Creative Momentum with Meg

Season 2: The Home Season
Episode 28: Ingrid J. Adams
Author Ingrid J. Adams joins Meg to talk about finding your own creative rhythm, writing around family life and discovering a creative process that actually works for you.
Ingrid is the author of the four-book Descended series, a love story spanning lifetimes that explores reincarnation, fate, free will, soulmates and soul family.
In this conversation, Ingrid talks about moving from being a complete 'pantser' to a mixture of plotting and pantsing, writing from the heart while becoming more commercially aware, and what happens when the definition of success keeps changing.
We also talk about finding inspiration in the questions that have fascinated her since childhood, the importance of creative community and honest feedback, and the strange experience of finishing an eight-year series and having to say goodbye to characters who have become like family.
We talk about
- finding your natural writing rhythm- writing around family life- plotting and pantsing- writing from the heart- the commercial realities of publishing- defining and celebrating success- creative inspiration- books that stay with us- creative self-care- writing community and feedback- finishing a long-running series
Find Ingrid
Website: https://ingridjadams.com/
Instagram: @ingrid.j.adams
Substack: Ingrid J. Adams
Read the full interview
https://megdunley.com/2026/09/16/interviews-with-creatives-ingrid-j-adams/
Subscribe
If you enjoy conversations about creativity, writing and the many ways people make things, subscribe to Creative Momentum with Meg so you don't miss future episodes.
Music
Music for Creative Momentum with Meg by Yvonne Morton.


Get full access to Musings with Meg at megdunley.substack.com/subscribe

Season 2: The Home Season
Episode 27: Claire Zorn, author, artist and enthusiastic maker
IClaire Zorn is an Australian author and artist whose creative work moves between novels, picture books, drawing, painting, weaving and tapestry.
In this conversation, Claire talks about why she prefers to discover rather than over-plan her creative work, how music feeds her writing, her experience of synesthesia, and why small, achievable goals can make such a difference when creative time is limited.
We also talk about observation, journalling, getting out of familiar routines, travelling for research, and the pleasure of making something without immediately judging it.
We talk about
Writing novels from images, characters and atmosphere
Claire's approach to weaving and making
Music as a source of creative inspiration
Synesthesia and seeing colours and shapes in response to music
Small, achievable creative goals
Journalling and developing a writing voice
Observation and getting out of everyday routines
Finding creative material in unexpected places
Making without worrying whether the work is good yet
Who should listen?
This episode is for writers, artists and other creatives who are feeling stuck, curious about working across different creative forms, or needing a reminder that creative work doesn't have to be planned perfectly before you begin.
Guest links
Website: https://clairezorn.com/
Instagram: @claire_zorn
Substack: Don't Be Ridiculous By Claire Zorn
Read the full interview
https://megdunley.com/2026/09/02/claire-zorn-on-creativity-writing-and-making/
Listen to Creative Momentum with Meg: https://megdunley.substack.com/s/creative-momentum-with-meg-dunley
Subscribe
If you enjoy conversations about creativity, writing and the many ways people make things, subscribe to Creative Momentum with Meg so you don't miss future episodes.
Music
Music for Creative Momentum with Meg by Yvonne Morton.


Get full access to Musings with Meg at megdunley.substack.com/subscribe

Season 2: The Home Season
Episode 26: Elizabeth Barnett: painter, printmaker and multidisciplinary artist
In this episode of Creative Momentum with Meg, I talk with Victorian artist Elizabeth Barnett about building a creative life around family, the seasons and the everyday things that inspire her.
Elizabeth works from a studio in her home in the Macedon Ranges, where still life paintings are shaped by collected objects, flowers, branches and the changing landscape around her.
We talk about protecting creative time, the Bridge Letters she writes with artist Stacey McCall, Elizabeth's lifelong journalling practice, her recent decision to begin writing a novel, and why knitting has become part of her creative process.
We discuss
·       Creative routines and parenting
·       Making time for art
·       The Bridge Letters
·       Journalling and drawing
·       Painting from the landscape and seasons
·       Beginning a novel
·       Knitting and creative flow
·       Finding home in creative work
Guest links
Elizabeth Barnett: www.elizabethbarnett.com
Instagram: @elizabethbarnett
The Bridge Letters Creative Practice blog by Elizabeth Barnett and Stacey McCall: www.thebridgeletters.com.au
Flinders Lane Gallery: https://flg.com.au/pages/artists/elizabeth-barnett
Youtube video about her practice
Read the full interview https://megdunley.com/2026/08/26/interviews-with-creatives-elizabeth-barnett/
Listen to Creative Momentum with Meg: https://megdunley.substack.com/s/creative-momentum-with-meg-dunley
Subscribe
If you enjoy conversations about creativity, writing and the many ways people make things, subscribe to Creative Momentum with Meg so you don't miss future episodes.
Music
Music for Creative Momentum with Meg by Yvonne Morton.


Get full access to Musings with Meg at megdunley.substack.com/subscribe

Season 2: The Home Season
Episode 25: Tim Pilgrim, Gardener
Tim Pilgrim is a gardener and garden designer based in Castlemaine, central Victoria. His work focuses on naturalistic, plant-led gardens designed for their particular site and climate.
In this conversation, Tim talks about finding his way into horticulture, working at Wimbledon, developing his own garden maintenance business and eventually moving into garden design.
But this is also a conversation about creativity.
Tim describes gardens as works that are designed through time. Unlike a painting or a piece of writing, a garden continues to change after the designer has finished working on it. Plants grow, seasons change, weather intervenes and unexpected things happen.
We talk about why observation matters, how Tim works with clients, why he prefers focused blocks of time, and what gardening has taught him about adapting rather than trying to control every outcome.
We talk about
- Finding a career in horticulture
- Working at Wimbledon
- Moving from gardening into garden design
- Gardening as an artistic practice
- Creating focused blocks of time
- Designing a garden from a client's brief
- Working with plants and climate
- The role of observation
- Designing gardens through time
- Learning from happy accidents
- Australian garden design and native plants
- What fills Tim's creative cup
- Finding your own voice
- Why you should garden before you design
Who should listen
This conversation is for gardeners, designers and anyone interested in the creative process.
You don't need to be a gardener to enjoy Tim's ideas about observation, experimentation, adaptation and allowing creative work to evolve.
Guest links
Tim Pilgrim: https://www.tpgardens.com.au/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/t.p_gardens/
Book 'Wild by Design': https://www.murdochbooks.com/browse/book/Tim-Pilgrim-Wild-by-Design-9781761500411
Read the full interview https://megdunley.com/2026/08/18/interviews-with-creatives-tim-pilgrim-gardener/
Listen to Creative Momentum with Meg: https://megdunley.substack.com/s/creative-momentum-with-meg-dunley
Subscribe
If you enjoy conversations about creativity, writing and the many ways people make things, subscribe to Creative Momentum with Meg so you don't miss future episodes.
Music
Music for Creative Momentum with Meg by Yvonne Morton.


Get full access to Musings with Meg at megdunley.substack.com/subscribe

Season 2: The Home Season
Episode 24: Megan Dalla-Camina
Megan Dalla-Camina is an author of four books, a PhD researcher in women's spirituality and feminine wisdom, and the founder of Women Rising. Her creative life began with dance, acting, poetry and writing, was interrupted by 18 years in corporate America, and later flourished through writing books and creating work that supports women.
In this conversation, Megan talks about the relationship between creativity and stillness, why she doesn't follow a fixed creative routine, and how her spiritual practice has changed the way she works.
In this interview we talk about
- Creativity as something deeper than productivity
- Why Megan allows ideas to gestate before turning them into projects
- Her process for writing four books
- How her creative process has changed over time
- The connection between dance, acting and writing
- Where she finds creative inspiration
- The inner critic and the difficulty of beginning
- Finding the next right action when you're stuck
- Why Megan believes we need to trust and protect our creative ideas
- Meditation, walking, reading and stillness as part of creative practice
- Why she says truth feels like home
Who should listen
This episode is for writers and creatives who:
- Feel pressure to be more productive
- Struggle with the inner critic before beginning
- Have an idea but aren't sure what to do with it
- Feel stuck in the middle of a creative project
- Want to develop greater trust in their creative process
- Are curious about the relationship between creativity, stillness and inner listening
Connect with Megan Dalla-Camina
Megan Dalla-Camina's website https://megandallacamina.com/
Women Rising: https://megandallacamina.com/women-rising/
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/megandallacamina/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/megandallacamina/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/megandallacamina/
Read the full interview: https://megdunley.com/2026/08/11/interviews-with-creatives-megan-dalla-camina/
Find Creative Momentum with Meg: https://megdunley.substack.com/s/creative-momentum-with-meg-dunley
Subscribe to Musings with Meg: https://megdunley.substack.com/
A special thanks to Yvonne Morton for the music accompanying this episode.
You can find Yvonne on Bandcamp and Instagram.


Get full access to Musings with Meg at megdunley.substack.com/subscribe