[00:00:00] Pam Uzzell: Do you believe art can change the world? So do I. On this show, we meet artists whose work is doing just that. Welcome to Art Heals All Wounds. I'm your host, Pam Uzzell.
[00:00:48] Hello. Thanks for sharing this season dedicated to belonging with me. I tried some new things this season. The biggest, best new thing was asking for voicemails to share. I love these voicemails. Each of them moved me and made me reflect about how people were finding their ways into community and what belonging meant to them.
[00:01:10] So thank you to everyone who sent a voicemail. It was such a privilege to be able to share those and thank you to people who donated to the show through the "buy me a coffee" link on my website. A big thank you to Michele Hangley, who just donated. Michele is one of my oldest and dearest friends. Thank you, Michele
[00:01:32] So... Welcome to 2024! This episode is the wrap up for season 5, and I want to know how are things going for you? I'll share that I'm currently feeling overwhelmed would be a good word.
[00:01:53] When I was growing up, we lived for a snow day, because South Arkansas didn't get a lot of snow. So, if it even snowed an inch or two, they closed the schools.
[00:02:06] There was this great hill right across the street from our house, really steep, full of trees. It was so steep that no houses could really be built on it. But two of my best friends lived on the other side of that hill. When these snow days came, I'd trudge up that hill, and we'd get something that we could slide down on.
[00:02:32] I don't remember if it was an actual sled, which seems silly considering how little snow we got, or if it was old pieces of cardboard or what. But we'd take turns sliding down the hill. And after each person took their turn sliding down the hill, they would stay to take their turn as the traffic lookout.
[00:02:54] Because the end of that ride down the hill was into the street. So someone had to be the lookout to make sure it was clear to slide down. And sometimes, you'd be hurtling down that hill at full speed, and you'd suddenly hear the lookout yell, CAR! And then you had to figure out how to stop yourself before you slid in front of the car.
[00:03:22] I'm not going to lie, some really significant, good things happened for me personally in 2023. In terms of climate catastrophes, natural disasters, violent conflicts, 2023 was, in my opinion, a shit show. It reminds me of sliding down that snowy hill and hearing the warning that a car was coming.
[00:03:50] And now, in 2024, I'm worried. I'm hopeful of how we avoid winding up in the path of oncoming traffic. What do you think? What are you afraid of? What are you worried about? Or hopeful for? Please, let me know. I want to keep the voicemail episodes going. So please, Go to my website, arthealsallwoundspodcast.Com, and leave me a voicemail. It could be about belonging, it could be about your creative work and how it's been a healing process for you, things that worry you, and how you're working with that. I love hearing these shares from listeners.
[00:04:36] This voicemail I'm sharing today from Joe Field is so great. Joe is the creator of The Legends Universe and is the author of several series of graphic novels. We've been following each other for a while on social media. And he left a great voicemail for the show. He talks about all kinds of things,
[00:04:55] discovering the impact of his work on others, and the [00:05:00] responsibility that he now feels as a creative person because of that.
[00:05:04] Joe Field: My name is Joe Field. I'm an author and the creator of The Legends Universe, which consists of nine books and three podcast seasons filled with heroes, villains, special weapons, folklore, action, adventure, all geared toward both adults and kids. And when I set out to create this universe and write my books, I certainly couldn't imagine how any of my art could heal any wounds.
[00:05:28] But over the past few years, I've received some feedback from readers and listeners that I think strikes at the core of what this show represents. I'll share some stories in a moment, but first, I want to encourage and maybe even challenge my fellow creatives and certainly the writers and authors among us to turn our focus away from the sheer metrics of our work, the best seller list, The number of reviews and similar business and marketing items.
[00:05:54] And think about how we impact people on an individual level with our art. Okay, so here's a few stories that made me change the way I write. First, a parent of a 12 year old boy reached out to me and said my superhero books for kids helped their son escape
[00:06:09] a video game addiction. Apparently my books were literally the only books he would turn Fortnite off for.
[00:06:16] And Don't get me wrong. I'm a gamer and I enjoy playing games like Fortnite, but I think most parents, myself included, don't just want their kids spending their entire youth playing video games. There needs to be a balance. And I was so excited when I heard my books turned this young gamer back to reading.
[00:06:33] Second, during the height of COVID, when isolation was at its worst, I had several readers reach out to inform me that my characters were some of their closest friends. Now this knocked me back and I felt this tremendous pressure, like a weight on my shoulders, to create characters that are worthy of friendship.
[00:06:52] And it's changed how I've done character design ever since. Just imagine if a reader's beloved character suddenly does something evil or not consistent with what the reader believes they ought to do, it could crush someone. So I take that newfound responsibility seriously. On a fun note, I've had kids and adults tell me that they use the knockout phrases that are featured in my books like, Chop Suey!
[00:07:15] And Gadzooks! Whenever they face something challenging in life, whether that's an annoying brother, Or before an important interview, they use it as a war cry and with coupled with the stories of valor my hero's experience in the books, I've heard it's inspirational to readers. So that's been great to hear.
[00:07:32] One last antidote. And that's addressing literacy. The number of kids and adults who can't read increases each year. And I do not profess to be tackling that issue, but there is a subset of that problem that I'm trying to address with my books. And that's the fact that every year, the number of people who can name even one book that is their favorite or that they enjoy reading for pleasure keeps going down and down and down.
[00:08:00] I grew up with Goosebumps and Harry Potter, and although those were wonderful books at the time, it's hard for parents and kids alike to find books that get them excited about reading today. I try really hard to write those types of books for people, the kind of books they love to binge. And I was super pumped when I've had readers tell me they've They've read through one of my five book series four or five times already.
[00:08:22] And I even have one reader who told me he likes my books way more than Harry Potter. Now, obviously the impact of the Harry Potter series is astronomical, but for that one reader, my books were more impactful. And it's the fuel that keeps me riding on those long candle lit nights. I hope these little vignettes encourage and inspire my fellow creatives to think about how our work impacts others on an individual level.
[00:08:46] I also want to give a huge thank you to Pam for this awesome show and for letting me be a tiny participant in the Art Heals All Wounds movement. Be well and chop suey.
[00:09:26] Pam Uzzell: Thank you, Joe Field it was helpful for me to hear how your work has impacted others, and I'm betting that it was helpful for other listeners as well. I found Joe's website, so I'll leave a link to that in the show notes.
[00:09:38] I learned that this podcast was listened to in 61 countries in 2023. Some of these countries, like the U. S., have lots of listens, but others may have as few as half a dozen, and sometimes even less than that. Of course. I always look to see where people are listening [00:10:00] and get really excited, like, Oh, wow, my one listener in Norway is still listening. Or, wow, seven people in Australia listened to my last episode.
[00:10:13] If you're listening to this podcast, I want you to know that I think about you all a lot. I sincerely invite you to be in touch. The best way to reach me is through my website, arthealsallwoundspodcast.Com. You can drop a quick note, request to be a guest, or leave me a voicemail telling me more about you that I can share with the show.
[00:10:36] I'm heading into a break now to replenish a bit. and take care of long neglected tasks in my life, but I'll be back soon. I'm shooting for somewhere around the end of February, 1st of March, so keep an eye out, and until then, I am wishing you the brightest of New Years, and for you to continue to give all that I know you do to bring healing to yourselves and others.
[00:11:05] Thanks for listening.
[00:11:06]