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 work you were always meant to lead.

Chapters

00:00 Opening the private vault of creative insights

01:45 Breaking the cycle of fear in a Vancouver bookstore

03:15 Understanding why you hesitate to share your voice

04:30 Choosing the right platform from Substack to Kit

06:35 How to build a subscriber list with integrity

07:50 Offering deep value instead of a sales pitch

09:15 Committing to the first ten issues

Listen to the show on your favorite streaming platform!

Apple Podcast: http://bit.ly/4fcopgQ
Spotify: http://bit.ly/4fdkiBs
iHeart Podcast: http://bit.ly/4lRHms3

Support the Show

Website: http://www.martineseverin.com
Follow on Instagram: @martine.severin | @thisishowwecreate_
Subscribe to the Newsletter: http://www.martineseverin.substack.com

This is How We Create is produced by Martine Severin. This episode was edited by Daniel Espinosa. Podcast show art is designed by Violetta Encarnación. Music by Timothy Infinite.

• Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts

• Leave a review

• Follow us on social media

• Share with fellow creatives

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 you: that the work stays hard, that achievement keeps moving the goalpost, and that the most meaningful art she's ever made has nothing to do with her biggest clients.

We talk about growing up as an immigrant in Brooklyn, finding herself in candy store magazine racks, and the moment she realized her father's private recordings were her most precious inheritance. And we get into the question every working creative eventually has to answer — how do you feel like yourself in your work?

Chapters

00:00 - Defining the Radical Art of Care

03:44 - Cultural Shock and the Move to New York

05:52 - Magazines as a Gateway to Fashion

08:05 - Navigating Parsons and the Practicality of Art

09:14 - Technical Mastery and the Business of Artistry

12:39 - Success as a Series of Failures

15:44 - Redefining Professional Achievement

18:15 - The Cost of Code-Switching

21:00 - Documenting Family and Artistic Influences

24:45 - Processing Grief and History Through the Lens

27:28 - Financial Freedom and Fine Art Discipline

29:19 - Diving into Motion and Radical Storytelling

Connect with Mei:

Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taomeitao/

Website: https://meitaophotographer.com/

Support the show

Website: Martine Severin
Follow on Instagram: Martine | This Is How We Create
Subscribe to the Newsletter: Martine's Substack

This is How We Create is produced by Martine Severin. This episode was edited by Daniel Espinosa. Podcast show art is designed by Violetta Encarnación. Music by Timothy Infinite.

• Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts

• Leave a review

• Follow us on social media

• Share with fellow creatives

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 clients you actually want, and the specific work of making it do what it's supposed to do: make the right people feel something, and then reach out. We cover what makes a compelling bio, the psychology behind why visitors stay or leave, and why hiding your personal projects is quietly costing you your biggest opportunities.

Chapters

00:13 The invisible artist at the gallery.

02:34 Losing a job over an outdated portfolio.

04:52 Crafting your digital handshake and bio.

07:16 The secret power of personal projects.

09:42 Podcast reviews and the Creative Matters newsletter.

Support the Show

Website: http://www.martineseverin.com
Follow on Instagram: @martine.severin | @thisishowwecreate_
Subscribe to the Newsletter: http://www.martineseverin.substack.com

This is How We Create is produced by Martine Severin. This episode was edited by Daniel Espinosa. Podcast show art is designed by Violetta Encarnación. Music by Timothy Infinite.

• Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts

• Leave a review

• Follow us on social media

• Share with fellow creatives