellers, podcast hosts, and content creators.
In April, we had Melissa Rivera (of Nonprofit Curious), a coach for non-profit startups and social enterprises, and Keriann Bellamy, a copywriter and marketing strategist for wellness-focused practitioners and small-business owners. We chatted about all things creative entrepreneurship!
As for this month, we’re lining up two special guests and will be announcing a date and time for that conversation soon! Stay tuned.
And, with that, thank you so much for being here!
Please share some feedback to help me grow. It would mean the world.
Ok, I’ll be in your inbox again soon :)
With gratitude and zeal for this creative life,
Vanessa
Thank you so much for joining in today!
Thanks for the shout out, I was so honored and delighted to trade guest posts!
Also, I SO wish I could come to the local Substackers meetup, but my parents will be in town and we're doing family gathering stuff that day - I will stay tuned to see if/when you do it again! 🤞