NOVELORICA BLOG

It was a pleasure to be among the committee of judges for the 2026 Stevie Awards for Women in Business - Entrepreneur of the Year! As I read through and scored more than 50 applications, I was consistently struck by the combination of individual achievement and commitment to women helping women world wide. Further, the applicants demonstrated entrepreneurial savvy by growing their businesses in the midst of shifting market conditions including AI. STEVIE AWARD JUDGES Stevi

For years, search engine optimization (SEO) has been a fundamental part of digital marketing: optimize your website, rank on Google, and make it easier for customers to find you. But the way people search is changing—and artificial intelligence is accelerating that change. Increasingly, people are asking AI tools questions instead of typing keywords into a traditional search engine. Rather than searching for “best home care agency Seattle,” a prospective customer might ask an

“Emboldened” by Heather Thompson www.HeatherThompson.art When there are no words, there is color. And when it feels like the destination is unclear, there is a single step and then another and another until it begins to form a path. These times of transition can be challenging and even scary, but they are often life’s new beginnings. As each step courageously leads to another, may we all become more colorfully emboldened in our loving embrace of the choices presented today.

There are times when I worry that I may have lost my mojo. I know I’m not alone in this sentiment, yet it can feel exceptionally lonely. Recently my fear arose in the context of my artwork. To have something so innate - creativity - suddenly become so difficult felt both disturbing and meaningful. How can that be? That’s an odd combination of emotions, but it’s true. Starting with the disturbing part… It might make sense, but it felt horribly uncomfortable to be stuck in th

12x12 Acrylic on Canvas The process of healing through art requires stepping into the MESS - with vulnerability and a willingness to let my hands DO WHAT THEY FEEL. When I give myself the freedom to close my eyes and scratch, claw, twirl, flick, and smooth the paint without worrying about whether it aligns with an image in my mind, I gain access to the unknown parts of myself. Yes, this was painted with my eyes closed the majority of the time. I followed my method of letting

“The hardest lesson I have had to learn as an adult is the relentless need to keep going, no matter how broken I feel inside.” - Hemingway