Ep. 47: How Creativity Heals w/ J.T. Ellison

Being a published author 25 times, those on the outside saw J.T. Ellison as the definition of success. Internally, she was painfully (and repeatedly) struggling with personal tragedy.

Driven by a years-long battle with loss and infertility, J.T. channeled that energy into her 25th published book (It's One of Us, released Feb. 21st, 2023) – in what she calls the most important work she’s ever done. It’s not the typical subject matter you’d expect from a thriller novel because J.T. isn’t your typical thriller writer.

💥 This episode is for you if 💥

• You’re looking for new perspective on an internal struggle - for you or someone you love
• You feel like just when one thing in your life is taking off, something else is falling apart
• You’re looking for a new thriller to read and the subjects of loss, lies and a killer on the loose sounds fascinating

 

📺 What you'll hear in this episode📺 

This episode begins with J.T. admitting her art was imitating her life in her new novel, It's One of Us. She shares how she was finally ready to face that reality on the page. 

• [10:30] J.T. opens up about her personal journey with infertility and what was going on behind closed doors while she was experiencing such enormous success in her career.
• [22:00] Don’t call it therapeutic. JT had to relive her pain to write a book that so closely mirrored her own life. But the book isn’t a downer – it’ll make you ask yourself 'what would you do in this crazy situation the main character finds herself in?'
  
• [32:45] J.T. has a lesson for creatives who start finding their own success and what it may mean for them in their personal life and relationships.
• [37:45] One of our favorite quotes from J.T. is around the power of what you say. "Words are powerful and you can talk yourself into a failed career with how you treat your work," says Ellison.
  

 

 🔖 Chapters 🔖

2:41 - The inspiration for her new book, It's One of Us

6:05 - Why it took nearly 10 years to write and release this book

10:30 - J.T.'s miscarriages

12:20 - Parallel paths (success & tragedy)

17:18 - How the pain showed up in earlier characters

18:01 - The emotion of infertility

22:00 - Reliving the pain to bring characters to life

24:17 - It's a story of 'what would you do?'

26:35 - How J.T. got her start as a writer

29:55 - How J.T. started writing thrillers

32:48 - J.T.'s boundaries around writing

36:20 - What's the lesson? Remember the joy

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