ILLUMINATION WRITER INTRODUCTION

Introducing Liv Mello

Stuck between indecision & impulse

Hi, I’m Liv. Writer. Marketer. Web Developer. Solo-traveler. Musician. Video editor. Scriptwriter. Type 7. Double Virgo. Cliff jumping. Overthinking. Impulsive, yet frugal perfectionist. A patron of the arts. And the most insatiable hedonist you’ll ever meet.

I just want to see, feel, say, and experience everything I possibly can for as long as I can.

As for my accomplishments and awards… do four unfinished novels count? What about a few mediocre Youtube videos or an amateur recording of an EP? Does an outline for a film script mean anything to you? Oh, wait! Here’s a collection of poems written on coffee-stained napkins…

While multitasking is listed on top of the resume, it’s a blatant lie in the general context of my personal life. I bounce from one project to the next, never quite finishing any of them.

People called me “space-shot” in school. I was considered ditzy, unfocused, head in the clouds, by some of my peers and teachers. I like to think I was more self-aware and observant than anyone gave me credit for. I was optimistic and imaginative. I was only shot to space because Earth bored me to death.

I can still be flighty, sure, but sometimes feelings fade. I envy and admire anyone who can dedicate their entire life to one person, one career, or a single interest. As I got older, I was deemed “the passionate one,” but maybe being fervent about too many things is a hindrance.

Writing has always been my thing. I have eight journals, outlining all of my shame and serendipity. Every few years, I climb through the jungle gym of my childhood closet and drag out the milk crate they’re stored inside. I handle each journal like an ancient artifact, careful not to disturb the juvenile secrets or to tear the tired pages from their fragile binding.

I wasn’t taught the importance of journaling. I was never told that documenting my vulnerability could be beneficial to my mental health. No one explained how much these journals could tell me of my past or teach me in the future. Writing just felt good.

It was the only way I could find any meaning or purpose in my measly little life in a measly little suburban town on the south coast of Massachusetts. Without words to observe and commentate on the world, or to dissect the inner workings of my anxious roots paired with my wild curiosity, everything felt grim and pointless. These small beginnings cultivated my insatiable nature, which has both tormented and tolerated me ever since.

I was raised by two frugal creatures of habit. My mother is an artist and my father is a goldsmith by day and blues musician by night.

Every year, they take one trip to New Orleans. They stay in the same hotel, avoid Burbon Street at all costs, and eat at the usual restaurants on Frenchman. Besides this annual venture, they’re content in their cozy home tucked away in the woods.

They taught me to save my money and use my head, so I always did. I commuted to college and worked on the weekends. After graduation, I learned to be content on the east coast even though I suffered seasonal depression six months out of the year. It’s common, I told myself. Everyone’s miserable during winter. This is home. This is it. I’m safe here.

So, why do I keep searching for apartments in San Diego? Why do I stalk flights to South Africa? Why am I tempted to quit a job I love or miss my exit just to see how far I could get if I kept on driving west?

When I turned twenty-seven, my curiosity for the world got so full that it could no longer contain itself inside its small frame.

I moved to California, got bored after a month, and booked a spontaneous flight to Australia the following week. As soon as I allowed myself to be vulnerable, the trajectory of my life took a turn for the better.

I visited five continents in nine months, took a road trip with a stranger, solo-traveled to Costa Rica, boarded a cruise in Barcelona without knowing a single passenger, traveled across the Atlantic Ocean to Brazil, and now I live in Mexico. I accomplished more in one year than all twenty-six years before, which makes me both proud and ashamed at the same time.

My love for embracing vulnerability led me to create my own Medium publication, in hopes of connecting people through our most painful, hilarious, terrifying, and cathartic moments of liberation. My new publication is called, Can You Bare It?

I would love for you to follow along and share your story.

I want the platform to read like we’ve pulled the most intimate pages from hundreds of diaries. Yours included.

This visual poem was inspired by the publication. A woman, who values attention over affection, craves intimacy from fleeting relationships and is left examining the insatiable nature of her own hunger.

My second publication is called “The Wander Years,” a virtual hostel to meet fellow travelers & share stories from around the globe. I miss so many things that come along with traveling. Mainly meeting new people. I started this publication in hopes of connecting like-minded, gypsy-souled tramps who haven’t had the ability to tramp around this year.

I have a lot more confessions to make, but there are a few up on the publication for now. If you have a crazy travel story or are interested in being a writer, get in touch in the comments below!

I started working as a journalist for a local newspaper when I was fifteen. I have three years of experience as a ghostwriter for a German dating magazine and four years as the office & marketing manager for a non-profit music venue and art gallery. Now, I do freelance web development and run a personal blog called Liv in la Vida, where I share cheap travel advice and confessions from around the world. I’ve taken a break from the blog since COVID got the best of us and much of my advice is null & void with the new and evolving travel restrictions.

It’s easy to get discouraged as a writer. I’m so grateful for Medium. Before discovering this platform, I felt unappreciated and uninspired.

The Medium community gives me something to look forward to every morning and work towards every night. Illumination has been instrumental in reigniting my creativity and I thank Dr. Mehmet Yildiz for his inclusivity and his relentless promotion of us writers.

If you’re interested in reading my work, check out the articles below. I focus on travel, psychology, and relationships.