As an author (Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival, German Awakening: Tales from an American Life) and podcaster (Courageous Wordsmith), I explore the intersections of creative process and healing in real life. As a story coach, book writing mentor, and founder of Courageous Wordsmith community, I guide real-life writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works. Lifelong Minnesotan.
🎧 [NEW EPISODE] Open now! Don't wait for the holidays!
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Dear Reader, Can you believe it's December? I'm so excited to wrap up (pun intended) this year with some really fun announcements. ONE: AudiobookYesterday, my Tiny Altars audiobook went live on Audible. Now both books are published in three formats and can be purchased through links on my website. In case you're wondering, the direct links on my website for both paperback and audiobook get me the highest royalties at a good price. Thank you for supporting my work at a good value to you. TWO: PodcastOn Tuesday (12/3/2024), I released a new episode of my podcast. It features the first chapter of my Tiny Altars audiobook. Ever since I started writing this book and its twin, I've seen the numbers 123 all over the place connected with that writing. Here's my podcast about that. THREE: Our Writing Revival at a private home in Prior Lake on January 18It's shaping up to be a lovely group. Four spaces remain. Is one yours? Arrive at 2:00 pm and stay into the early evening to write, connect, and eat. $250 by Venmo gets you the writing retreat, delicious food, notebook, cards, and more... Come seed your writing for the new year. Email or DM me for the link. If you'll be around the Twin Cities, reserve your spot today. Read on below to hear more... Here's the longer description, in case your mind needs convincing to follow your heart:Why is this Writing Revival essential, and not just a decadent, self-indulgent party? Truth be told, we could use self-indulging, reflecting, nurturing, grace... a quiet, safe ambiance to breathe and let our voices ring out in their own register... because that's the space that prepares us to receive the real-life stories inside us: The ones we have silenced that need revival. (The ones we're resisting, the ones right in front of us that we're not seeing, the ones that scare us because they have potential power, the ones we don't feel we have permission to tell, the ones it never occurred to us to name—but of course that's what we're writing.) These stories can shape (and can heal) our world—yes, your stories too—and we all know we have work to do moving forward. And while writing is by nature a solitary adventure, it is not wholly so. I am hearing so many messages about how we will navigate unprecedented times of change by listening and connecting on a human level. That we've missed out on that part to our grave detriment. But that connection can revive the truest parts of us. These messages resonate deeply with this work that I do. In the rooms I gather, each writer's story gets to be about them: their journeys, their wisdom, their gifts. The right group of people assembles to bear witness. (It's always the right group.) Each person leaves the room feeling more fully emboldened for self-expression, with more capacity for resilience and a clearer definition of what we have to share through our writing. This Writing Revival is a full day dedicated to that experience. $250 by Venmo gets you the full experience—and an investment in moving forward. So again, come seed your writing for the new year. Email me for the link. I look forward to connecting with you! Travel safely. Love, Amy |
Courageous Wordsmith
As an author (Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival, German Awakening: Tales from an American Life) and podcaster (Courageous Wordsmith), I explore the intersections of creative process and healing in real life. As a story coach, book writing mentor, and founder of Courageous Wordsmith community, I guide real-life writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works. Lifelong Minnesotan.
Dear Reader, This year, more than ever, I wanted to honor Black History Month, at a time when attempts have been made to erase it. So I invited my friend Terry Newby to help me do that. As a white woman in America, I loved literature, but I did not grow up reading many marginalized voices. While I knew the name James Baldwin, I couldn't have told you what he stood for. And now? I know him as a Black man and a gay author. And what else? I've admired his interview clips. He feels important. How...
My 100th Episode Boundaries Make Things Possible. Dear Reader, I recently came across my final project from my Master Coach Training in the fall of 2017. It was a PowerPoint-presentation meets-screen-recording in which I told everyone what I had done all summer, which was... branding my business, curating thematic images, and amassing a mess of unfulfilled goals. It was humbling. I had to upload something to our group forum by midnight Eastern Time (I am on Central) and I had run out of time....
Dear Reader, I released a new / old podcast episode this week, and it feels very timely. Let me explain. This episode, in which my dear colleague and peer Orla Collins interviewed me in 2023, introduces my 52-card Tiny Altars oracle deck. I didn't release it back then. My books are available through distributors other than me, and I haven't been interested in opening a storefront to sell these decks. I already tried that with my first book and my first products, and I could do that again, but...