Ten days and counting until Katherine Quie releases Raising Will: Surviving the Brilliance and Blues of ADHD. But she was never in this alone. Behind the book, there's Will and his life, his ADHD, his mom, and his music. Last summer, before leaving for college, Will sat down to talk about that.

Will's 2012 MN State Fair Performance

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

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Writing a book is like parenting. We think we'll write a book, but really the book also writes us -- and changes us in fundamental ways. Amy and Katherine talk about how that happens.

By her own (skewed) estimation, Katherine Quie has been writing her memoir for five billion years, but now here she stands, on the verge of launching Raising Will: Surviving the Brilliance and Blues of ADHD. At this milestone for her book (intimately tied to her parenting journey), Katherine and Amy reflect on all the ways she's progressed so far, and Katherine's hopes for this work going forward -- not just a book anymore, but a mission.

Katherine's Website

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

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Allyson Scammell spent years in shadow careers that led her to learn about Core Gifts. First she tapped into her own, and now she helps soul-guided women entrepreneurs tap into theirs. A dreamer of big dreams, Allyson is a master coach, EFT practitioner, and intuitive consultant who dreams of one day owning a buffalo farm.

Allyson's Website (Act Quick for her May Offer!)

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1

Liz Olds was one of the first writing peers I met when I began taking classes in Creative Nonfiction. She was unapologetically herself, both in dress -- she has a banjo tattooed on her arm -- and in sharing her life's stories -- including trips through shadowlands. And through her example, I gained courage to begin sharing my stories. Over the years, I have come to know Liz's storied life well, and she is not only a survivor -- she is a mentor to so many others.

Here she reads her story of hitting rock bottom (five minutes) and then we discuss where she finds herself today, looking back on all that she's learned since that humbling day when her friends told her she had to start over and kicked her out of town. Today life looks very different.

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1

Amy Bernier left teaching in debilitating pain. Her body was telling her what her people-pleasing mind refused to admit: She was killing herself by trying to fit in. Since then, she's made radical changes. Amy shares her thoughts on how she chooses herself, and how that helps her be present for others.

Being Brave Podcast Facebook Page

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1

Keri Mangis and Amy reflect on a particular challenge of memoir. How do we stay true to our stories, honor the people around us, and navigate the space between the two? Especially when the book is about your spiritual journey, this question matters.

Plus, a glimpse into the mind of a first-time author approaching the launch of her book. Embodying Soul: A Return to Wholeness comes out in October.

Keri's Website

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1

Amy Hallberg's writing partner Katherine Quie interviews Amy on her path from small town teacher's kid visiting the Berlin Wall to published author of German Awakening: Tales from an American Life.

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1

When her traditionally successful life fell apart at midlife, Kiki Kelley saw two choices before her: go down a destructive path, or inspire her daughter and explore her creative side. Kiki chose art. In this episode, she walks us through her creative process and the unconventional results.

See Kiki's Work on My Website

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1

Did you ever notice that when people ask how we are, we often answer, "I'm OK," even when we're clearly not? Even when we feel the opposite of OK, we tend to hide it.

Master Certified Life Coach and Nature's Wingman Ray DePaola helps people find their footing and navigate change, especially with men who want to face and heal painful patterns. Ray shares his own experiences with finding courage despite not being fully OK, and how he connects with the Divine, in himself and fellow humans.

Sunrise Journeys Coaching

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1

Three voices converge to shape your true-life story:

Amy talks about how she works this process, with examples from her telling of German Awakening: Tales from an American Life... and from the talk itself. Originally prepared as a talk for Author's Studio at Edina Art Center, Amy recorded this podcast episode due to a Minnesota Winter delay. Why this location matters? Although not mentioned in the book, the city of Edina had a huge impact on Amy's life, and it was speaking to her. (Twin Cities Folks, mark your calendar. New, original talk TBD scheduled for September 14, 10-11 am.)

Join my FREE FB group, Community for Creatives

Amy Hallberg is the author of Tiny Altars: A Midlife Revival and German Awakening: Tales from an American Life. She is the host of Courageous Wordsmith Podcast and founder of Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers. As an editor and writing mentor, Amy guides writers through their narrative journeys—from inklings to beautiful works, specifically podcasts and books. A lifelong Minnesotan and mother of grown twins, Amy lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats.

Get Amy's Books and Audiobooks

Learn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers

Work with Amy 1:1