PODCAST · arts
This is How We Create
by Martine Severin
The This is How We Create podcast digs deeper into the creative life of contemporary artists of color. Discover what feeds their creativity and how they found (or are finding) their artistic voice. Through these intimate and candid conversations, you will gain insights into the lives of creative professionals of color that are hard to find anywhere else.
Episodes
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How to Do the Scary Thing - Martine Severin (Replay)
Registration for No Fear November opens on October 20! What is the cost of inaction in your life? How many projects do you have as ideas but aren't putting any effort into? In this episode, I share the psychological framework you need to break free from fear patterns and stop waiting for…
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One Tube of Paint Changed How I Paint Skin - Miranda Forrester
Today, figurative painter Miranda Forrester reveals what it takes to stop shrinking and start restructuring the canvas on your own terms. She unpacks the shock of realizing standard primary colors could never capture her reality as a Black queer woman and explains how a simple shift in her…
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Why Your Brilliant Art Project Keeps Getting Rejected - Martine Severin
In part two of our grant preparation series, I reveal why artists face rejection and share the exact mindset shift that changes everything. We tackle the unspoken rules of funding panels, how to strategically scale from local micro-grants to national fellowships, and why proving your project's...
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How to Stop People-Pleasing and Find Your Artistic Voice - Tasanee Durrett (Replay)
What happens when the urge to break free finally overpowers the habit of people-pleasing? Sometimes the heaviest trauma acts as the catalyst you need to unlock your artistic language. I sit down with multidisciplinary visual artist and architect Tasanee Durrett to trace her incredible leap from…
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You Already Qualify for Creative Funding, Here's How - Martine Severin (Replay)
We're pulling back the curtain on the mysterious world of artist grants to reveal exactly how this system operates and where the real money actually sits. Stop draining your own bank account to support your art and claim the financial backing your boldest vision deserves. This episode is a…
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Saying No Changed My Art - Cristina Martinez
What happens when you stop fighting your creative identity? In our conversation, contemporary artist Cristina Martinez shares how to set fierce boundaries around your craft and convert your personal story into work that commands attention. Chapters 00:00 - Breaking a 200-Year Public Art Streak in...
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The Pivotal Systems that Helped Me Escape Burnout - Daniel Espinosa
When you peek behind the curtain of a podcast, you see the hidden engine holding everything together long before the microphone turns on. In this episode, my lead producer Daniel Espinosa and I unpack the exact three-phase framework that transforms chaotic creative ideas into a seamless…
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How Saying No Will Save Your Creative Career - Polly Irungu
Could your biggest career breakthrough come from a time of isolation? Photographer Polly Irungu bought her first camera with money from working at McDonald's to cope with moving to a new place. She didn't know then that she was starting a global movement. In this episode, I talk with Polly about...
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Best platforms for creating community as an artist - Lina Monterrey (Part 2)
You spend countless hours perfecting your work, yet your posts keep tumbling into a sea of silent scrollers and soul-crushing algorithms. In this episode, our podcast marketing specialist, Lina, joins me to unlock the exact digital strategy we used to transform a modest following into a devoted...
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How to Conquer Rejection - Octavia Clahar
What's the missing key to your biggest artistic breakthrough? You might feel trapped in a demanding day job or paralyzed by fear of rejection, yet your tightest constraints can become your ultimate creative advantage. Screenwriter Octavia Clahar, reveals how she directed her debut TV pilot inside…
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Stop Posting to Nobody and Claim Your Audience - Lina Monterrey (Part 1)
We accidentally unlocked a strategy that skyrocketed our own community from three hundred quiet listeners to over 11,000 fiercely loyal fans in less than six months. I sit down with our brilliant social media specialist, Lina Monterey, to expose the mistakes that are stopping you from reaching…
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A Corporate Layoff Sparked a Design Revolution - Hadiya Williams
Feeling stuck in a safe job while your creative dreams take a backseat? Sometimes an unexpected plot twist is just what you need to leap. In this episode, I'm chatting with artist Hadiya Williams about how getting laid off helped her build a thriving studio on her own terms. Hear how a 100-day...
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The Mistake That Cost Me My Brand Name - Martine Severin
If you want to start a podcast but are paralyzed by the fear of sounding stupid, you may be paying the high price of waiting. In this episode, learn the steps to start your podcast. Stop letting the illusion of readiness stall your momentum; tune in to claim your voice, launch your project, and...
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How to Unlock Your Truest Creative Voice - Nicole A. Taylor
What does ultimate creative freedom look like? What boundaries do you need to have in your life for this freedom to propel you forward? In this conversation with cookbook author Nicole A. Taylor, we talk code-switching, what it takes to write a book, and how personal ethics might be the fuel for...
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The Ancient Answer to Your Burnout - Martine Severin
What should you do about burnout? In this episode, I pull back the curtain on nearly 200 episodes to reveal the psychological shifts and structural changes that rescued me from burnout. These shifts transformed how I approach delegation and audience building. Listen to this milestone episode to...
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Build an Unstoppable Creative Career - Justin Q. Williams
Atlanta interior design powerhouse Justin Q. Williams built a celebrated empire by launching his business at just eighteen, but the glittering television features and custom furniture lines mask years of grueling midnight grinds, raw psychological battles with clients, and a devastating early...
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What Clients Actually Mean When They Say They Have No Budget - Martine Severin
Every creative hits the wall where a dream client utters the four words: "we have no budget." In this special community Q&A episode, I pull back the curtain on the subtle business traps that quietly drain your bank account and compromise your artistic integrity. You will discover the…
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From Couch Surfing to Hollywood Sets - Aleia Kristene
Screenwriter and coach Aleia Kristene survived grueling hustle, but she walked away questioning whether the narrative of the suffering artist is actually a badge of honor or just unexamined trauma. In our conversation, she reveals how she transformed twenty years of family tragedy into a limited...
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Learn to Spot the Invisible Rules Controlling Your Creativity - Martine Severin
For six years, I built this podcast while secretly measuring my worth against exhausting, invisible standards I could not even name. To break out of this vicious cycle, I turned to four paradigm-shifting books that dismantled my view of success and identity. These texts exposed the hidden systems...
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Which Invisible Forces Are Sabotaging Your Creative Voice - Cauleen Smith & Danielle A. Scruggs
Filmmaker Cauleen Smith and photographer Danielle A. Scruggs join me to unpack how classical media subconsciously trains audiences to accept biases. In this episode, we discuss the radical frameworks required to dismantle these frameworks. Listen to this conversation to discover how to identify…
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The Secret Bridge To Your Best Creative Work - Martine Severin
In this week's episode, we talk about the importance of rituals and why they are the key to you performing at your best. Learn how to design your own five-minute transition and how to turn chaotic energy into a focused flow. Chapters 00:00 - The Musical Bridges of Childhood 03:32 - Waking the...
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The Perfect Cure for Your Creative Block - Tiffani Glenn
What if the thing standing between you and your best work isn't talent but the pressure you keep putting on yourself to produce? Painter Tiffani Glenn has built a body of work around a radical idea: Black women deserve to be seen in their full confidence and color. In this episode, Tiffani shares...
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The Sea Glass Principle - Martine Severin
If you're constantly told that time is a predator and a scarce resource to conquer, you may need a perspective shift. The Sea Glass Principle may just alleviate the pressure that leaves you trapped in a cycle of measuring your life against an impossible moving target. Tune in to hear how this...
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The "New Black Look" Redefining Interior Design - Sierra Glasgow
Most creators would have folded under the pressure of the "beige box" industry, yet Sierra doubled down on a signature style that fuses modern curvature with the vibrant, ancestral pulse of Black culture. This episode uncovers the friction of being a risk-taker in a world that fears color and how...
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Here's Exactly How to Start Your Newsletter - Martine Severin
If you've wanted to start a newsletter, let's get into it! We break down the technical barriers of platforms like Substack and Kit, while stripping away the myth that you need to be perfect to start. Stop letting your wisdom gather dust and discover how trusting your own voice creates the body of...
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The Truth About Success Nobody Prepares You For - Mei Tao
What does it actually feel like to build the career you always wanted — and then realize the hard part isn't over? Photographer Mei Tao has spent decades behind the lens for Apple, J.Crew, and major publications. But in this conversation, she gets honest about what commercial success doesn't tell...
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Your Website Is Losing You Clients (Here's What to Fix) - Martine Severin
There's a particular kind of dread that comes with sending someone to your website — you hit send on your portfolio link and immediately think: wait, is that still up? Did I ever update that bio? In this episode, we get into why your website might be the one thing standing between you and the...
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How to Think, Write and Create Like a Pro - Eve L. Ewing
If you have ever stared at a blank page and wondered whether you are actually a writer or just someone who wishes they were one, circle 'round. Dr. Eve L. Ewing (sociologist, poet, and Marvel Comics writer) offers an honest look at what a serious creative practice actually requires. Learn how she...
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On Sales and Marketing as an Artist - Martine Severin
Have you ever felt that once the masterpiece is finished, the rest of the journey should belong to someone else? Many of us wait in the shadows of the "found artist" myth, hoping the right gallery or agent will simply stumble upon our genius. But what happens when the knocking never starts?…
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How to Grow an Art Practice Without Losing Yourself - Lex Marie
In this episode, I sit down with Lex Marie, an artist whose work confronts the uncomfortable truth that Black children in America are often denied the luxury of innocence. She transforms the everyday remnants of her son's childhood into confrontation disguised as portraiture, and the materials…
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A Guide to Moving Through Creative Paralysis - Martine Severin
Have you ever had a to-do list as long as your arm but couldn't bring yourself to do the tasks on that list? What about your dreams to accomplish this or that? How many of them have you ignored? Whether you call it procrastination, a lack of discipline, or simple laziness, the truth behind our...
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Finding Your Authentic Design Voice - Tiffany Brooks
Have you ever wondered what it takes to build a creative empire from the ground up? In this episode, I sit down with the remarkable Tiffany Brooks, an interior designer whose journey is as inspiring as her stunning creations. From a bet that launched her career to designing for icons such as…
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Rethinking Imposter Syndrome - Martine Severin
Have you ever walked into a room where you belonged, yet felt like a total intruder? Even when surrounded by friends or longtime colleagues, that whisper of inadequacy—the one that claims you are "running a game" on everyone—often grows loudest just as you are about to shine. In this solo…
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Funding Your Dreams on Someone Else's Dime - Karl Ferguson
Karl Ferguson Jr. never planned to be a photographer. He picked up a camera because he was following his interest in the burgeoning Hip Hop Scene. Years later, his portraits of Black culture have appeared in Vibe, Billboard, and The Hollywood Reporter. In this conversation, Karl talks about what…
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How to Communicate Your Creative Worth - Martine Severin
Have you ever wondered why a client chooses your lens over a thousand others? In this solo session, I dive into a transformative conversation that shifted my entire understanding of why I am hired as a photographer. We explore the "economy of vision" and how your unique cultural position creates…
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Art as a Language of Resistance - Phoebe Boswell
What if art could serve as both a mirror to injustice and a sanctuary for the soul? What happens when the world tries to fit your identity into a narrow predetermined box? I sit down with multi-disciplinary artist Phoebe Boswell to explore the "porous space" between heritage and headline. From…
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The Struggle to Find Your Original Voice as an Artist
What does the advice, "Just be yourself," mean when you are still figuring out who you are as an artist? In this episode photographer, Martine Severin, shares her "prickly" journey to discovering her creative voice and why the path from imitation to authenticity is rarely a straight line. We...
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When Your Biggest Failure Becomes Your Signature Style - Shaina McCoy
Have you ever felt like your inability to master a technical skill was a sign you should quit? In this episode, I sit down with the brilliant painter Shaina McCoy, who transformed a moment of classroom frustration into a profound artistic breakthrough. Shaina opens up about the courage it took to...
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Welcome to Season Six: A New Look and a Bold Vision - Martine Severin
Welcome back, friend. We are stepping into Season Six with a fresh energy that I have been dying to share with you. Over the last nine months, my team and I have been working quietly behind the scenes, from the vibrant streets of Medellín to the design studio, to reimagine how this show looks,...
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How to Do the Scary Things in Life - Martine Severin
Want to find out the secret to doing the scary things in life? Are you waiting for the right time or for a surge of confidence to finally send that pitch or apply for that residency. In this episode, we explore the psychological traps of "waiting to be ready" and share research-backed strategies…
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Letting Go with Grace: When It's Time to Make the Hard Call - Martine Severin
In our ongoing series about the creative process of building a studio, we've covered when and how to hire a team. But what happens when a hire isn't the right fit? I'm pulling back the curtain on a lesson that cost me months of energy and a piece of my confidence as a leader. You'll often know by...
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From Solo Hustle to Successful Delegation: The Art of Onboarding - Martine Severin
You've made the hire and the contract is signed. Yay. Now we can begin the real work. In this final installment of our mini-series on hiring your first assistant, I'm pulling back the curtain on the first crucial 90 days and the art of proper onboarding. I'll be sharing the systems and…
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The Creative's Guide to Screening Your First Hire - Martine Severin
Hiring your first helper is exciting, but it can also be terrifying. After keeping the wrong person on my team for far too long, I realized I had been focusing on all the wrong things. Skills on a resume are table stakes, but you cannot teach someone to care about the details the way you do. In...
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Think you need to hire someone? Your exhaustion might be lying to you - Martine Severin
Some creatives hire when they're overwhelmed, not when they're ready to lead. Before you bring on that intern or assistant, you need clarity on what you're handing off, bandwidth to train them, and rock-solid values they can execute on. I'm pleased to share the hiring frameworks that rocked my...
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What an Afro Comb Can Teach You about Design - Jomo Tariku
What does it take to change an entire industry? Thirty years ago, Jomo Tariku, then an industrial design student, noticed something profound missing in his university library: contemporary African furniture designers. This observation sparked a decades-long journey of persistence and vision. I…
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The Quiet Persistence of Creativity - Martine Severin
I have been thinking a lot lately about the difference between the loud hustle culture of constant visibility and the profound power of simply refusing to give up, even when it feels like nothing is happening. Join me in this episode as I share unexpected lessons in persistence, inspired by Death...
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The Courage to Trust the Process - Bria Gladney
Every so often, we come across an artist whose journey reminds us that creativity is a promise of transformation. What started as a project to design graduation caps (that then went viral) evolved into a story of artistic evolution, mental health healing, and finding purpose through creativity.…
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How to Find Your Own Creative Mantra - Martine Severin
I recently spent time hiking the Four Corners (you know, the area in the US where the states of Utah, Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico form corners). After pushing my body to its limits, I ended up on a massage table where an unexpected mantra changed my perspective. This mantra made me ask: if…
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The Art of World-Building as an Author - Navi' Robins
How does a creative professional build a portfolio of 18 books? My guest today, Navi' Robins, is a Chicago-born author and graphic designer who does just that. His creative perspective was shaped by a childhood spent living across five continents. In our conversation, Navi' shares the inspiration...
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How Creatives Really Make a Living - Martine Severin
Have you wondered about the gap between the beautiful work on artists' websites and the reality of making a living off of your creative work? Join three incredible artists: illustrator Andrea Pippins, illustrator Alex Cabal, and photographer Chris Charles, who share their "income pie." They…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
The This is How We Create podcast digs deeper into the creative life of contemporary artists of color. Discover what feeds their creativity and how they found (or are finding) their artistic voice. Through these intimate and candid conversations, you will gain insights into the lives of creative professionals of color that are hard to find anywhere else.
HOSTED BY
Martine Severin
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does This is How We Create have?
This is How We Create currently has 230 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is This is How We Create about?
The This is How We Create podcast digs deeper into the creative life of contemporary artists of color. Discover what feeds their creativity and how they found (or are finding) their artistic voice. Through these intimate and candid conversations, you will gain insights into the lives of creative...
How often does This is How We Create release new episodes?
This is How We Create publishes regularly with 230 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to This is How We Create?
You can listen to This is How We Create on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts This is How We Create?
This is How We Create is created and hosted by Martine Severin.
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