Susan Devan Harness is the author of Bitterroot: A Salish Memoir of Transracial Adoption, a memoir describing her experience as a transracial adoptee removed from her American Indian home and adopted by a white family in Montana. Susan is also the author of Mixing Cultural Identities Through Transracial Adoption: After the Indian Adoption Project. She is a High Plains Book Award winner in the categories of “Indigenous Writer” and “Creative Nonfiction” and is a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. Susan received her B.A. in anthropology from the University of Montana and her M.A. in cultural anthropology and M.A. in creative nonfiction from Colorado State University.  She is still very much involved in the issue of American-Indian transracial adoption and continues to write and speak nationally and internationally about the topic and about American-Indian assimilation policies and practices.  

Reyna Grande is an award-winning novelist and memoirist. She is the author of the bestselling memoirs, The Distance Between Us and A Dream Called Home, where she writes about her life before and after she arrived in the United States from Mexico as an undocumented child immigrant. Her other works include the novels, Across a Hundred Mountains, Dancing with Butterflies, and A Ballad of Love and Glory, a novel set during the Mexican-American War.  She is also the co-editor of an anthology by and about undocumented Americans called Somewhere We Are Human: Authentic Voices on Migration, Survival and New Beginnings. Her books have been adopted as the common read selection by schools, colleges, and cities across the country.

Judy Liautaud is the author of two memoirs, the first titled “Sunlight on My Shadow: A Birth Mother’s Journey From Secrecy to Renewal,” and the second titled “South of Ordinary: A Moving Tale of Young Love and Self-Discovery.” She’s also the author and publisher of several children’s educational books through her publishing company City Creek Press, including “Times Tables the Fun Way,” “Addition the Fun Way,” and “Story Problems the Fun Way.” In our interview, we discuss Judy’s secret teen pregnancy, the pain and grief of giving up her baby for adoption, the healing and joy of finding and meeting her daughter decades later, and other ways in which she has healed and transformed throughout her life journey. 

Nicca Ray is the author of “Ray by Ray: A Daughter’s Take on the Legend of Nicholas Ray,” a blend of memoir and biography about her famous father and the impact of his absence in her life. She is also the author of poetry collections titled “Back Seat Baby,” “Curve,” and “Go Go Go Girl.” Her second memoir, “Love and Cigarettes” is coming soon, and her play “Cry of the Butterfly” will be performed in New York City in Fall 2025. In our interview, Nicca and I discuss the impact of addiction and sexual abuse in her life and family, the ways in which her legendary filmmaker father’s absence affected her life, and how she ultimately found healing, peace, and connection.

Christina Vo is a Vietnamese-American writer and the author of two memoirs, one titled “The Veil Between Two Worlds,” and the other a dual memoir written with her father called, “My Vietnam, Your Vietnam.” In our interview, we discuss the differences in experiences and perspectives between her and her father, who fled post-war Vietnam in the 1970s; the death of her mother when she was a teenager; her extended journeys to Vietnam as an adult to better understand her heritage; and her continued exploration of identity, culture, and belonging in her life and writing.  

Ron Jansen is a Marine combat veteran and the author of a memoir titled, “An Otherwise Healthy Person: A Marine’s Story of Going to Fallujah and Fighting to Come Home.” In our interview, he discusses his deployment to Fallujah during a time of intense fighting between the U.S. military and the Al Qaeda-backed insurgency, the challenges he faced when he returned home and was confronted with his own internal battles, and his ultimate awakening to his authentic self.   

Shelly Edwards Jorgensen is the author of a memoir titled "Beautiful Ashes: A True Story of Murder, Betrayal, and One Woman’s Search for Peace.” In the memoir and in our interview, Shelly talks about multiple traumas she experienced growing up, including living with an alcoholic, abusive father both before and after he murdered her mother; testifying against him at his trial; and suffering sexual assault. She also discusses the uplifting power of her faith during the darkest times, her healing journey, and all the ways in which she has ultimately embraced a new mindset on life, faith, and the purpose of suffering.   

Donell Barlow is a prolific author, having published a memoir called "Medicine Tracks,” two children’s books called “Bigfoot and Lightening Bug” and “Creature Teacher Yoga,” and a poetry book titled “Words Have No Meaning.” She is Yurok and an enrolled member of the Ottawa Tribe, Otter Clan. She works with Native communities as a Research and Training Coordinator and Certified Holistic Health Coach. In our interview, Donell talks about all the dynamics present in diet and nutrition; the benefits of embracing different forms of medicine in life, including food, Native practices, dreams, and animal encounters; how suffering and grief are their own important lessons; and the ways in which Native communities are embracing and rebuilding their cultural identities and practices. 

Amy Turner is a schoolteacher, former lawyer, and author of a memoir called “On the Ledge.” The memoir tells the story of her father’s attempted suicide when she was four years old, the hypervigilance and fear that then plagued her into adulthood, and how her own brush with death decades later unexpectedly led her on a path of healing and creativity. In our interview, Amy discusses the events detailed in her book and more.

Gilbert Mfitundinda is the author of a book titled, “Life’s Lens: Looking Through the Eyes of a Compassion International Child” a memoir about his life growing up in extreme poverty in Uganda and later moving to the United States. He is also the founder and CEO of a non-profit called Love Restoration, an organization that provides education, nutrition, and health care to children in Uganda. In our interview, Gilbert discusses his life in Uganda, how sponsors from the U.S. provided him with the rare opportunity to stay in school, what it was like to move to the U.S., and all the ways both big and small that people can empower and help others.