Welcome to Meylah!

Once upon a time, a couple of creative guys named Ram and Jason – who, perhaps like you, hold down serious day jobs – decided it was time to create a new kind of creative community. Having found that it is hard to get your bearings in the online creative world, we imagined a place for like-minded people to share and advance creatively, while getting step-by-step directions to turn our passion into a business.

How Meylah came together?

In talking about our own creative pursuits of painting and photography, we found that we had faced similar challenges to building an online presence and marketing our work. Individually, we had come up with solutions that both of us could use.

By continuing to exchange information and connect with others in our local creative community in Seattle, we found that helping one another elevates the whole group. Whether you’re a painter, quilter, knitter, baker or candlestick-maker, you can benefit from sharing ideas, inspiration and experience.

There is no definitive roadmap for turning your creative hobby into a business, but we believe that with our business expertise and passion for the creative community, we can help get every member of the community on the right path. Your ideas, input and experience will help us reach our destination: Meylah.

So, why Meylah?

Since this site is by creative people for creative people, our advice and instruction targets a very visual audience. We don’t like technical jargon any more than you do. Our goal is to deliver well-illustrated information in logical steps that allows you to learn quickly, then get back to your craft.

We will also:

• Pick the brains of successful creative individuals in interviews and profiles
• Encourage you to share your success stories and challenges
• Offer a wealth of always accessible resources, including tutorials, trend-spotting and creative humor (these may not be the right examples, but it’s good to be specific)
• Keep you posted about Pacific Northwest area creative events with a calendar and regular updates

Who are we?

Hi, I’m Ram Dutt, an engineer by profession who comes from a family of musicians and artists. I see my own passion for music and art in my eight-year-old son, who is already on his way to becoming a great artist. My son’s creativity inspires me to create. We live in Seattle, which is full of life, energy and an enthusiastic artistic community. I am very fortunate to have a great family and look forward to building a new one through Meylah.

Hi, I am Jason Dirks, a business management consultant by day and a passionate outdoor photographer by night (or any other hour I can get outside and take pictures)! My wife and I live in beautiful Seattle, which provides the ideal landscape for my photographic interests: wildlife and nature, travel, sports and adventure. I look forward to learning and sharing ideas with you as we build Meylah together.

In the coming weeks, we will introduce you to exceptional people and sources of information and inspiration for finding your way in the online creative world. We will start at the very beginning, with posts covering topics like:

• Where to start with a creative online business
• Integrating online and offline business practices
• Building a brand
• How blogging works and how you can benefit from it

Stay tuned!