Straight Chatting from the Library: Larissa Soehn

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What Happened When Someone Called Me Creative… A Self Realization Story

Have you ever been told something about yourself that you think is just so strange, or something that you think doesn’t describe you at all? Well, that happened to me, and it may surprise you to know, that when someone called me creative, I thought they were crazy!

Ok, not entirely. I knew I liked to make crafts and build things with my hands, but to be called creative, that to me meant to be original. Everything I had done up until The Defender was about following a design or taking someone else’s idea and putting my own spin on it. I hadn’t done anything original before.

It wasn’t just about my history with arts and crafts, it was also who it came from. My best friend of 25 years dropped this ‘creative bomb’ on me. She said, “Larissa, you are the most creative person I know.” That’s in itself is not a big deal, but you guys, she is an ART MAJOR! How can little old me be the most creative person she knows? That’s not possible… is it?

The answer is ‘Heck Yes It Is’! The more I thought about it, the more I realized that she might be right, I might be a creative person. Once I realized that, I had to stop and laugh at how ridiculous it was that I had never thought to call myself this before.

This level of self realization unlocked a whole new view to my own soul that I had never acknowledged before. Coming out of a major depressive episode meant doing a lot of self discoveries, and this one just fell nicely onto the pile of stuff I hadn’t realized about myself.

Now that I can wear my “Creative” badge with pride, I look at myself just a little bit differently. I think about what makes me happy and how am I going to fill my joy bucket. I think about my day job and look for ways to build my creativity into it (which is no easy task). And finally, I look for ways to feed my creativity.

I want to unleash myself on the world, and that is a scary thing. Being a creative person means taking risks with your work and understanding that not everyone is going to like what you have done. This level of self exposure is almost harder than if I were to walk through a crowded room with no clothes on. Ok, I’m joking… kind of. But it is like bearing a piece of my soul for you all to read and judge. The Defender is a piece of my soul. It’s a view of a part of me that has always lain dormant, but now it is out there for you all to read and enjoy. Talk about scary!

So, this next part is important, be kind. Not just to me, but to all those that are bearing little piece of their soul to the world. We are putting our most treasured creations into your hands, so be gentle with them. If you don’t like them, then that’s ok, but don’t make someone cry. On the flip side, if you love it, tell them, for all that is good, TELL THEM! We need more positivity and kindness in this world.

READ THE BLURB

A woman battling depression and anxiety finds herself trapped in her own life, but when an alien device rips her away from Earth, she is forced to fulfill an impossible role and save the galaxies from destruction.

On Earth, Alexia Harmon is a mother and wife, but in a foreign galaxy, she is so much more. Torn away from her family, Alex is in an epic battle to escape from Gatlin and return to Earth. But little does Alex know, Gatlin is on the verge of destruction. The galaxy faces annihilation; a prophetic doom that was set in motion thousands of years ago.

Alex struggles to stay alive as she fights against an alien government that is trying to kill her, a species of genetically engineered creatures that are hell bent on her destruction, and the demons of her own mind that threaten to overthrow her. Join Alexia Harmon as she works to fulfill her role as THE DEFENDER.

READ AN EXCERPT

With Stellie’s last words still hanging in the air, the lights go out and Alex is slammed into darkness. Immediately, her mind begins to race, and she can feel the panic rising in her stomach, starting to choke her throat. Darkness has always been a weak point for her. It’s the moment where she is left alone with only her thoughts to keep her company. With a strangled feeling in her chest, she manages a breath, and then another.

The darkness stretches on for longer than Alex thought possible. There is no noise from the aliens in the crowd; there is only black. The darkness begins to press in on her as if she is being compressed, her breathing becomes more rapid, and she begins to feel sweat bead on her forehead. She can feel a panic attack coming on, something she frequently experiences, but they still have the ability to leave her paralyzed, unable to make decisions or do anything to help herself.

Breathe, Alex, just breathe, she says to herself. She crouches down to place her hands on the ground and puts her head between her knees. She can feel the ground beneath her vibrate lightly, but she knows enough not to trust her senses right now. Panic attacks allow her mind to play tricks on her, altering the way her surroundings look and feel, taking everything that is real and skewing it into something negative, something scary. Her steady breathing starts to return, and the panic attack is narrowly avoided. What is going on? Has something gone wrong with the test? Alex thinks to herself.

Just as the thought enters her mind, a very faint light starts to appear in the far corner of the room. She stares at the light, unsure if her mind is playing tricks on her. As she stares, the light grows brighter, illuminating one of the tables she saw when she first entered the room. With a curiosity that she cannot control, she moves to a standing position and starts to take a tentative step forward.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Larissa Soehn is a budding new author from the cozy city of Red Deer, Alberta, where she lives with her husband, daughter, two cats and a dog. She started this journey as a recovery method for severe depression. She found that creative writing helped her process her emotions and work through the struggles of depression. As a child, Larissa enjoyed writing and telling stories, a passion that has recently reignited inside of her. Currently she is working to finalize the Gatlin Series, as well as publish a series of children's books to help families discuss the importance of mental health, amongst other social issues facing children today. Larissa is an advocate for mental health and uses her personal experiences to help others work through their struggles. She uses social media platforms to help spread her message and give people permission to speak up and speak out.

WEBSITE: https://larissasoehn.com/
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/larissa.soehn
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/larissa_soehn/

AMAZON.COM: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0228866030
AMAZON.CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0228866030
BARNES & NOBLE: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-defender-larissa-soehn/1140523152
SMASHWORDS: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1115119
APPLE IBOOKS: https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-defender/id1595487361

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