Your creative life
matters, too.

I'm Marla. I help people realize more of their creative potential—
from the inside out.

Let's Talk
Let's Talk

You lead a full life.

But there’s another life you want to be living, too.

Maybe there’s a book you want to write, a body of work you want to develop, music you want to make—or work you’ve already begun that you’re ready to finish and bring into the world.

You want to take your creative work seriously. To make time for it. Finish things. Submit, publish, perform or share what you make.

Maybe you even want your creative work to become a vibrant, visible part of your life.

But year after year, the work that matters so much to you keeps getting pushed to the edges of your attention, your schedule and your life.

You don't need to disrupt the good life you've built.

You can learn to make room for your creative life—and give it the attention it deserves.

This is the path we'll take

When your creativity comes alive, new possibilities come into view. You begin to see your work—and your life—differently.
And you can make choices from a place of greater freedom, imagination and clarity.

Your Creative Self
Enliven your creativity.

Recognize and shift the habits and beliefs that limit your creative potential.

Play. Experiment. Follow your curiosity. Learn to create without demanding an outcome

Develop your ability to generate original ideas freely and reliably.

Build a creative practice that is consistent, alive and genuinely your own.

Learn to trust your instincts, take creative risks and follow the work where it leads.

Your Creative Manager
Finish it. Bring it into the world.

Move meaningful projects from idea to completion.

Develop the habits, structures and accountability your work needs to keep moving.

Navigate obstacles, make decisions and find the resources your projects need.

Submit, publish, perform, exhibit, record, release or share your work.

Learn to protect your time, your work and your momentum as your creative life grows.

Your Visionary Self
Choose what matters.

Listen for what has life—the work you want to make and the creative life you want to build.

Envision the creative life you want to live—and begin to see a path toward it.

Reconsider how you're living: your commitments, priorities and use of time and energy. Make room for what matters most.

Choose where to place your creative attention now.

Intelligently sequence your goals to build momentum toward the creative life—or career—you desire.

Together, these capacities form what I call the Art of Creative Stewardship.

You'll learn to enliven your creativity, direct it toward what matters,
and sustain a creative life of your own.

You’ll develop a self-leadership practice you can rely on for the rest
of your creative life.

  • "It’s rare, as a writer, to collaborate with someone who understands both the delicacy of the imaginative process and the management tools needed to finish a work of art. I can’t imagine having finished this novel so quickly, and so well, without her guidance."

    Daniel Schifrin, writer and teacher

  • “Working with Marla is transformative. She helped me see the big career picture and how all of my disparate pieces fit. A year later, I have an agent, a book contract, and an editor who wants a second book.”

    —Christina Boufis, Ph.D., former director, SFAI Writing Program; writer and content strategist

  • "Marla is a subtle magician. When I began working with her, I felt my inner artist and writer were trapped.... Just a little over one year later, I have created over one hundred pieces of art from a place of flow and authenticity."

    —Andrea Lee-Zucker, interdisciplinary artist and social entrepreneur

  • "Marla didn't tell me what I needed to do. She empowered me by helping me figure out what I needed to do to discover and commit to my vision... Two years later, I've gotten three essays published in The New York Times and I'm working with an agent on developing my first book."

    —Andrew Reiner, author of Better Boys, Better Men, writer and university educator

  • "I worked with Marla because I wanted to write. I am now a writer. It makes all the difference."

    — Matt Roche, CEO, Extole, Inc.

You already know you’re capable.

You know how to think deeply, solve difficult problems and get important things done.

And you know you have real creative ability—talent, ideas and skills you've developed over years, perhaps decades.

But if too little of that potential is finding expression in your work and your life, I'm here to help you change that.

Private Mentorship

Six months of one-to-one creativity coaching,
strategy and support.

We start wherever you are.

You may want to establish a serious creative practice, develop or finish a project, or bring your work more fully into the world.

We begin with a 90-minute Deep Dive to understand where you are now, what you want and what’s getting in the way. Together, we’ll find the right place to begin.

From there, we work closely together—as you make the work, develop your practice, complete meaningful projects and take the next steps toward the creative life you want.

What we’ll work on together:

  • Developing a creative practice that supports your particular ambitions and circumstances

  • Developing, completing and bringing meaningful creative projects into the world

  • Creative, project and career strategy—including researching opportunities, identifying resources and planning savvy next steps

  • Building the self-leadership capacities you need to sustain your creative life over time

How I’ll support you:

  • A 90-minute Deep Dive to begin, followed by biweekly private coaching sessions

  • Text support between sessions

  • On-demand spot coaching when you encounter an obstacle or need help thinking through a decision

  • Six months of close, sustained attention and companionship for you and your creative work

Our work is guided by the Art of Creative Stewardship, an approach I’ve developed through more than twenty years of working with writers, artists and musicians.

I work with just a handful of private clients at a time so I can offer generous attention, availability and support.

Let's Talk

Hi! I’m Marla.

For more than twenty years, I’ve helped people make room for their own creative work—and develop, finish and bring that work into the world.

I’m a creativity coach & strategist—and a writer, musician and performer myself. I understand both the freedom creative work requires and the structure, strategy and sustained attention it takes to develop your work, finish what you start and bring it into the world.

I work with you as a whole person. Not just what you want to create, but the life you’re building around your work—and who you’re becoming as you do.

I hold an MFA in creative writing. Over the years, I’ve worked with journalists whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Nature, as well as Oprah Book Club authors. My clients have ranged from venture capitalists, attorneys, executives and scientists to professors, entrepreneurs, family-business owners and homeschooling moms in Alaska.

My own creative work lives at Lively Future, an online living notebook where I make and share stories, photographs and original music—and tend to my own creative life as it unfolds.

Maybe you already know.

There's a book you want to write. Music you want to make. A body of work you want to realize. Or perhaps something you can sense, but can't quite name yet.

Whatever it is, I'd love to hear about it.

Tell me what you've been thinking about. Dreaming about. What you want to make—and where you want to go.

If I think I can help, we'll set up a time to talk and see if working together makes sense.

Marla

Let's Talk

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