And yes, I went to rehab and got sober (and still am 15 years later).
Then, yes, I worked in the music industry with some of my idols, including platinum-selling, and Grammy-Award-winning artists.
But I hated it and quit.
Then I became a professional writer and got to work on lots of cool stuff, and kinda sort of quit doing that too because I was writing more for other people than I was for myself.
Plus, my life depended on it—my mental health was at a breaking point and dark thoughts about whether I still enjoyed existing were eating me alive.
It’s a tale of high drama and redemption. I’ll post it for you to read at some point (I’ll actually share a bit more of it below for those who remain curious).
I walked away from an almost decade-long career as a professional writer to focus on the visual and written art I’ve made available on this website.
What started as a creative outlet for me as I navigated a dark and uncertain time in my life has burgeoned into a small business.
Which, is great and all, but the fact that people will give me money in return for my art is still stupefyingly humbling.
And even though the term “stupefyingly humbling” is what I would consider bad writing, I won’t edit it out because sometimes bad writing does a decent job of defining simple but confusing sentiments like overmodest posturing.
But back to you, because I digress.
On this site, you'll find a curated collection of my original artworks, each piece crafted with the care that only an artist’s passionate insanity can cultivate.
There’s a diverse range of styles and mediums to browse, from dark abstract paintings to long-winded and humorous poetry. My only hope is you stumble upon something that moves you. Thanks for visiting.
- Michael de la Guerra
Michael de la Guerra is an artist and a retired freelance writer who--under the name Michael Lopez--has been featured as a case study in the Harvard Business Review, published in The Huffington Post, banned from writing for Buzzfeed (long story), and featured as an expert in Fast Company, The Wall Street Journal, and more. He’s ghostwritten for NFL players and bank CEOs alike but remains at the mercy of NDAs signed during a decade-long copywriting career working with sought-after digital marketing agencies on high-converting campaigns for some of the largest names in business. He works in academia now and spends his creative energy on visual art and poetry.
Dear reader,
When I dropped out of college at 19 to go to rehab, all I knew was I didn’t want to die. I remember sitting in a concrete courtyard, watching the older people suck cigarettes through gaps where teeth had once been, their bodies frail and tired, beaten down by years of drug addiction. They’d been in and out of rehabs and prisons their entire lives, now looking at the youngsters like me thinking to themselves, “If only I’d stopped when I was your age.”
***
This story is featured in a collection of letters I wrote to a group of freelance writers I coached many moons ago. You can read the rest of it in its entirety for free right over here.
