Helen Hoang, author of the romantic comedies, The Heart Principle, The Bride Test and The Kiss Quotient, joins Jill Martin Wrenn from San Diego. She describes how she creates characters from a range of backgrounds and communities, who grapple with romances steeped in realism. You can find out more here: https://www.helenhoang.com/

Find out how to create a career you want. Marianne Cantwell, author of the bestselling book, Be A Free Range Human: Escape the 9-5, Create a Life You love and Still Pay the Bills, shares tips on how to use your weaknesses as strengths, and create a career that works with your personality, and your schedule. Originally from Australia, Marianne joins How to Build a Village from Los Angeles. Find out more about Marianne here: https://free-range-humans.com/

NHS nurse and midwife Anna Kent describes her role as an international humanitarian aid worker, and how writing her book, Frontline Midwife: My Story of Survival and Keeping Others Safe, has been cathartic.

Bestselling author Angie Thomas shares with Jill Martin Wrenn how she cultivates a community of readers around the world through her virtual and in-person events. Angie’s young adult novels, The Hate U Give, On the Come Up, and Concrete Rose, are New York Times bestsellers. A former teen rapper, Angie was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, where she still lives. You can find more on Angie's website: https://angiethomas.com/

Certified Nurse Midwife Betsy Freeman tells Jill Martin Wrenn how she become a single mother by choice, and how she's helping others to become single parents. She also shares her journey as a midwife, from New York to Portland, Oregon, and her heroic work with Doctors Without Borders. You can find more on Betsy's website: https://www.betsyfreeman.co/

Science journalist and NASA communicator Liz Landau shares her journey from Atlanta to LA to Washington DC. Liz shares tips on how to meet people in new cities, how LA traffic can dictate your social life, and what's so special about Dragon Con in How to Build a Village's first episode of 2022. You can find out more about Liz's writing and music here: http://www.lizlandau.com/

In the last episode of season 1, we share some books that made us smile in 2021. We would love to hear from you. Please reach out with your reading recommendations, feedback, guest ideas and other suggestions on [email protected]. We look forward to more conversations about community building in season 2. Thanks for listening.

British visibility coach and author Penny Haslam shares with Jill Martin Wrenn how she helps business leaders become 'a little bit famous'.

Helen and Shaninga Marasha, the Development Director and the Founder/CEO of BIGKID Foundation, share with Jill Martin Wrenn how their London charity offers young people opportunities to develop leadership skills and a sense of belonging through sports, media, the arts and much more.