Our 100-Day Journey Begins
Weekly Wonder Drop 001 | Week 1 PROMPTS #100DaysofWonder2024
One month ago today, I wanted to give up. I was stuck in the mud of overthinking everything. If second-guessing myself was an Olympic sport, my walls would be bedazzled with chunky gold medals.
Some of you know this story, but for those who don’t… I wanted to do the 100-Day Project again this year, but I did not want to repeat what I did in 2023. All my ideas just felt so forced. One by one they landed in a heap next to the laundry that was piled up.
I know from deep experience that sometimes when I feel most stuck, I have to be the one who gives myself the thing I need.
So I wrote myself a list of 100 one-word prompts around the themes of wonder and beauty, slowing down, and embracing the small moments we build our lives with. With a little fairy dust and woodland cottage whimsy for good measure.
Then I had the wild idea to make a reel I truly believed 1000 people might see and maybe 100 would say yes to. I hit Share a month ago today.
And my world changed forever. Over 1.2 million views later. ALL OF YOU, saying yes to wonder and creativity and connection and bravery and goodness and it. is. actually. happening. HERE WE ARE. Almost 10,000 of us.
I have to begin with how unspeakably grateful I am for each one of you.
Just touching the edges of your stories and seeing glimpses of the beauty that pours out of your creativity, I am humbled and honored, and dang it where are my tissues for the 15th time today?
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your encouragement and enthusiasm.
For sharing your photos and wisdom. For your patience, as I am keenly aware you have had quite a lot of email from me as we got this space set up.
For your courage to trust a stranger on the internet and sign up on a platform many of you had never heard of before.
For your kindness and support of one another and your understanding, as we continue to get our dust settled, answer your questions, and clarify the things that need it.
You are the hero of this story and it is my joy to serve each one of you to the absolute best of my ability.
Without further adieu…
Welcome to Our Very First Weekly Wonder Drop
Welcome to this new adventure, one that is grand and gentle at the same time.
Whenever I start a new season or a new challenge or a new journey, I write a letter to myself. Today I sat down and wrote the things my soul, the center of my creativity needed to hear. I called her beloved and reminded her she was enough. That she was strong and steadfast. That there would be bumps on the road, mistakes made, and lessons learned from all of them. These are a few of the words I wrote.
“You waited. You trusted. Even when I wanted to run away. You stood strong. This might be our grandest adventure yet. The curtain has risen, the path opened up, a way was made through the sea, and I can scarcely believe after 10 years of silent waiting in the shadows we are here. Thank you for not letting me give up.”
What does your creativity, your creative center, your soul need to hear as we begin this journey?
We have new friends here from all 50 states in the USA and over 100 nations. So many incredible places and experiences. Please always feel free to reframe any prompt or question in the language your heart connects best with.
Maybe, if it feels like it would be helpful, take a moment to write down a few things your creative self most needs assurance in as we begin. I took another simple line from my journal and put it on a Post-it note on my wall as a reminder to myself this week as we are getting started.
It reads, “It’s normal to feel a little overwhelmed when starting an enormous journey. Focus on the small steps that still lead to big dreams.”
Then I opened my sketchbook and let the pigments and water play on the page as I sketched and painted a forest inspired by the tall pines on trails I walked while visiting friends in Washington State over a decade ago.
For my 100 Days of Wonder, I’m creating a storybook-style sketchbook. One of my favorite projects from 2023 was a tiny sketchbook I filled with encouraging sketches and words for a friend. I LOVED the style I found while filling its pages and I wanted to explore it deeper. It was the first sketchbook I ever finished and this will be the second!
Housekeeping Notes
In this part of our Weekly Wonder Drop, I’ll be sharing updates and news to keep us all on track as a community. The practical things. Announcements. Upcoming events. Things to get excited about.
There is NEVER any pressure to show up here or share your journey except in the ways that delight and feed your soul.
I’m a card-carrying introvert who usually thinks 2s a crowd. I get easily overwhelmed by too much noise. An afternoon zoom call can make me want to take a nap. I get it. I don’t want this to be one more thing you feel like you have to do.
No have to do’s here. Only get to do’s. You pick and choose. You show up in the ways that strengthen your being and bring you joy.
You already belong. There is nothing to prove. I’m already amazed by your presence here.
HOW TO GET MEMBER SUPPORT IF YOU NEED IT
If you need help with your account or subscription, there’s a link now on the sidebar of the home page. I took a picture and circled it for you so you know where to find it. Please give us up to 48 hours (2 business days) to reply.
HAVE QUESTIONS?
Stroll through our newly updated Quick Start Guide here because you may find the answers there. If you don’t please don’t hesitate to reach out to us using the email us button on that page.
COMING UP
TUESDAY 02/20 is our first Check-in and Feedback Chat thread for our paid subscribers. It will go live around 12 PM EST and stay live until Friday morning. We will check in on it daily. This is the place for works in progress, questions, and general feedback on your work related to the 100 Days of Wonder.
THURSDAY 02/22 is our first SHARE & CELEBRATE Thread for everyone. It will go live at 10 AM EST and stay open until Saturday afternoon so you can post your favorite work from the week (related to the 100 Days of Wonder). You can upload multiple photos to your post.
We will be popping in several times through that period to encourage as many of you as possible, but this is primarily a space for you to connect, meet new friends, and encourage one another! The only thing we ask is to keep it kind and supportive, and respect people’s intellectual property. It isn’t the place for critiques, just celebration. 🎉
I am just so stoked to get to share this journey with you. If you are on Instagram and are comfortable doing so, please share your work with us there by using the #100daysofwonder2024 hashtag when you post.
Thank you again for being here.
All my love,
Content Below This Line is a Preview of the Kind of Content Paid Subscribers Receive. (It will be paywalled from Week 3 Onward.)
Spoiler. I am not sure we are going to call this the extended cut but that’s the only thing I could think of tonight, so here we are. 🤣 This section will include behind-the-scenes content, the extended prompts, and a look at my process as I work through the prompts myself. I’m hoping to share the occasional video as well.
Our Extended Prompts
These are additional ideas you can create around or ways you can engage with the one-word prompts. They are meant to be diving boards into more of your own ideas.
Also, you can mix and match. Maybe you want to combine Days 1, 2, & 6 and sketch out your 3 favorite forest animals having chamomile tea while daydreaming.
There is no way to get these wrong. And it is more than ok to keep it simple or only do the prompts that speak to you and light you up.
Day 1: FOREST
A whimsical, fairytale forest scene.
A path winding through a dense forest.
Close-up of a tree bark texture.
Your 3 favorite forest animals having tea.
A forest-inspired color palette.
Day 2: DAYDREAM
A landscape with soft dream-like colors.
A scene framed by an open window
3 objects that represent your most common daydreams
A daydreaming animal character
A color palette that makes you think of day-dreaming
Day 3: LANTERN
An old-fashioned street lantern.
Different types of lanterns from around the world
A close-up of a lantern’s intricate patterns.
Lanterns floating on a river or rising to the sky.
A color palette inspired by lantern light.
Day 4: DOORWAY
A doorway framed by flowers or vines.
A small, inviting doorway in a tree.
The ornate doorway of a castle or cathedral.
An old, mysterious doorway to a beautiful landscape
The doorway into a new season
Day 5: MOSS
Moss-covered stones in a stream.
A fairy house covered in moss.
Close-up of moss with dewdrops
Abstract pattern inspired by moss textures
Moss in the shape of letters or symbols.
Day 6: CHAMOMILE
Chamomile tea in a cozy cottage.
Chamomile sketched in a botanical illustration
Close-up of a chamomile flower
A whimsical bunny picking chamomile and putting it in a basket.
An abstract interpretation of chamomile... what it feels like, calming
Day 7: SPARROW
Sparrow perched on a branch
Flight of sparrows across the page, and maybe what their flight represents for you
Close-up of a sparrow’s feathers.
Imagine the world from a sparrow's point of view. Create a piece that captures a bird's-eye view of a landscape.
Make an abstract or color palette using colors that represent how you feel when you hear a sparrow’s song.
Behind the Scenes
I love to share the journey and process behind what I make. And I love reading about and seeing other creatives share their journeys! Here’s more on my process as I created my art for day 1.
I usually start with writing. For me, getting out the thoughts in my heart is so important in settling me down to create. It just helps quiet the noise in my head and sometimes even gets me in touch with inspiration for what I am going to create.
Then I usually lightly sketch the bones.
This year I want to explore more of a storybook art style that leans into the world of Beatrix Potter and all things whimsical. I dream of living in a cottage in the woods with hills and four seasons one day, but until I do I can paint the things there that make me happy.
Research has shown that visualizing and immersing ourselves in visual imagery engages the same areas of the brain that actual seeing does.1 I’m also a neuroscience nerd and love a good academic library, especially when the research has to do with creativity!
Here’s the sketch before I added the gold. I love a sketchbook with small vignettes and color palettes. With work that tells a story and creates a visual vocabulary.
Next comes one of my favorite parts… adding the golden threads.
It just adds this sense of wonder, fairytale magic, and joy. I first tried doing this in the sketchbook I created to encourage a friend last year. It was there this style came into being and I fell in love with it. Here are some of my favorite pages from that project.
Mark Your Calendars
Tuesday 02/20 around noon EST I’ll send out a link to our Check-In and Feedback Chat Thread. This is a smaller group where you can post your process shots, reach out for feedback on works in process, ask questions, and share in more detail about what you are working on with the prompts. The thread will stay live until Friday and both Heather and I will be checking in daily. I can’t wait to hang out with you there!
I’ll also be sharing some of my in-process pieces on that thread as well. It will be like a very arty-party!
Thank you so much for your support and investment in this journey. We couldn’t do it without you.
I am so excited to see what each of you will create! Please don’t forget to tag #100daysofwonder2024 on Instagram if you share because I can’t wait to cheer you on there as well!
With all my heart, Michele
Pearson, J., Naselaris, T., Holmes, E. A., & Kosslyn, S. M. (2015). Mental imagery: functional mechanisms and clinical applications. Trends in cognitive sciences, 19(10), 590-602. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4595480/
I will try to paint and draw for the first time in many, many years.. my creativity has been dead for such a long time. Thank you so much for the inspiration
🙏❤️🤗❤️
I have decided as I don’t get much time each day that I will do one piece a week but try to incorporate all of the prompts with in that piece. Good luck everyone 😘