I have always been at home in two places: at the piano and with a pen in my hand.

I am a journalist, a thinker, and an artist. When you’re all three, you eventually show up in a place like this. It’s like waving at everybody: Hi, it’s me.

All artists use the same basic materials that others use, but say different things with them. Music, words, paint, whatever. This is me saying stuff. It’s like improvising and composing on a piano. The creative process is the creative process.

Playing with words, noodling on a piano, searching for the muse.

• Mike Ferrians, Washington State, USA