E82: The Unexpected Truth: Why Loving Your Work Means Embracing the Parts That Suck with Shilo Creed

Most authors write for fun — until the work of writing becomes real work. Shiloh Creed, a seven-time award-winning novelist with over 1.4 million books sold, shares how she transformed her passion into a thriving career while maintaining her creative soul. She reveals the surprising difference between writing for pleasure and the discipline required to meet deadlines, and how her multiple pen names keep her work fresh across genres like clean rom-com and military thrillers. You'll discover why diversity in your identity—whether as an author or in your day-to-day roles—is essential for growth and authenticity. 

Shiloh shares practical insights on managing the technical side of writing, from marketing to voice, and how she transitions between her different "personas" based on characters, not just genres. Learn how she stays motivated during burnout in the busiest seasons of life, even writing in RV bathrooms and on long drives, and why creating sacred, undisturbed space is vital for creative flow. Writing isn’t just about making stories; it’s a reflection of trust, faith, and personal transformation. Shiloh explains how spiritual practices—reading the Bible, walking, prayer—anchor her amid this busy, often chaotic life, giving her clarity and stability. Whether you're a creator, entrepreneur, or anyone feeling overwhelmed by work, her lessons on flexibility, balance, and resilience will inspire you to find your own sacred rhythm. 

Perfect for writers, creatives, and anyone craving deeper purpose and peace, this episode shows that even in the chaos of a busy life, your best work is still ahead. Shiloh’s story reminds us that success isn’t measured by luck but by the skills we develop—skills that can bring more stability, joy, and authenticity into your work and life.

Connect with Shilo:

https://shilocreed.com/

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:13

Today we're joined by author Shiloh, who proves that loving your work doesn't mean every part of it is enjoyable. What began as writing for fun turned into a career filled with contracts, deadlines, multiple pen names, and the never-ending reality of marketing books. We talk about balancing creativity with business, why writing and storytelling matter more than ever in a digital world, building a creative practice through different seasons of life, and redefining success beyond sales and productivity. If you've ever wondered how to hold onto the joy that made you start something in the first place, well, let's roll right in. All right, welcome to the Work Sucks But I Like It podcast. Today we have Shiloh Creed. She's a best-selling author, seven-time award-winning author of 42 novels with more than 1.4 million books sold. She's also the podcast host of The Author's Mind. Shiloh, welcome to the show.

SPEAKER_01 1:06

Thank you for having me. This is going to be an interesting conversation since writing does turn into work after 42 novels.

SPEAKER_02 1:14

It does. So I want you to define work for us today. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 1:18

It's actually something my husband has asked me about a lot because when I started writing, it was pure fun. It was like, just give me a minute. Do I have a second? Can I go do this? And then it started turning into something that I did. And I had contracts and I had deadlines to meet. And he would ask me that like, is this work for you or do you still enjoy it? And I'm like, well, it's both. So yeah, work for me is something that I have to accomplish. There are goals that are clearly defined that I have to meet. Uh, and that's something that is deeply entrenched in writing novels, especially if you're working with publishers.

SPEAKER_02 1:59

I love that. So you first indicated that you weren't, you know, you're just writing for fun. I guess what was your goal then?

SPEAKER_01 2:05

Oh, so I never wanted to be a writer.

SPEAKER_02 2:08

Oh, all right.

SPEAKER_01 2:09

That was never my plan. I loved I loved reading 42 novels later.

SPEAKER_02 2:13

All right.

SPEAKER_01 2:14

Right? Yeah. Yeah, that's the way that goes. Uh I loved reading, and I never read the book that I really wanted to read.

SPEAKER_02 2:22

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 2:23

Like that book wasn't there. And I was like, well, I'm gonna write it.

SPEAKER_02 2:26

No, that's awesome. So I guess like walk us through some of your work, Shiloh. You know, kind of like the genres that you you write about, the kind of topics that you like to write about.

SPEAKER_01 2:37

Sure. I write under four pen names. So speaking of work, that's four identities that you have to keep up, four websites, all the technical things. Much more difficult. If you are a writer, it is much more difficult to have multiple pen names. I don't regret it now that I've done it, but it has made things multiply as far as hours put in. So under Elise and Hunt, I write like clean rom-coms. They're like laugh out loud. Uh, each one could be a standalone, but they do read as a series. Uh, Quinn Knightley, she writes medieval action adventure.

SPEAKER_00 3:14

I love her.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

Um, yeah, and so the books that are really actually near and dear to me after 42 books are Plunged and Pursued. They are the first two books out in my trilogy. Uh those books are about a Navy SEAL who is forced into a military experiment that kind of throws him into the spiritual side of our world. So that's really wrapped up in my personal story, not the Navy SEAL part, but the learning to trust and faith and how that can move your life forward. Yeah. So those are my babies.

SPEAKER_02 3:43

No, I love that. So I'm very curious. You know, you mentioned four websites and I like that word identity. Why did you choose to have different pen names for your different kind of babies, if you will, projects?

SPEAKER_01 3:55

I had a really big publishing contract come up and spent like literally two weeks trying to decide am I going to take this or not? The opportunity is huge, but they want the pen name. Like they want the name. And since it was going to be for middle grade, which I never dreamed I would ever write, I was like, well, I can't have all my adult books under the same pen name besides the publisher will sort of have the right to use that name. So that was really what kicked me out of having just because I always thought I'll just have this one world, right? It'll be my my little writing world to be so happy. And then once I started to split them on, I realized it's actually really better for readers because a lot of readers only like to read what they like to read.

SPEAKER_00 4:42

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 4:43

They do not want to jump genres. So, and since I'm really wide, it's kind of easier for the readers, I guess, to keep track of what they're reading.

SPEAKER_02 4:51

How do you, I guess I'm just curious with this process. Like you have these different identities, these different people. Like, how do you get into the mindset, you know, of the action adventure one or, you know, the Navy SEAL or like how what's your process with that?

SPEAKER_01 5:06

That has been interesting. That each of those different genres that I write is a completely different voice. There's actually, there used to be a thing called score it, and you would upload your manuscript and then they would tell you who you wrote like. I matched up with one of my series to like Veronica Roth or uh Ted Decker or whatever, so that you could kind of reach their audiences because your writing is similar. And one of the things that they sell that on is they're like, we found out that JK Rowling also wrote other books under another pen name, and we knew it because we scanned her documents and we knew it was her. And so they did mine and they were like, no, this is not the same author. And I was like, Really? You don't think it's this, it's you don't think so? And they're like, No, it's not. I'm like, hmm, yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_02 5:51

So you're like, oh, I'm pretty sure pretty sure it was.

SPEAKER_01 5:55

Yeah. So that different voice is important, especially to my readers. So I think that comes out really naturally. It's not something that I have to like think here, I'm going here, I'm gonna do this. I guess it really has a lot to do with characters. And as an author, like characters do stuff that I don't expect them to do. And maybe that sounds crazy if you don't write. But yeah, sometimes they just do stuff and I have to go along with it. So really that's where that voice comes from, is more the characters than me, because all my different series have so many different tones. And, you know, I always want my readers to come away with an uplifted, encouraged, man, I feel better after I read that. That's my goal.

SPEAKER_02 6:45

I really love that. I mean, it kind of really resonates, Shala, with kind of like how I view work, right? People typically, when you talk about work, it's like, Shala, what do you do? Well, I'm an author. Well, it's like, well, wait a minute, you're four different authors, if you will, right? So I like this idea of having different personalities. I guess, like, do you see a common because we identify with our job, right? So, you know, when you say our work is you're an author, but you're like, no, it's a little more than that. Walk us through the importance of allowing for different identities to show up in the work that you do.

SPEAKER_01 7:17

It's more so than being four different authors, if you will. It's the marketing, the technology, and the writing that I really have to marry together. And it's a different hat I have to put on. That is a really different person who has to show up. Marketing is not my love.

SPEAKER_02 7:34

Yeah, I feel like a lot of people.

SPEAKER_01 7:36

It's very necessary, and I have to do it. And and I spend probably more time marketing than I do writing, which is, oh man, I wish I could flip that around. But that's really, I think, where the work comes in is those technical things, the outreach, the being willing to put myself out there and really finding a groove where I can I can get the work done that I need to, and then flip back into this creative part that's even more important.

SPEAKER_02 8:07

So, one of the reasons why I really was excited to have you on the show is that, you know, some guests have talked about like journaling and writing. And, you know, you're, of course, an author. So I want you to talk about the importance of why people need to write. Maybe not books, but just walk us through, you know, I mean, I know you got into writing because you didn't have the book that you wanted to read, but why do you think it's important for people to write?

SPEAKER_01 8:30

It accesses a different part of your brain than we usually use. Like even if you're texting or you're writing an email, if you're just writing a piece of work that you think maybe nobody else is gonna read, you're not writing it to someone. You're simply, uh, whether it's journaling or you're writing a story, whatever that is, there is a whole different part of you that's lighting up, literally. Like those neurons are firing and they don't otherwise.

SPEAKER_02 8:54

Love that.

SPEAKER_01 8:55

As a culture, I think we're losing so much of our knowledge, our ability to be human almost. Yes. We're giving it to the internet and we're expecting the internet to hold it. And it's like it's that is so dangerous. So I really love writing for the fact that it's so human. And telling stories is how a culture is formed, right? That's that's what we've done over centuries is we've told the stories that are important. And that also translates into your ability to communicate face to face.

SPEAKER_02 9:29

I love that. No, and you don't have to share all your secrets with your writing here, but I guess what how do you get like motivated to write? And I guess what's your sort of ritual around traditions around writing? Because I feel like when I, you know, we talk about journaling on the show, people are like, oh, I don't know what to write. And, you know, I write stuff and it sounds like crap and I don't want to write anymore. Like, how do you get into the mindset of writing?

SPEAKER_01 9:54

It's an interesting question. And I would answer that completely differently five years ago than I would today. Five years ago, it was like, do I have five minutes? I'm gonna go sit down, put my earbuds in, and I'm gonna be writing. So I'm a homeschool mom. When my kids were little, there was no time to write except for wake up at 5:30, get to write until seven when the kids get up. And I wrote in a camper bathroom, an RV bathroom. We were, we were traveling around. I couldn't turn the lights on without waking my kids up because we're in an R V. So the only place for me to write was cross-legged on the bathroom floor.

SPEAKER_02 10:26

That's that's an awesome. I love that. That's awesome.

SPEAKER_01 10:29

Yeah. Well, it was awesome. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:32

Dedication, I mean. Well, just awesome in the sense not that you were writing on the bathroom floor, but just awesome that you were that passionate to want to write.

SPEAKER_01 10:39

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 10:40

So why did it change? You got a writing desk, hopefully, you're not sitting on the bathroom floor anymore.

SPEAKER_01 10:44

No, still no writing desk. Still not really. Ah, yeah. So we traveled so much for years that I would actually do a lot of my writing in the car. Like if we were, you know, if we had a 12-hour drive, which we did a lot, my husband would drive and I would get to write. And if I had to drive, I was writing in my head. I was creating scenes. And a recently in the last year and a half, I think I've written six books that were not my passion. I was not actually really interested in writing them and they were contracted. Like it had to get done. So the subject of work is like it's important to me, is something I've been thinking a lot about lately. And I've found that like this book 43 that I'm working on has taken me forever for me. Uh, I feel like, man, why am I going so slow? It's because I'm burnt out on writing books that I wasn't passionate about. And so I've been learning to create that sacred place. Learning to create that like habit again because my kids are teenagers now. My life has changed. I thought, oh man, they're teenagers. I'm gonna have so much more time to write. No, I have none. None. Because now I I can't put them to bed at nine and then I get up at 5:30. They go to bed at 11 or whatever, and so I'm up, you know? So life changes. And I think that we have to be okay with that. We have to be willing to roll with my life is a little different than it used to be, and it's not gonna be this way forever either. So having something that you're passionate about, whatever your work is, being willing to cultivate it, being willing to put the time in, being willing to say, I care about this and it's important to me. So I'm gonna find a way to make it work. And that will look different six months from now than it does.

SPEAKER_02 12:29

But I think that's why I loved your initial story, right? You were just so dedicated on the bathroom floor when your family was asleep to write, right? You had the strong message. Walk us through, Shiloh, the medium that you prefer for writing. You mentioned kind of stuff with texting, it's not the same, right? Internet sharing of our stories, if you will, is not the same. Maybe I'm putting words in your mouth. What is the medium that you like to use for writing?

SPEAKER_01 12:53

I am a hundred percent a notebook girl.

SPEAKER_02 12:55

I love it. It is you know me. I got yep.

SPEAKER_01 13:00

Yes. I do not want a computer correcting me while I'm writing. For the story to flow, my eyes cannot be jumping up to that comma that's missing, the misspelled, like mm-mm, it breaks me out of my flow. So yeah, I'm very dedicated to my notebooks. I have a very large stack of them. And then, of course, I have to get them in the computer. So for years, I have used like a speech to text software.

SPEAKER_02 13:23

Oh, right on.

SPEAKER_01 13:24

Which has gotten better recently, but has been very hilarious in the past. Sometimes you go back to do your editing. Yeah, you're like, what? I don't know what that says. So yeah, it's been an interesting journey there. That's what I love, is because when I get that in my hands, it's the feeling. I don't know, paper and ink has a smell. I can smell it anyway. All those things are so textile. They're there for me, and that helps me get into that creative place.

SPEAKER_02 13:53

Now, as an author of myself, not 42, which is amazing for you. I've finished my third book. And one of my, no, thank you. My editor said that, you know, good writing is in the editing. What are your thoughts with the editing process, right? Most people, when they think that they're going to write something, it's like, oh, the first round is going to be perfect and everything lines up. And maybe it is, right? Maybe that is your true identity shines through. What are your thoughts with the editing process and why is that important to the work of writing?

SPEAKER_01 14:23

If I spend an hour writing, it will probably take me somewhere between seven and 15 hours to edit that hour.

SPEAKER_02 14:32

I love your honesty there. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:34

That's like that, and that's start to finish. That's not in one chunk. That's many times going over that work. I remember my the first book that I wrote. Um grammar and I are not really tight. We we are not that good of friends, even after 42 novels.

SPEAKER_02 14:51

I love that note.

SPEAKER_01 14:52

I need editors, like simple line editing, like catch all my typos, please. And my sister was really stern on this. She was like, if you're gonna write a book, you are gonna have to have an editor. So I kind of started out knowing I needed editors. And I will say this as far as editing goes, you need fresh eyes on your book. Once someone has read through it once, then that person, myself included, you read what's supposed to be there. You can't help that. So really, it's that first run through a book where someone will be maybe most valuable to the book when it's completely fresh to them, when they are unfamiliar with it. That's when you will get the most value out of that edit 100%.

SPEAKER_02 15:35

So I want to kind of change the topic here a little bit. So most people don't read today, I feel like a book. What are your thoughts? Maybe I'm wrong. Obviously, they're reading your books, which is great. But I guess like in general, right? Most people are just not picking up books. What are your thoughts with books in the future? How are they going to shape our culture?

SPEAKER_01 15:53

I think we're at a tipping point. There are the people who are very dedicated to reading. We love it. We know what it does for us. We know even just the ability to bring your whole being away from something digital and into an actual somehow you're communicating with the author. Not maybe not communicating is the right word, but you're connecting with them on some level. And that's important. So either we're gonna get disgusted with what we've built as far as social media goes and what we've invested of ourselves into social media, and we're all gonna be like, yeah, I want real stuff. Don't give me this technology stuff. I think it's kind of fun to see Gen Z as much as they use it, they're actually a lot more careful than other generations because they've been immersed in it and they're hungry for something real. They're hungry for experiences. They want to like get get the smell and the feeling, and is it cold or hot? And they want to actually be there and do it. And that's more of what a book can give you in a lot of ways. Because as a reader, you are pouring your own imagination into those explanations that are on the page. I think there's just always gonna be that remnant of readers who we love reading. Everybody else is gonna have some decisions to make. That's part of the reason that I like writing, is because I can offer them something that might make them fall in love with reading for the rest of their lives.

SPEAKER_02 17:19

I feel like reading is critical. Like you said, it's a real kind of experience. That's why I also like podcasting too, because it is I'm having a conversation. Even though, like, your pixels on a screen to me right now, I know you're another human being, right? Yes. And that's I I agree with you. People are craving more of this authenticity, these real experiences. And I love that you bring up the book, does bring that about. And I totally agree. So I guess now, having said that, where do you see your writing evolving? You've got 42 novels. I know you're working on book 43. What's Shiloh's goal, if you will, with writing today?

SPEAKER_01 17:55

My best work is yet to come. Okay. I a hundred percent feel that. I haven't reached where I want to be or should be yet.

SPEAKER_02 18:03

So, how are you defining success out of curiosity? What is your measure of success?

SPEAKER_01 18:08

Oh, you had to bring that up.

SPEAKER_02 18:10

I did. You kind of set yourself up there, but go ahead.

SPEAKER_01 18:12

So, my husband and I, we've been married 23 years, and we've he has been my biggest fan a hundred percent. He has been without him, I could not have done what I've done with writing. And he often will look at me and be like, Don't, don't you realize? Like, go read your bio. Would you please sit down and read your own bio and just be happy with that for a minute? And I'm like, mm-mm. It's current. For me, it is so current. Like, what happened today? And if today was not a great day on sales, or if I didn't get as much writing in as I wanted to get, I feel very moved by that, which I hate. I hate that. And I recognize it, but that has only really been in the like the last six months that I've recognized how much my current, like what is happening today, affects me very much. So I'm working toward becoming more stable, if you will, and enjoying the past because I'm so driven. Like my husband and I are both driven people. Like I could go work, work, work, work, work 16 hours a day.

SPEAKER_00 19:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:15

And be totally happy with that. Something else my husband said to me the other day was like, What do you want to do for fun? And I was like, Right? Fun. And he was like, Are we being serious here? And I'm like, Yeah. So this year I also need to work on remembering fun. So success can be addictive and it can be something that you really wrestle with. And I don't want to be that person who does that, right? I hate that. So it's something that I'm definitely working mentally to kind of create boundaries for myself and say, this needs to be a great day because you got to see your family. You got to write something on the page. This is why this is a great day, not because of success.

SPEAKER_02 19:53

I like that. But it's tough, right, child? I mean, I feel the same thing with success, especially in a hustle culture, right? If you're not doing anything, you're viewed as you're not productive. And I don't know why that is, you know. Why do you think we're so driven? Is it just capitalism in general? Is it just United States? I don't know. What are your thoughts?

SPEAKER_01 20:11

Something I've thought about a lot. I've wondered about. You know, four years ago, we were totally leaving the country. Like we literally sold our farm, we sold our other house. It was like, we're leaving. We're not staying, we cannot stay here. And had gone to Belize twice looking for property. And, you know, my kids were younger then. They were eight and six, maybe. And taking them down there, and and I've been on missions for but I've been to Africa, I've been, you know, around, but going there with my kids was different. And we were, you know, driving along this beautiful beach, it's incredible surroundings. And there is a man digging a septic tank hull by hand with a single shovel. It's 95 degrees out. He is pouring sweat and he is grinning from ear to ear.

SPEAKER_00 21:03

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 21:03

And we actually got to talk to that guy later, and my husband brought it up, and he was like, you know what? I got that job and I got to feed my family this week.

SPEAKER_00 21:14

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 21:14

And like for him, that he was he was like, Yeah, man, give me give me the shovel. Oh man, that hit deep. You know, it's like, okay, maybe I need to go back to some simple things. The first 12 years of our marriage, we lived off grid. My husband and I totally off grid. We made all our own electricity, food, milk, meat, all the things. And that was different. And some part of me wants to go back to that and say, maybe in some ways that was better, but because of the pace. You know, you got your hands in the dirt, you got out and worked the horses, you milked the cow, you you know, there was just so much time. And it was so creative. All those minutes where you spend doing that repetitive test. Task, that's where you create stuff in your head. And I get so busy now marketing, because that's part of what I have to do. Like, wow, I've really looked at that lately and said, like, where are my creative minutes? The minutes that are just spent in quiet when stuff can hit me, you know? Um cultivating that is important.

SPEAKER_02 22:20

I love that realization of the guy literally shoveling, not shit, but I guess the sewer, right? I mean, just realizing, and he was just so happy to be working. I mean, I'm so happy. That's I love that. I mean, today it's I feel the same when I think about my work, you know, and I had a job, you know, years ago. I was cutting grass at a golf course and I got paid like $10 an hour, but I loved it. I was out there with the deer at 5 a.m. in the morning, just riding on this mower, you know, and then you just I don't know what happens, right? Shiloh, you just kind of the culture hits you and you're expected to do these different things and to have certain things, and then you feel inadequate when you don't have certain things, like you're finding that stability.

SPEAKER_01 23:00

Yeah. And we've I think we've lost sight of what's like sacred.

SPEAKER_02 23:05

What do you mean by that?

SPEAKER_01 23:06

Well, like people used to sit on their front porches. Personally, like that would be torture. It would be very hard for me to like, I'd be like, do we have to do this? But to them, it was their wind down. They had worked physically hard all day. And it was like, oh, no, we're gonna, we're gonna sit and communicate and we're just gonna maybe just sit and watch the birds. Like, there's something there that a human being needs that we aren't maybe willing to admit we need, right? We're just like, nope, not me. Oh, well, maybe you do. Maybe you really do need to slow down and remember what it's like to love the people that are around you, to give of yourself, to find a different pace than the frantic one that we so often try to keep up with.

SPEAKER_02 23:52

I love that. So one of the things we like to say, Shiloh, on the show is that success is not a matter of good luck, it's good skills. And we're gonna hold you accountable today with finding stability. So, what's the one skill that you think you need to develop to bring about this sense of stability with your already successful career and your family and things like that? How does Shiloh Creed find stability moving forward? What's that skill?

SPEAKER_01 24:16

For me personally, that starts out with the Bible. That's I understand not for everybody, but for me, that is my stability. And if I've been there, I can do the rest of that day. The second thing I would say to that would definitely be time because I'm wherever I am, I am a hundred percent there. I'm like a I'm like a balloon if I either I'm there or completely flat. And so when I get in marketing mode, which I'm in a lot, I mean, it's hard to bring myself out of it. So maybe business hours would probably benefit me very much.

unknown 24:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:49

So I'm very curious from the the religious aspect, you know, of the Bible. Just talk to us in terms of like why the Bible is important to you. What are sort of your rituals and, you know, sort of things that you do to kind of embrace the principles it's teaching you?

SPEAKER_01 25:04

Well, when I was 32, my heart stopped beating and that changed things for me. I had just committed to the Lord that like you said in your word that you heal. So I'm gonna trust you personally for that. And that test didn't take too long to show up. And it was not an immediate healing, but I learned to trust the Lord through that time of divine healing. And have seen so many miracles. Like my life has completely changed from what it was 10 years ago. And that to me is precious. And it's so much peace there for me. Like the amount of peace that I have within myself, not not because of myself, but it it exists within myself. That's priceless. I would not trade that for anything in the world.

SPEAKER_02 25:52

So I want to get technical because I do like this. So I I study more kind of like Eastern philosophy. I don't know what you'd call me in terms of religion, but I'm very curious from the technical standpoint, because I do resonate with having these sort of, you know, beliefs and in something bigger than ourselves. I really do. So what is a sort of ritual that you do? Like I want you to get kind of specific. Do you sit and chant? Do you meditate? Do you read a passage? Do you write about a passage?

SPEAKER_01 26:21

I don't very often write about it, but I read it a lot. As in maybe every 15, 20, 30 minutes, there's always a Bible open on a counter in my house. And I love that. I I try not to walk past it without just stopping to read a single verse. It's that it's that meditation. The word to meditate technically means to chew the cud. You bring that up and you chew on it. You bring that up and you chew on it. And that's when it changes you. Because if you're if you're grazing by it, if it's just something that you experienced for a moment, it doesn't stick with you. And when I walk, I definitely, I definitely enjoy praying and walking. Man, for me, that's my energizing. Like if I need, if I'm feeling flat, if I need something, it's like, oh, I need to go out and walk and pray. And then I come back with that thankfulness and joy that uh I just don't get anywhere else.

SPEAKER_02 27:09

No, I love that. Especially the walking too, combining that because people sit a lot, right? So I think that's that's super great. No, that's awesome. So, Shadow, this is the work sucks, but I like it podcasts. What is something you've already kind of talked about it, but what sucks about your work and what are you doing to make it not suck? When you talk about marketing, so I guess build on that or pick something else that sucks.

SPEAKER_01 27:31

Yeah, no, I think I would have to stick with the hours I've spent trying to learn marketing. Okay, so here's what really I don't like about marketing. It's so nebulous. Nobody can tell me, do this and that will work. So I think probably a lot of different people are struggling with something like that in life, not marketing, but they have something that they're facing that feels like there's no concrete answer for this. How do I get through this when I can't get, you know, there's nobody that can tell me do A, B, and then C. And so we have to have a flexibility. We have to be, as people, we tend to get so rigid. I find that like the the older that I get, the more I realize how easy it is to get rigid and stuck in the way you do things. And so I think staying flexible and trying new things, experiencing new things really can help you through those times when you feel like I'm not sure what the next step is. It's okay to not know. I don't like it. But it's okay to not know as long as you keep pressing it forward. Like I think reverse momentum is the worst thing that could happen, right? If you allow that to push you backward, then you have lost something. But if you can reach that place where you're still driving forward and you're just kind of feeling your way through, I don't know. For me, there's always that green light, a red light inside. It's like there's always something that's like, yep, this, this is, this is it. This is good. Or I'm like, ooh, I can't, I can't go that way. So I don't that I trust that to a large degree.

SPEAKER_02 29:02

But I also love like you have these little markers in your house in the sense of you have Bibles open, right? And I just picture like they're like some big hiker. I'm live in New Hampshire here, and they're like carn cairns. You know, you're walking around and your mind's kind of like, oh, let me read this. Oh, you get inspired again. Like, oh, marketing's not so bad. You know, I just I kind of that's why I wanted to ask you very technically. I think it's a great thing that that you're doing. I love that. Because I do something similar. Like my girlfriend and I have a lot of books around the house, and you know, I'll just pick one up and be like, oh, cool. You know, I just like you know, reinvented by it, you know, and have a bunch of journals to write crap down as well. So no, I love that. So, Shiloh, if listeners want to check out your work, I know you got four different kinds of, I guess five identities, right? If you're counting yourself or four, where's it where's where's a good place for them to land?

SPEAKER_01 29:50

Uh, they can find me at shilocreed.com. That one's pretty simple and easy. I do have websites for all my other uh identities, but I would really love for them to connect with me on my newsletter. So, you know, at my website, they can just jump on there. You can also get the first chapter of Plunged for free. Just try it out and see if you like it, if it's for you. I do have a YouTube channel. It's called Shiloh Creed How to Christian, and just kind of going through my journey of what I've learned with the Lord. So yeah, that's how people can reach me.

SPEAKER_02 30:19

I love that. Real quick, so if you were to give us a 30-second kind of review of plunged, what's uh what would our listeners be checking out?

SPEAKER_01 30:27

Oh, it is a Navy SEAL who is forced into a military experiment that throws him into the spiritual side of our world. And in the physical, he is the strongest, the smartest, the best at almost everything. And when he arrives in this spiritual realm, he's atrophied, he's weak, and he doesn't know how to fight. And that's what readers really keep telling me is like, I love this image of Jacob in both places and his realization that like I have to become strong in the spirit too. And that journey is really incredible because all of us feel that way. I think all of us have that knowledge somewhere inside, like there's a part of me that isn't as strong as I want it to be. So it's it's it's kind of dystopian tones. It's kind of the matrix meets the chosen, is how I would describe it.

SPEAKER_02 31:14

Okay. I like that. But I like how you said it. The work is almost the strong being strong in the spirit. I really love that.

SPEAKER_01 31:21

Yeah. Yeah. Awesome.

SPEAKER_02 31:23

Shiloh, it's been an honor to have you on the show. Thank you so much.

SPEAKER_01 31:26

Yeah, thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_02 31:28

One of my biggest takeaways from this conversation is that meaningful work isn't about eliminating the parts that suck. It's about remembering why you started in the first place. Shiloh reminds us that creativity requires intention, flexibility, and the willingness to protect what matters, even when life looks different than we expected. Whether it's writing, running a business, or simply trying to keep up with the demands of everyday life, maybe success isn't measured by how much we accomplish, but by whether we're creating something that reflects who we are and investing in the people around us. The skill for me today is about the belief that your work is going to make a difference, that you need to keep this alive no matter how many novels or times you try something. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, leave us a review, and share it with someone who could use the reminder that slowing down and creating something meaningful is always worth it. Thanks for listening to Work Sucks, but I like it. We'll see you next time.