This is A World Enchanted’s first ever guest post!!! Woohoo! Welcome Llinos!
In this post, Llinos shares her feelings around having published her first book, and the act of using her creative skills as a writer to share her journey so that others can find healing and enchantment during their own struggles too. It is my pleasure to hand over the stage to author, speaker and another enchantress of Wales, Llinos Mai Thomas!
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Some creative people struggle with calling themselves an ‘artist’ or ‘writer’. At the moment, I’m trying out ‘author’ as a label for myself, as my self published book ‘Cancer, Chemo and Curls’ is now available on Amazon.
Part of me is a bit scared. The book is about my time as a teenage cancer patient; it is very honest and raw. It’s a very bold book, and I don’t hold back about what happened to me. I feel vulnerable and visible in a way I haven’t been before. But, I’m choosing to harness that feeling as a great personal strength and channelling it into my creative flow.
I didn’t used to feel creative at all. Yes, I liked doodling and making up stories, but I didn’t take Art in school and I didn’t think I was very good at it. didn’t think I was what a creative person should be or look like.
Now however, I feel creativity is a core part of who I am, and what I can offer the world. I want to make handmade greeting cards to cheer someone’s day; I want to write a story which makes people smile. On a larger scale, I’m passionate about what my book can do for women who need to hear this story, of how a young girl took on cancer and won.
I’ve also found myself dreaming up stories about queens in faraway lands; tinged with my love of history and with an essence of fantasy from the part of me that loves fairy tales, oracle cards and inspiring, whimsical art. Living in Wales, I am moved by the beautiful castles and legends which are so firmly locked into our culture. This creativity has come forth out of my health problems, including depression, and now I’ve unlocked this part of me nothing can stop it flowing. During depression, I have found creative outlets help me emotionally as effectively as any professional medical treatment.
That’s what holding my completed book in my hands feels like. A pure, inner smile. As though I can take on the world and follow my deepest dreams and live an enchanted life. I’m the fairy queen in my own life and there’s nothing that can keep me from connecting with my deep creative joy and purpose.
Llinos Mai Thomas is a writer, speaker and charity fundraiser who lives in Cardiff, UK. She is a creative soul who loves reading and history. She shares her health journey at www.inspirationafterillness.com
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