Issue 3 November
Hello and welcome to November Issue. Audacity has been distilled into a leaner, tighter magazine that is nevertheless still packed full of wonderful humans. This month includes Terry Cronin's, (aka Buffalo Girl's) story. Terry is a leather artisan who calls beautiful Byron Bay home. I stole one of Terry's gorgeous catalogue photos (with her permission) for the front cover this month. Kelly Shan is an inspiration to many who live in the bush. Kelly, whose podcast, Utube series and blog, Life Journey with Kelly Shan shares the stories of many other wonderful Australians, is herself, an inspiration to me. I also spoke with Amanda Allen, whose name I first heard, when in 2016, she ran thousands of kilometers around Australia for mental health. Amanda has had the year from hell but is coming out the other side with new dreams and plans of making a difference - such a big gutsy life this woman continues to lead. Tori Johnson, is a young woman from my local area who took a big leap of faith and has continued to thrive. Her methods are unconventional as is Tori. She is also engaging, motivational and a true pleasure to talk to - I hope you enjoy her story as much as I did. I didn't get away this month (despite quite a few plans that unfortunately fell through). Fortunately, I didn't need to leave home to have my colours done by Moana Robinson (BStyled for Life) and the wonderful thing is, no matter where you are in the world, Moana's expertise is available to you at the drop of a zoom link. I can't tell you what a difference knowing what colours work for me has made! Everyone should have their colours done - immediately!
CONTACT Kate Duff at Audacity Magazine PO Box 641 Roma Q 4455 +61 0429 729 824 Kate@audacitymagazine.online Socials/Websites amazon.com/author/kathrynduff https://twitter.com/1000bitsofpaper https:www.instagram.com/kate_duff_poetry https://athousandbitsofpaper.com/ https://www.patreon.com/AudaciousHumans
Sculptor Ron Canlin and poet Ruby Read also share their stories. Finally, there is a wealth of books from great authors from around the world, with something in any genre you could desire from children's books through romance, thrillers, science fiction, erotic fiction, autobiographical accounts and how to live like a millionaire. Two of my guests this month Amanda Allen and Moana Robinson also have cracking books to read. Oh and then there is mine (see back page)
Buffalo Girl
Terry Cronin aka Buffalo Girl, was born in Auckland, New Zealand and lived most of her childhood at Whanapoua on the Coromandel Peninsula. Her days were spent catching the local's horses and riding them along beautiful beaches. Terry's love of leather and turquoise saw her making bridles, bags and jackets for herself and her family. A true craftswoman with her own unique style, Terry found a way to combine her love for ancient traditional cultures with powerful crystals and mesmerizing designs. Defying traditions and rules, she put her own stamp on the leather-making industry and it was from here that the Buffalo Girl label was born. Terry has led a wonderfully adventurous life. A former sponsored snowboarder, who also has a passion for dirt bike riding, Terry moved to Byron Bay in 2000 to pursue her passion for surfing. It was in Byron that she joined a line-up of local talented creatives peddling their wares at Byron Bay's artisan markets. Just like Terry, most of her marketplace companions went on to conquer globally. In the process they put the creative seaside village of Byron Bay on the international Fashion map. Terry's studio/shop is a magnet for all sorts, including of course some big name stars.
Elsa Helmsworth and her friends often stop by to pick out crystals and design their own handbags, which Terry then sews to order. The smaller size handbag that Terry now crafts stemmed from one of Elsa's requirements for a small bag that was just big enough for her phone and little else. "I had always loved the big bags like the Navaho but now it is one of my favorites too" says Terry. There are plenty of other celebs sporting Buffalo Girl creations. Terry has created pieces for Angus Stone Donovan Frankenreiter, Luciana Barosso, Erin Brokavich and when strolling the local music festivals like Blues and Roots its quite common to see Terry's pieces amongst the crowds. From her beginnings in the artisan markets, Terry's business scale soon required a full time shop. Her small studio is now in the town's center. Despite her growth both locally and globally, Terry still individually handcrafts each and every piece. From cutting, stamping, carving through to dyeing, every step is done by hand. When I spoke to Terry, she mentioned that she hates waste so beneath her work table is a pile of scrap leather that she can't part with and uses to make smaller items such as leather rings and such. All her leather is carefully sourced and only comes from hides which are a bi product of the meat industry. Terry is also sourcing vegan leathers such as pineapple and mushroom and adapting her designs to suit the needs of her clientele.
Terry is self taught, she has mastered her trade via experimentation. I asked her how she came up with her ideas. "I could be sitting having a cup of tea and a great idea will strike and I jump up to draw it or sometimes I have dreams and visions of a design. Each piece is an individual creative process to Terry and she carves according to the "personality" of the design as it emerges." As I can personally attest (I have several of Terry's pieces) the outcome is a very special object that feels personal and becomes treasured. It is something that cannot hope to be replicated through factory produced items. "The designs, particularly of the handbags are so striking and unique that they are really not repeatable, do you find that you can't make the same piece twice" I asked Terry.
"I can't repeat them. I actually find it difficult to sell some of the handbags because of that. I made a beautiful handbag for myself once and this woman wanted to buy it. She kept asking me and I said "look, it's $3000.00" she bought it and I thought, oh well I'll make another one I guess, but I've never been able to do it. It had buffalo hide on the inside and it was a really rich, lovely leather, I've never found that colour of leather again." Terry has turned down offers to turn her brand into something more mass produced. "They wanted me to go to China and oversee the process, turn in profit and loss reports, it just wasn't me. The money was great but it wasn't what I wanted. I love this, living here, pouring myself into my own work and being my own brand. Here, I get to do things my way." The Buffalo girl brand is truly something special, from the products themselves to the photographs and catalogues. When I mentioned this to Terry, she said a great deal of work goes into displaying her pieces just the way she wants. "I am really particular about the photography. many of the pieces have their own photoshoots so there is a lot of time and energy spent on showcasing them in just the right way." And it is time and energy well spent, the texture and beauty of the craftsmanship leap out of the screen as you scroll through the Buffalo Girl socials and website. It isn't all hard work though. Terry loves the Byron Bay lifestyle. She can ride her beach cruiser to the studio. Gardening is another passion as is going snorkeling with amazing creatures, like the little octopus that her partner hand feeds. "Have you seen that Netflix show about the Octopus?" she asks. My wifi is a mess so sadly no I haven't. "Oh you totally have to watch it! They are amazing creatures"
The conversation rambles on and I feel like I'm talking to an old friend. The theme of this month is synchronicity, I ask Terry what the word means to her. "Synchronicity has played a huge part in who I am and what I have achieved, I believe everything happens for a reason. I can trace this right back to my childhood, watching my mother and grandmother using their artistic side to create beautiful artworks. My mother owned a sewing machine which I then spent countless hours on, sewing clothes and bags for myself, I wouldn't have acquired the skills I have now without it. Moving forward a few years and settling in Byron Bay, creating Buffalo girl as a hobby while chasing waves and an endless summer, then becoming a single mother which really motivated me to push my hobby into a successful business. I have found that although negative experiences are inevitable, if you meet them with resilience there is always something positive to come out of it. These days I attribute my flow and balance to swimming and snorkeling in the ocean everyday, Horse riding and staying in touch with nature as much as possible."
Terry's process of crafting means that her pieces have a certain energy about them. As I mentioned, I have several Buffalo girl pieces. Kids are particularly drawn to them and I remember sitting in the bakery talking to my son once when I felt a little cold finger on my wrist. "I love your Wonder Woman cuff" a little girl was admiring my Buffalo Girl Lapiz cuff. I had to laugh. Children are smart, they are drawn to special things and can feel their energy. I struggle to explain my fascination with crystals to adults as most roll their eyes, but kids just know. Terry sources her crystals from both here in Australia and around the world. My wallet and keyring have gorgeous Russian amethyst inlays and the turquoise in my other cuff comes from a native mine in Nevada, America. Buffalo Girl is a proudly Australian made brand and you can find this amazing lady and her wares on the links below.
Was it a coincidence that I thought of you and here you are? What was it that joined us up? Are we just magnetic filings drawn into a cup? High above Someone is dusting their hands and smiling
Tori Johnson "I am so ready to start a family with you but I'm sorry, I don't want to live off your paycheque" "And I'm sorry, but when I do have a baby, I don't want to go back to work" "I'm an independent woman and even though "this is how the world works', it just doesn't feel right to me" The post continues but in just these few sentences Tori captures an emotion that so many women feel and it is probably for that reason that she has such a large online following. Providing solutions to this particular group has certainly allowed her to build her business in a relatively short time. I'm early for my meeting with Tori. I'm always early for appointments. These days I have my compulsiveness down to about the 5 minute mark, which I consider perfect. Tori is earlier. Tori is the daughter of a friend that I also haven't see in ages because we are both busy and live divergent lives. The last time I saw Tori in person was about ten years ago - much has changed. We are meeting today because Tori has spiked my interest regarding her online business. Tori is dressed plainly, she has a neat little baby bump although I find out she is only three weeks away from becoming a Mum. Immaculate makeup that is nevertheless understated harks to her time spent as a make-up artist. Tori is very natural looking, a defining characteristic of Tori's posts is her authenticity. As we begin to chat there are no barriers or defensiveness - instant connection. I have a vague idea of what it is that Tori does that creates enough wealth at her relatively young age that she now works for herself and owns her own time. The thing is Tori doesn't add up to my assumption, she isn't selling me anything. "What is it exactly that you do Tori?" I ask "I'm a lifestyle marketer and I use affiliate marketing to create an income. However, unlike traditional affiliate marketers such as "Instagram influencers" who show a product to their following, then provide a link to purchase, I just share a lifestyle, my lifestyle. People see my life, think "wow, how does this normal chick live like this?" Then when they feel called to do so, they reach out and ask me what I do. That is called attraction marketing. No pushy sales techniques, no tacky messages, no cold calls. I affiliate for a course (a very good one too I might add) that teaches people how to do what I do. They can then invest further into one on one coaching and mentoring with me."
"I asked Tori how she came to be in what is still an emerging industry, particularly here in Roma where I can't imagine that many people are doing this sort of thing. "I've had a lot of different jobs. I've worked at the Wester Star (Newspaper) selling and organising advertising and writing stories. I've worked in a sign shop, designing and making signs. I've worked in administration, but I just got to the point where I hated it. None of what I did seemed to be something I could see myself doing for the rest of my life. One day while scrolling through Facebook, I saw an advertisement for a course online. It just jumped out and seemed to be talking directly to me. I read through the post and messaged the page. They got back to me quite quickly and gave me a run down on what it was they were doing. The course was $99 US and sounded really interesting, I thought, "what have I got to lose?" When I began the course, at first it was a lot of work because everything I was learning was new and there was a lot involved and I was still working in my other job at the time as well. My partner said "I thought you were supposed to be doing less work and having more time, this is ridiculous" But I just kept grinding and finally I noticed one day that what I was making from my online work was the same as what I was making from my "normal" job. I had two incomes of an equivalent amount, except that one of those incomes I was generating for myself with no employer. There were expenses involved with what I was learning. I sold my car to pay for the rest of the course, but I began to recover that cost and was earning this other income by now relatively easily. I quit my other job. That was a big moment. It is where my mindset had a few tumbles because I was worried that I might have done the wrong thing. I took a little while to recover my sense of confidence. Mindset is everything in what I am doing and I saw that so clearly through this experience. When I focused on lack and fear and tried to hold my money tightly out of a concern that it would disappear, the funds would dry up and when I spent freely, trusted and generated then I would begin making money again. How hard is it to do the marketing and gain followers and buyers? "Once people see what I do and how I do it, I don't have to chase anyone. They either want in and are prepared to put in the effort in order to have the reward or they aren't. There is effort involved and an investment of money at first. After that though, it becomes easier. Yesterday I worked in my business barely an hour yet I made $2000. I do all my work from either my phone or a laptop and I don't really work, I might put in three hours on a big day, yet I'm still getting paid more then when I was working 9-5 for someone else. That is the beauty of this lifestyle, it sells itself. I am just me, being me, enjoying my best life and helping other people do that if they want to too. Anyone can do this. I mean, I see a lot of this sort of thing except that the people are living at the coast and getting around in a bikini or something and here I am pregnant and normal and living in Roma. I asked my mentor "how on earth do I sell this, sell me. He said "just be you, so that is what I have done"
"Is it hard doing what you do and living in a small town where everyone knows everyone and everyone has an opinion on what everyone is doing?" "At first it was really hard, it still is sometimes but a lot of that is all in my head and the rewards of doing exactly what I want offset that" "You have a baby coming soon, yet it won't change anything for you will it? There won't be any maternity leave and you don't need it?" "Exactly and that is another reason why I did this. We wanted to have a family but I couldn't see how that would ever happen, or how we could afford to have childcare and both of us working. Now, nothing changes and I can be there for our baby and still earn an income." It sounds too good to be true. It sounds like a scam. It sounds like woohoo. All of these things have been said and publicly on your page." "Oh yeah, I love it when people say that on my page because as soon as they comment, then not only is my content visible to all their friends, it has also boosted the analytics of my post" "Is it a scam? Could I do this?" Tori looks me straight in the eye. "No and yes. Anyone can do this. What the course does is give you the skills and knowledge. That's what it did for me. The way you choose to use those skills is up to you. This is about marketing. It is about finding a solution to someone's problem then selling it to them. Some people cannot find their solution or their niche. Some people cannot take the skills that they are taught and actually market either because they are too shy, too lazy or they think everything will just come to them. That is not on me or the course. The course gives you the skills and the knowledge, after that it is up to you to find your market and begin the work."
And that is the thing. This enterprising, smart young woman has built so much, so fast, all on her own initiative. It is this spirit that has attracted me to share Tori's story. I have a lot of admiration for anyone willing to think big and try something different. "You've done the work, it is now working for you and you are building a great following. At the beginning though there must have been so many limiting beliefs that you would have had to overcome. I mean this looks idyllic now but you have shown courage and determination to get to this point. We aren't taught that this sort of option exists in school." "I know. Mum and Dad are in really high paying jobs. My brother and sister are both doing really well and then there was me. I had all the fears around whether I was going to just fail at this and yet I haven't thankfully and quite the opposite because I am only at the start of what I can potentially achieve."
What Tori does is unusual. it sets her apart from many her own age. She doesn't have a lot of flash clothes, nor is she interested in them anymore. She doesn't drink alcohol. Material possessions aren't important to her and she and partner Zac are slowly renovating an old house. As with everything Tori is hands on and spends a great deal of time painting, caulking and helping wherever she can. Tori doesn't pay anyone to do what she can do herself and her father was recently horrified to see his heavily pregnant daughter scrunched into her car applying tint to her windows. "It was going to cost me $400 to have someone do it. I know how to do it and although it might not be five star, it is good enough for me" From what I can see Tori is an individual. A strong young person with big visions who is not afraid to do something different to everyone else. People who stand out don't always have an easy time of it. Her interests are different to many her age and that can be isolating. "I haven't always found my friend circle locally. Instead the more I do of what I am now doing, the greater my online tribe grows. I have people that I connect deeply with but they might live in South Australia. I can talk to them anytime and enjoy those conversations because we share the same passions and interest in what we do." Tori is easy to talk to and her ideas are interesting and insightful, I find I could quite easily spend half a day chatting however, I'm aware that the owner of the cafe may need our table so we wind things up. "What advice would you give to someone that is trying to do what you have done?" 'Find your niche. Find the people you can help and then show them how you can help them. At first, I needed to boost my marketing, to get it out to a wider audience but I haven't done paid advertising in ages because now people come to me. Think about what you really want in life. I have vision boards that I'm constantly updating because I'm achieving my goals. Some people that I work with want to travel so I say "great get pictures of where you want to travel and stick those on your vision board." Zac and I are so young, and life is really quite long from our perspective, it is hard to think beyond the next five years but I want to have a little place out of town. I want to retire Zac so he can still do whatever he wants work wise but also spend more time with us as a family and I definitely want to buy a motorbike, so I have one of those on my vision board." "So Abraham Hicks and The Secret - it actually works?" "Yes" answers Tori emphatically. "It really does work" "How does synchronicity show up in your life?" "Synchronicity is a word I don't actually use - too long, too big, too hard hahah. I call it flow. Flow comes and goes quite often for me at the moment but when it's here, holy moly! Creativity flows, the money flows, I find soul mate clients to work with and everything just seems to work exceptionally well. To access flow and abundance I just need to tap into to true gratitude. Gratitude for absolutely everything, the water I drink, the bills I pay, the house I live in etc etc.
I remember when I was working at Xtreme Force as a the receptionist and we received a cheque from a lady paying an outstanding invoice. It had "thank-you" written on a post-it-note stuck to the cheque. I thought "that's weird, we must have done something extra for her" I asked the boss, and he said no we had just done the standard service. And then I had a bit of a epiphany. I had always been grateful for the money that I received but never for the money that left my account. I loathed having to spend money. But what I didn't understand was that with gratitude for all things, we must also be grateful for the outgoing. For example, I am grateful for my phone bill, and I say thank-you every time I pay it because it means I am fortunate enough to own a phone and be able to afford to pay for it. It's the little things. It sounds simple to do, but it's really not. We've spent years of our lives without being grateful for things, so it takes a long time to train ourselves out of negative and ungrateful behaviors and thoughts. The reason I talk about gratitude so much is because without it, flow cannot exist. And without flow, there is no possibility of abundance. And abundance in life is something I believe we all wish to have, but what most don't understand is that we can actually have it. In fact, we can have whatever we want." Absolutely. You can check out more about Tori on the links below.
www.facebook.com/thetorijohnson
www.instagram.com/thetorijohnson
www.thelifeyoudreamedof.com
How do the water birds know that a lake will fill thousands of miles out west and they begin their journey before the first raindrop falls? This is just one of the many magical mysteries of nature. Are we not too part of this amazing cycle?
Author/Athlete - Amanda Allen I first heard of Amanda several years ago, when in June 2016, she ran 1000kms across Australia to raise awareness for suicide and mental illness. I used to follow her on Facebook and admired her resilience and determination. I gave up on Social Media for a few years and so it was only I when I rejoined that I eventually found her again. Fitness and exercise have always been a big part of Amanda's life. She has owned a gym in Byron Bay. Been a professional triathlete and also qualified for the Paralympics alongside blind athlete Sarna Parker as part of a track cycling duo. Amanda is a three times CrossFit world champion.
Being so fit and living a healthy lifestyle obviously aided her recovery post surgery when in 2018 Amanda was rushed to hospital with extreme pain, which at first was thought to be cancer. Surgery removed 4kgs of tumours from her torso. The wound was traumatic given that Amanda was cut from pelvis to diaphragm and it looked like the end of her athletic career for awhile. Instead, barely 12 weeks post surgery Amanda finished in 6th place for the 2018 Worldwide Crossfit Open in the 45-49 year old division. Although her sport of choice required a brutal training ground, it is within her own mind that Amanda has fought her greatest battles. Alcoholism and suicidal depression have been two of largest foes with the latter resurfacing just this year after a horror run that began with an eviction from her beloved Crossfit gym in Byron Bay. I asked Amanda, who has been sober now for around seventeen years, what impact alcohol has on the mind and how much worse would her relapse into depression been if it had also triggered a relapse into alcoholism.
"Alcohol is a depressant. It affects the central nervous system and depresses brain function. For an alcoholic, we seem to experience greater vulnerability to its effects, the alcoholic side of me seems to be born of a dysfunctional childhood combined with this latent predisposition towards alcohol. I began drinking at 14, I was a daily drinker for the final ten years, two bottles of wine a night was normal. Alcohol destroyed the natural development of my prefrontal cortex, stunted the growth of my emotional maturity and lead to repeated periods of deep depression where I would visit "the pit of despair" where I wanted to die. But I didn't, and I don't know why. When I got sober, I gave everything to my healing, on every level of my being. Mental, Physical, emotional, spiritual, health. I chose sobriety, integrity, truth over and over. I chose to make amends, find a higher power and learn to live a happy life. If I had picked up a drink during the last twelve months, there is no doubt I would have been dead inside weeks.
But I could not abandon my beloved wolves (Amanda's two wolfhounds), nor my commitment to my health." Not long after selling the gym and moving on with life, Amanda was forced to flee her home due to domestic violence. Adrift with only her two dogs and a small van Amanda was again struck with illness. Admitted to hospital, more surgery was carried out on her abdomen. The recovery this time was more difficult due to stress. Then the Corona Virus hit. No longer able to stay with her friend, who had returning family and elderly parents, Amanda couldn't find accommodation due to her dogs. The impact of homelessness and a lack of stability exacerbated her vulnerable mental state, which in turn tipped her back into a spiral of depression and extreme agitation and anxiety. An old hip injury took a catastrophic turn after the rapid fire of traumas and surgery and Amanda developed severe chronic pain from which she could not find relief.
Amanda is a tall, strong, beautiful looking woman with a radiant smile. She has a seemingly endless capacity for endurance and tolerance of pain. Her running efforts where she would often be running on the same busted feet as the day before (truly gross pictures) and Crossfit (which is one of the most difficult endurance spots on the planet) prove this To think of her in such a vulnerable state is difficult to imagine, yet she was. Eventually her story was highlighted by media in the area, a woman reached out and Amanda was able to have four walls and a roof around her again. A home and stability provided her finally with the space she needed to begin healing. "There are things I know now that I had no understanding of twelve months ago. I am utterly changed from my experiences. Safety and stability, somewhere to go home, a hot shower, human kindness and connection, these are profoundly precious things. I spent five months in my van during Covid in fear and pain. When I slept inside four solid brick walls in my safe haven, I had a palpable experience of those walls. I could feel their density all around me, thick and strong. It was then, for a number of nights in a row, that I experienced what I term as "exquisite" pain. I felt every fibre and cell of my body in a wildfire of pain that lasted all night. I could not move, I truly through I was probably going to die and I made peace with that. I have made peace with that so many times these last twelve months. Those experiences subsided and I remain safe in this little home where my wolves and I were welcomed." "I know I am one of the lucky ones. I told a doctor at the time it was like had some kind of PTSD. I was fortunate in that I was disciplined and continued to eat healthy and exercise every day. The discipline and routine really helped."
I asked Amanda what her plans were for the future. "After my experiences of the last twelve months, I found myself a reborn woman with a passion to help other women in crisis. I understand that women around the 50 year old age bracket represent a significant number of the homeless, you just never hear of it. I can hardly believe how quickly I became one of those women. During my crisis, the only people who did offer support and kindness were other women who had been through or were going through a domestic violence situation"
"Refuges are scant, and they are hard to find, under funded and extremely difficult to get into. I know from my personal situation that people helping people is the way humans can support and save one another. It is instant, fluid, adaptable, generous, humane. All things that the systems designed to support us are not. I am working, with other women, to find solutions that work for us going forward." Having achieved all that she desired within the sport Amanda moved on from Crossfit after ten years. She began body building to stay strong while healing, balancing and restoring her body. Sculpting the body of her dreams at 50 was an added bonus. Her diet has changed many times from Pritikin as a professional triathlete, to wine and rich foods as an alcoholic, a sugar addict as she got sober (Tim Tams, lollies) to Paleo with clean carbs as a crossfitter. "I have learned to tune into my intuition as my guide to eating. After years of healthy nourishment I now trust my body's cravings. I seek the cleanest, highest quality healing foods that I can afford, that is my health insurance and my way to stay out of depression and recovery from training. I have always been utterly devoted to recovery, performance, strength, integrity, clean living, optimal performance and nature as medicine. The foods I eat the most are green, as they are anti inflammatory, rich in enzymes and minerals and are basically calorie free - nature's delicious green gift. Today I train approximately 4 times per week for about 2 hours. No intensity, just focused, tempo, strength building, mind-body connection training. A completely different energy system and intensity to Crossfit. My body is no longer being punished, so my cortisol and adrenals levels are no longer sky rocketing. I'm not traumatizing and recovering over and over in order to win world championships. I eat approximately 2000 calories per day, very high nourishment food, predominantly liquid. I use fasting and "food dropping" (which is identifying key foods to each at key times per day based on my body, training, stress. I have a range of products I've developed to help people go on their own liquidsuperfood-detox. I just do that diet all the time, it is magic, not enough people design nourishment around their mental, emotional, physical and spiritual needs. I do and I help other women to achieve the same magic in their lives. At 50 I can say with pure joy and appreciation in my heart, that I love my food and body, my health and strength, my intuition and discipline. I am completely in alignment - and it is joy! Amanda is the author of 9 books. If you are interested in more of her health wisdom try Eat Perform Win which is an incredible introduction into high quality, nourishing, eating for health, happiness, reduced inflammation, optimal nourishment and general awesomeness. Perfect for women with difficult relationships around food and their bodies who need to nourish and recover from training stress, surgery, life and (in Amanda's words) all the whole glorious catastrophe.
https://www.facebook.com/AmandaCrossfitAllen/
https://www.amandacrossfitallen.com/
The greater my awareness the more coincidences grow the further I am led the deeper the trust that develops until eventually I am merely carried by the flow towards my highest good and life becomes effortless
All of my guests have turned up via a series of somewhat serendipitous events this month, but none of those events have been quite as convoluted as how it was that I met Kelly Shann. I'll try and summarize. In order to find out more about the struggles of the fruit industry obtaining harvest pickers, I had developed the notion that I should go fruit picking. Barely an hour later I came across a post on Facebook asking for blue berry pickers at St George. Since that is only a few hours down the road from me I found the coincidence too good to resist and called the number. It went to message bank so I left my contact and went back to work. Donna Davidson called me ten minutes later. "I have no idea why all these people are calling me about blueberries, we run cattle and sheep no berries here!" We had a bit of a laugh which turned into a long chat. Donna is a very interesting person, and fairly typical of women from the bush, easy to talk to. Forty-five minutes later I hung up with the words "call Kelly Shann, she is such an inspiration to many of us out here - she would be great to interview." So I did and the interview follows but I have providence to thank. The blueberry phone number was wrong. The window of it being incorrect lasted only an hour or so before it was corrected. I walked through that window, had a chat and came back with an amazing lady to include in my magazine. It would be lovely if it only happened once. The thing is, it happens to me all the time lately. The more I pay attention, stay aware and most importantly say yes when the quiet voice tells me to do something - the more it occurs. You can either believe everything is a miracle or that nothing is - either way you will be correct. I can't recall who said that (I think it was Einstein) I prefer the former. Everything is a miracle.
Kelly Shann
Kelly answers the phone and we fuss about with our respective devices for a moment. Technology is great but the further from a capital city, the more compromise you learn to put up with. The first thing I notice is what a lovely voice Kelly has. Clear, calm and warm. A voice made for radio or, as the case may be - for podcasts and Utube videos. Kelly is the creator of Life Journey with Kelly Shann which incorporates podcasts, utube videos and a Facbook blog. Kelly shares the stories of her wonderful guests, some of whom recently included Sally Towne, an inspirational breast cancer survivor, Mary O'Brien from "Are you bogged mate" fame, Julie Rainbow who developed Clarity Road and many others. I asked Kelly how the idea for Life Journey came about. "I was driving along and I wasn't in a very good mood, maybe it was hormonal or something, I wasn't in a good place. Anyway, this podcast came on and I listened to it and my mood was so uplifted that I thought "I would love to do this, I could talk to inspirational people and make others happier." I mentioned my conversation with Donna and how that is exactly what Kelly is apparently doing, as many women were following and inspired by her stories. How wonderful to be doing exactly what you set out to do. "I love what I do so much. I get to speak with some amazing people and they all inspire me. Sometimes in fact, I think I am getting far more out of an interview then my listeners."
I asked Kelly "how do you find the people that you interview?" "It's that synchronicity thing. Sometimes it is someone I am talking to and they say, "oh you should really talk to so and so" or sometimes it is an article that I am reading and I think "oh I would love to talk to this person." One thing leads to another and I have learnt not to overthink it or worry about it too much"
'You have a background in TV and were once crowned Miss Queensland has that had an impact on your decision and ability to do what you do?" "Well let's start with Miss Queensland because a lot of people don't know what exactly that is. Entrants in the Miss Australia Quest raised money and created awareness for those living with Cerebral Palsy. What it did for me, this little girl from the bush was really open my eyes to a whole new world. At the State Final, all the other girls were very nervous but I wasn't because I didn't think I had a hope of winning. I think that relaxed attitude certainly helped me. From there, the next year taught me so much. I did a lot of public speaking, something I had never done before. I really enjoyed it and in that sense quite surprised myself. Following my time with the "Quest" I applied for a job in television and began working at Channel 10 in Brisbane in a public relations role. I was fortunate that part of my job required me to do some corporate presenting at World Expo 88. But that was all 32 years ago, so it has been a long time since I had done anything like that." Kelly has a large amount of support and love within her community, both where she lives and the broader base of the campdraft community, and her fan base, which is spread all over the country. People draw strength and inspiration from her work. I asked her if that makes it easier to keep going when things become difficult. "I think we are guided by our intuition. We just have to have the strength and courage to do what is asked of us and to do what we are meant to do. I think the greatest thing is to be aware of that guidance in your life and don't say no to it. Keep saying yes and moving forward no matter what." What Kelly is doing was, and sometimes still is, outside of her knowledge base. The process of learning new things is in itself time consuming. There is a lot that goes on behind scenes that people don't see. I ask Kelly how much time and energy she spends in bringing her project to life
"Dealing with things like Canva and being on the computer takes so much time. I've been lucky enough to have my daughter home from Uni most of the year and she gets so frustrated with me but has been a big help. It takes a lot of time but it gets easier. I learn things and it gets quicker and more efficient."
Home is a cattle property near Clermont in Centre Queensland (Australia) where Kelly lives with husband Berry and their family. It is her close association with this area that meant that when disaster struck in February, 2019, Kelly didn't hesitate to get involved. She went on to become one of the founding board members of Sisters of The North. Sisters of the North was originally the brainchild of a group of women living in Cloncurry, north west Queensland. Tired of years of oppressive drought, and with what seemed no end in sight they formed a charity. In early January of 2019, they were focusing on the inaugural campdrafting event which was going to include live entertainment, a gala luncheon and guest speakers to raise the spirits of the community and encourage resilience to get through the awful season that was being experienced.
As the rain began, at first it was greeted with joy. What was left behind after eight days of rain, cyclonic winds and cold conditions became a living nightmare. Up to 500,000 head of cattle lost, generations of stock genetics decimated, native animals dead and family pets gone. Additionally the flooding caused hundreds of millions of dollars of infrastructure damage, crippling the livestock and mining industries. As the devastation of the flooding was exposed, a team of like-minded people started a GoFundMe page on Saturday 9th February, 2019 and within 4 days had raised $100,000.00. The Sisters of the North Charity and board was a natural development responding to the trust of donors who respected the integrity of this wonderful team of people to do the right thing. From the beginning, the charity set out to help flood impacted individuals and families of the six impacted shires, Flinders, Richmond, Winton, McKinlay, Cloncurry and Carpentaria. Using ambassadors, trusted members of their respective community with the capacity to build relationships through the age-old and truly tested bush telegraph, the distribution of funds were given to the right people. I asked Kelly how she came to be involved.
"We were at the Tamworth Classic (an annual horse sale) with friends when the news came through of what was happening in North West Queensland. It was a terrible time with the tragedy unfolding, we all knew there would be devastating loss and no one could get home. A friend of mine Jill Stallman, came to me and said "we have to do something about this." At first, we went to the sale organizers, hoping the vendors and buyers could perhaps donate a portion of funds to go to help those affected but quickly realised it would have been a nightmare paperwork wise. Then Clay Cini (Campdraft Central) suggested we start a GoFundMe page. By the Monday we had already raised $80K. Peter Dowling suggested we use the name Sisters of the North which had already been set up for the campdraft in April and so that is what we did. We were lucky too, in that Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who had been up and witnessed the devastation, really helped by pushing the DGR (Deductible Gift Recipient) status through, which meant people could claim donations on their tax. Our main objective was to ensure the money not only supported graziers, but communities as a whole. Clay created "Live Voucher" so that people who lived in affected regions could only use the funds in local businesses. We did run into some difficulty distributing at times because some people were too proud or thought there were others who needed the help more, they would point down the road and say "this one or that needs it more than me" so that's how the live voucher system really helped by changing the way in which we could deliver help. We were lucky we had full control over the money raised and were able to distribute it exactly where it needed to go. Many of the larger charities need people to meet certain criteria such as you can only buy groceries with the money or whatever. We had extensive local knowledge which gave us a huge advantage. We have been fortunate with the caliber of people on our board who include a solicitor and accountant who offer their time and experience pro bono. It was a really emotional time. I was overwhelmed by the generosity and goodness of people. It wasn't so much the amount of money they gave us but the spirit in which they gave. I think I was more touched by the boy that gave us $7 than the big company that offered $10K because it is all relative as to how much others could afford. We ended up raising and distributing over $1.2M. I asked Kelly if any other charities had requested for a copy of their successful roadmap to follow in times of crisis During the bush fires, we did have some council's reach out to see how we had managed it all. It is a big undertaking and at the beginning another charity, with the very best of intentions did come to us and say "look this is going to be too big for you to handle, perhaps it would be better if you just gave the money to us" But we were determined that we would carry this out and get the money where it was most needed. We felt a big responsibility to all these wonderful donor's for trusting us with their money. Now that we have the money distributed, Sister's of the North Charity will wind down but will be there in the future if the need arises.
Kelly and I are both of a similar age, enjoy good health and are pretty fit. I remarked at how much fitter and healthier I feel now compared to how I was earlier in life. Kelly laughs and agrees "A friend of mine asked me "how old are you in your head, if you just had to come up with an age off the cuff, what would you think you were". My answer was 25. That is how old I feel and I do feel fitter than I did a decade or so ago. I think as we get older, we pay more attention to health and as a result, usually make better choices" Which of course begs the question your choice of exercise?"
"what is
"I am out and about on our cattle property, working quite a bit so I get a lot of that sort of incidental exercise. I do enjoy yoga and find that is such a great thing for flexibility. Kelly's youngest is sixteen now and I ask her what she envisaged with Life Journey in the years to come. Did she have any big plans or ambitions? "I guess I would like it to continue to grow, have more followers and people tuning in to listen but really I have learnt to take what comes and just keep going with what feels right"
https://www.facebook.com/lifejourneywithkellyshann
https://www.instagram.com/lifejourneytv/
"I think if we allow ourselves to believe in the power of synchronization, we let a little bit of magic enter our lives. For me, I know I am guided by something greater than myself and when I have that feeling of synchronicity, I absolutely have learnt not to ignore it. It's comforting to know we have that help in our lives"
KELLY SHANN
You need to book ahead if you plan on visiting the Chambers of the Black Hand in Lightning Ridge. Hundreds of tourists a day head down the narrow, hand carved staircase and enter into the magical world created by Ron Canlin. I asked his business partner Trevor for an estimate of the people that visited this underground art gallery and he thought about 21,000 per year. I visited Lightning Ridge a couple of years ago. From where I live in Roma, Lightning Ridge is a nice stretchy ride to charge up my motorbike's battery. I had never been there but had heard the artesian baths were good. There was also an art gallery, I thought, so that would kill a bit of time. There and back would be an interesting diversion for the week-end. When I got there though I ended up spending a little bit longer - the town is extraordinary. The Chamber of the Black Hand used to be an ordinary opal mine but it was a bit of a flop and didn't provide much income for owner Ron Canlin. Instead Ron decided to open the mine as a tourist attraction - a working mine that people could descend and take a look around. With accessibility in mind, Ron carved a stone staircase into the sandstone rock and at the top he provided a finishing flourish - a carved hand. Some time after the mine was open to tourists, Ron decided to carve out an extra room to give visitors a demonstration of opal cutting. It was as he carved a welcome sign on the wall that the idea for more sculpture was born, One carving led to another and when one room was complete, the next room was excavated to allow for more carvings. Trevor Hudson, Ron's business partner came on board around room three. "I had taken a few steps back up the stairs and I turned to Ron and said "you've got something special here Ron, we've got to get into this."
Sculptor - Ron Canlin
Trevor injected a large amount of cash and Ron's imagination was unleashed as he created room after room. Themes began to emerge and he created an Egyptian room, an animal room, and more. Ron worked from photos and pictures in encyclopedias. The Last Supper, a Statue of David, angels float across the wall here,and then a little further on you come to some traditional tribesmen gathered in conversation.
As you traverse the chambers being drawn increasingly further in by the diversity of art and sheer talent on display it is difficult to fathom that you are in the middle of nowhere and that Ron is not really that well known. The last carvings to be completed were in the Star Wars room. Ron is now 80 years old. The mine that he spent so long carving and working at is now his superannuation. I spoke to him just a couple of weeks ago. "It's great, I have a business partner Trevor, who is straight down the line. He runs the mine, attends to all the admin and sends me my cut and I get to go fishing and enjoy life a bit. I still go back to the Ridge, in fact I'm going back next week, but I don't carve anymore" The mine is a delight to young and old, as over 600+ glowing reviews on Trip Adviser attest. I am looking through them as I write this article and the enthusiasm springs out of each one. These people are as amazed as I was. To be given such a gift, to witness the beauty that is one person's amazing imagination and talent is priceless. Nothing prepares you. I took dozens of photographs and will include some here however none of them capture the experience that is walking through this Ron's imaginary world and seeing his work up close.
I asked Trevor had they had any set backs or obstacles along the way. "Oh plenty! A few years ago we had to spend $200K on mesh and ceiling bolts as we found we had a false level in the roof. We fixed that and it will be good now for 20 years but the mine requires constant maintenance to keep the humidity at around 80%. Less than that, say if it drops to around 30% then the sandstone begins to dry out and crack. We keep on top of that with sprinklers. We know how to handle it, as long as there are miners in charge it will be fine. Trevor has been a miner all his life. I asked him if he had experienced the "gold fever" phenomenon. "Oh most definitely. Every day. I've worked mines all over the place, the opal is the only true gemstone and when you find them in the rock they are stunning. I could show you opals that I have found over the years that would blow your mind. They are that beautiful. Just before I retired, in the last couple of weeks actually, we hit a massive seam. We got two 20 litre buckets full of gemstones out of the walls. Some were the size of goose eggs. Just beautiful. The guy who was with me kept pressing me to give him a valuation. "Just tell me how much" he kept saying, I told him to shut up and stop pestering me or he'd bloody jinx it but he kept it up. Finally he wore down, I said the haul was probably around $20M cut and polished. We took the buckets out and the next morning came back. It was terrible, it looked like someone had blasted them with a shot gun at a 45 degree angle. All the clay had dried and they had all busted open and shattered. I ended up selling the load for $118K but it should have been $20M. I never spoke to that bloke again. He is dead now" I didn't ask Trevor if he had killed him. Alright, I did, and he didn't kill him, but it was a thought I'm sure because miner's are known for being a superstitious lot and Trevor has no doubt that the man's pestering for an estimate had jinxed the haul. Both of the original Chamber of the Black Hand owners are now retired and comfortably. They still own their art gallery of a mine and keep an eye on things but I have to wonder if in the end it is the productive mines that paid for their respective retirements. Or rather, was it the flop, that by Ron's surprising turn of talent and Trevor's eye for an investment turned out to be the true gold. "I really feel it was fate that it worked out this way" says Ron, "you could have knocked me down with a feather if you'd told me 50 years ago that this is what I would do." His legacy will live on beneath the ground long after both he and I are dead. No doubt, people will still be marveling over his creations in hundreds of years time and that's the wonderful thing about this sort of art, it has a timeless quality to it. Lightning Ridge in NSW is the home of the black opal. It is one of the rarest forms of opals and the discovery of this precious gem is a whole story in itself. There is plenty to see and do in Lightning Ridge, I can't recommend this town and it's quirky characters highly enough. To book your tour head to Lightning Ridge in NSW and see the link below. http://www.chambersoftheblackhand.com.au/opal-art-carving-mine-tours
Poet - Ruby Read
Ruby Read is a poet from New England whose day job is as a manufacturing engineer for a cytometry company. Cytometry is the science of identifying and sorting cells. This scientific work is possibly at odds with poetry. Ruby has recently published a book Momentary Monet. I was curious, so this month Ruby is my featured poet in Audacity. I asked Ruby what her process was with writing poetry, as a fellow poet, I'm always interested in how other artists formulate their poems. "I usually start with a single word and there is always a sense of words should follow. I typically focus on etymology as well as phonetic elements to drive the direction of the piece. The meaning shapes itself as I go. I choose to express myself in poetry because language is the least deceptive of the arts in my eyes." Your book Momentary Monet is penned by Montego Sinclair, why? "Monetgo is a pen name, as is Ruby. I have dissociative identity disorder and have 7 alter egos. Ruby has created her own separate identities and is starting to show them to the world. Is there a story behind your pen names? "Ruby Read was most likely created in a struggle between the anima and animus and the name was a play on words. It's tough to say how it came to about since Ruby developed at a young age" "You have 7 alter ego's - do they all write and if so, do they have different styles?" They all write, but they don't all share in the same way. Ruby Read is the outspoken one. They all have very different styles. Some of the alts write in the trancendentalist fashion, whereas Ruby writes in a brash display of language poetry. I have one alt that only writes loves sonnets" "How does living with this disorder affect your daily life?" "It can be a blessing and a curse. Creatively - it is very freeing, but at work it can be challenging, it has also put some strains on my family relations at times" Momentary Monet has only recently been released and has already sold over a hundred copies. Have you written any other books? "I have, yes, all under different pen names. Art of Sin, The Attic, Battery and Prides Crossing" Ruby, what does the word Synchronicity mean to you? "First and foremost the word reminds me of The Police album haha. But I have actually experienced quite a lot of synchronicity in life. I met my husband when he was an exchange student who happened to be living in (of all places) the home of my ex.
Excerpt from Momentary Monet
https://www.amazon.com/Momentary-Monet-Montego-Sinclair/dp/B08HBDDSFB
Moana Robinson Recently, I was complaining to a business colleague who lives in Brisbane about the fact that once again, I was going to have to do a wardrobe sort out and that it didn't seem to matter how many clothes I have, I frequently find myself with nothing to wear. "Oh I never have that problem anymore" said Janeen. "I did a styling session with a friend of mine, she did all my colours and I've never had a problem since. It helps enormously with my shopping as I can just walk in, scan and see whether there is anything in my style or colour, and if not just walk out." So began my connection to Moana Robinson from Bstyled for life. At the beginning, I was dubious as to how well Moana could choose my palette, given that she usually uses personal consultation and one on one visits to her studio on the Gold Coast. Moana reassured me that she was having great success with her new software, something which has proven invaluable since the restrictions which have become the new normal since Covid 19. Those early doubts have since been well and truly put to bed. Moana's presentation at the end of our week long consultations, clearly showed (using my awful close up selfie in natural lighting) just how badly the incorrect colours were affecting my appearance. I could see exactly why the palette that Moana had chosen for me worked and after a few weeks wearing colours from my personal range, the difference is staggering. I love that it doesn't matter where a person lives geographically, this service is available to them. Having confidence with your appearance is vital no matter what your gender and Moana has done colours for men as well as women. The fashion industry and clothing waste in landfill is a huge environmental problem only highlighted in recent years. Every time I clean out my wardrobe of things I buy, but don't wear nearly enough, I am conscious of this. I swear that I won't make stupid mistakes again and yet....
What a change a week or two makes. Everything in my wardrobe now matches and it all suits me. Walking up to my closet is like greeting old friends with no cold shoulders from things that look wrong. Everything that didn't work (hello black!) has been given away or donated. When you have your colours done, Moana sends a package complete with a swatch in a little velvet bag. Slipped into my handbag it means I always have it on hand when shopping. There is also a little book detailing all your personal options for colours, contrast, patterns and shades. Ideal makeup selections are also included which was a bonus, as I have always winged it a bit with "are you a peach tone or a rosy tint?" "Umm" being my usual reply. Moana is one of the loveliest people to work with. Not only is she a personal stylist, image consultant and life coach, she is also an author with her book Bstyled for Life - Living with Sass and Style over 50 an Amazon Best Seller. Moana is regularly featured in magazines and podcasts. I can't recommend her highly enough and if you have always been a bit of a seat of your pants shopper (pardon the pun) her styling service will have you sorted so that you never make expensive mistakes or have nothing to wear again. As with all things that I find that work, I have now become a bit of an evangelist but honestly, for the price of having your colours done you immediately cease making expensive errors in clothing purchases into the future. Surely that is a saving in the long run. Moana is also a personal shopper and has several other extremely helpful strings to her bow. If you are a fashion tragic or just unsure of where next to turn as your hair changes colour and you can't think how to style yourself in this new era of your life - Moana is the answer.
To find out more or book a consultation visit https://www.bstyledforlife.com.au/ or https://www.facebook.com/moana.robinson
Featured Authors There is a wealth of books featured this month, with genres ranging from children's books, through sci fi, crime, romance, poetry, autobiographical, erotica, finance and wealth creation to name a few - I'm sure there is something here to suit anyone's taste. Laney Smith Laney Smith is an American author born in Little Rock, AR. The mother of two sons is best known for the Lock Creek:Time Capsule Series, which won a "books-to-screen" competition and is currently being adapted for television. Smith spent her childhood in Texarkana, TX before moving to Aurora, CO in her teen years. She has also lived in a small town in Northern Mississippi, just south of Memphis, TN. Since 2008, Smith has lived in sunny Southern California and attributes her ability to create realistic, worldly characters to her experiences living in various locales. Laney’s latest book is Threshold It is said that when one door closes, another one opens. In the Kingsley house, however, the doors close...a lot. Unfortunately, there are also doors that are opened. Especially after Tyson Kingsley finds an old journal that belonged to a voodoo priestess, Addie Lafrachet, from two hundred years ago. Through the entries, Tyson learns that the man who originally owned the home, John Dawson, was a disturbed man that enjoyed torturing and murdering others. The journal paints a horrific picture, including a rape that led to the birth of fraternal twins - one girl and one boy. John orders the death of the baby girl, not knowing about the baby boy. When the baby boy is left on a doorstep, bloodlines become confused and it is up to Tyson to unravel the mystery to find John and Addie's descendants and a box of ashes to finally set the spirits of Rain Hill Mansion free. With one mystery entangling another, Tyson, himself, could become trapped in the threshold between two worlds. Facebook: www.facebook.com/ONEYEARSTIME Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Laney-Smith/e/B00LOZDHLO Barnes and Noble: https://m.barnesandnoble.com/s/Laney+Smith Kristy Mickelsen is a 41-year-old wife and mother, whose passions include her two autistic children, and reading and writing. She was born in Upland California, and raised in Riverside, then eventually moved to Hesperia. She has an Associate of Science Degree with a major in Child Development. Kristy’s latest book is Lady for Hire Savanna Clark was no stranger to hardship. At twenty-four years of age, she had lost everything important to her and was living in her car out on the streets . Wade Sorensen, a recently widowed forty-year-old emergency room doctor with a six-month-old daughter, was having trouble balancing his job and caring for his infant daughter. When Wade places an ad in the newspaper for a live-in Nanny to care for his daughter and run his household, Savanna applies for the position hoping to get off the streets. Neither of them expected to fall in love She was sixteen years younger than him, with no experience with love or children. He was older, more experienced in life with an established career and infant daughter. Will they give into love or will their age difference and a series of tragic events keep them apart? https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B08J5HNF56/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1600282785&sr=8-2t
Billy Nahn Love in the eye of the Storm A dramatic true story about being on a Caribbean Island during one of the largest hurricanes in modern history. Love, friendship, survival, and gracious luck all come into play during this harrowing ordeal. This story has won two awards and much acclaim. This is an audio book voiced by National Recording sensation Roger Leopardi. He brings a special talent to the story. A powerful retelling that will leave the listener enriched, emotional, and full of hope. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085DKPSCJ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_hGzzEbMV6TT0P Marilyn Anderson is an award-winning writer for film and television. She is writer-producer of the family film, “How to Beat a Bully” and co-writer of a new romantic comedy, “Cold Feet – A Wedding Tale” to film in South Africa. On television, Marilyn has written for Murphy Brown, FAME, Quantum Leap, Sherman Oaks, Friday the 13th-the Series, and others. She was on the writing staff of Carol & Company, starring Carol Burnett. One of her movies, “Making Mr. Right,” aired on Lifetime TV.Marilyn was honored by the Writers Guild of America as a writer on the WGA’s list of 101 Best Written TV Series over the past seven decades. In addition, she won a LUMINAS Award for the Positive Depiction of Women in Film and Television from the organization Women in Film. Her movie, “How to Beat a Bully” won Best Feature Film at a Film Festival and Marilyn was a judge for over 15 years for the most important screenwriting contest in the world.In the publishing world, Marilyn is the author of “How to Live Like a MILLIONAIRE When You’re a Million Short.” The book was featured in Forbes and USA Weekly, and won an Award as the Best Book on Saving Money & Living Well of the Year. Her newest book is an exciting mystery-thriller, “Dishonor Thy Father,” which she coauthored with Mike Robinson and her screenwriting partner, Richard Rossner, with whom she shares the pen name, M.J. Richards. (Marilyn is the M.J.; her partner Richard is the Richards.) Ms. Anderson’s humorous relationship book, "NEVER KISS A FROG: A Girl’s Guide to Creatures from the Dating Swamp,” is published in 10 countries. With her dog Boomer, Marilyn co-authored “MUTTweiler: An AutoDOGography.” She is writerproducer of two Web Series based on her books Marilyn is also a produced playwright. Her new play, “As Good as Gold – A Comedy about Women and Gender Parity in Hollywood,” is scheduled for production in Los Angeles next year. Ms. Anderson’s background includes acting, improvisation, and stand-up comedy, as well as teaching courses in screenwriting. In addition to developing new projects, Marilyn is available as a keynote speaker and screenwriting consultant. Co-Author, DISHONOR THY FATHER www.dishonorthyfather.comAuthor, How to Live Like a MILLIONAIRE When You're a MILLION Short www.HowtoLiveLikeaMillionaire.com Writer-Producer, How to Beat a Bully www.HowtoBeataBullyTheMovie.comAuthor, Never Kiss a Frog: A Girl's Guide to Creatures from the Dating Swamp www.neverkissafrog.com310-502-4047
Dr. Dawn Menge has won thirty-one national awards as the author of the Queen Vernita educational series. She holds a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction, a master’s degree and a Clear Credential in moderate/severe disabilities, and a bachelor’s degree in human development. Dr. Menge has been teaching severely handicapped students for nineteen years. She has three children and five beautiful grandchildren and lives in Southern California. Queen Vernita Visitors educational adventure series has 10 books which have won 41 awards including several in film festivals. https://www.drdawnmenge.com/t
H.G Ahedi Has four books incorporating the genres of thrillers, mystery and scien The latest is Transcendence
World War II has forced Zane Carter to become a survivor, a fierce soldier and a godless man whose hands are covered in blood. After a horrendous explosion he finds himself trapped in Nazi-occupied France. With no means of escape, Zane endeavors to stay low, but it is not easy surviving behind enemy lines. Every day he is tormented by the horrors of war, his tumultuous past, and strange visions. He wishes nothing but death. As days pass, Zane discovers that the world around him is not what it appears to be. A dark force, far more dangerous than the Nazis, looms in the shadows. As he begins to put the pieces together, he discovers that he is a soldier fighting more than one war, in a broken world and he is running out of time. If he fails, he could not only lose his life, but also jeopardize the future of Humanity. https://www.amazon.com.au/s?i=digital-text&rh=p_27%3AH.G+Ahedi&s=relevancerank&text=H.G+Ahedi&ref=dp_byline_sr_ebooks_1
Alexandra Antipa Alexandra Antipa is an author, freelance writer, and translator. She has been putting words on paper ever since she can remember. An avid reader, she always finds the answers she needs between the pages of a good book. Her book LittleBig Detectives is featured this month. Lorelai is a little girl who adores mysteries. Her partner is Niami, a cat with a nose for fishy business. Together, they are the LittleBig Detectives and they have a very important mission: catching misbehaving toys in the act and teaching them a lesson. The two detectives are ready to change the world of the apartment in which they live. Join them in their adventures, as they fight crime and uphold justice. Prepare yourself for a wonderful mix of adventure and mystery. Newspapers are stolen, eggs get broken and riddles are written on mirrors... you are in for a real treat! https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/B08F6MVH6T
Hana Esselink The Vanishing Cafe The café had a mystical – almost holy – vibe. It’s where Nina - the narrator, had felt most alive. It was an intriguing place with a mix of quirky ‘regulars’ that helped shape the beliefs and personality of Nina after the death of her beloved grandmother. It was in the cafe that Nina had met people who had opened her eyes to the world and to the worlds behind the world. Nina finally found the answers to difficult questions amidst the array of cafe goers, including the philosophical James, the enigmatic Buddhist Eric and the temperamental Brazilian cafe owner, Davla. They were small-p philosophers, Tarot-card readers, wise misfits and inspired eccentrics. Their personal stories help Nina in her search for the 'truth' as she embarks on a magical journey through her imagination, brought to life in the café. Her questions about faith, life and death, mingled with the stories of everyday losses and joys, stir the café to provide answers in very unusual ways. But when Nina returns to the café after a five year absence, she finds that it has closed down. Had its red canopy truly shaded a doorway to higher consciousness? Or had it all just been her imagination? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Vanishing-Caf%C3%A9-Hana-Esselink/dp/1909979546/ref=nodl_
Lee Attard is the creator of Toon World that features a range of loveable characters. Lee’s latest children’s book is called The Crocodile Who Couldn’t Swim https://www.toon.world/the-crocodile-who-couldnt-swim/
Kayla Kathawa Heavy Things For every person that has experienced pain, longing, desire, loneliness or neglect, for those people who struggle with food or their bodies, for the ones who are fighting and conquering depression, anxiety or both, for everyone who has loved and continues to love, who fears love but who also craves it, for anyone who has ever desired, lusted, burned for another, for the individuals, old and young, who have experienced the roller coaster of all of these things at once, Heavy Things is a collection of poetry for you. It is one book with four parts of free-flowing, rhythmic and rhyming poems with no stylistic bounds, that are devoted to you and telling your story. Heavy Things will bring tears, smiles and invigorated applause. It will seduce you carefully and make your heart skip. These poems will tell you more about yourself than even you knew. These poems are for you. Poetry Collection “heavy things” https://www.amazon.com/dp/1658222539/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fab_KBzDFbF16112C https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08J659XWG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_yCzDFbC7A6VXPt
Nahdlee Timms is the author of two books of erotic fiction A Remote Affair Maybe it was a fetish. Maybe it was the way he was raised. Whatever it was, Shawn Kerrigan had a such a fascination with the euphoric state of a woman during her orgasm, he invested in perfecting the “toys” for her enjoyment. He liked the idea of being able to control women’s pleasure via remote controls. In his quest to discretely test his naughty products, he flies from his home in Florida to Memphis, Tennessee to hire an escort, Araya (known as Abby during the day time) for twenty-four hours. Maybe he’s crazy. Maybe she’s mesmerized by this wild man’s inventions. And, just maybe, time flies when you’re having fun. Or maybe twenty-four hours was never going to be enough time. Nahdlee's latest is Mr Montgomery. Both books can be found on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/s?i=digital-text&rh=p_27%3ANadlee+Thims&s=relevancerank&text=Nadlee+Thims&ref=dp_byline_sr_ebooks_1
Caroline Gilbert Unraveled, Time to Tell is about a life of secrets turned into heart-opening revelations from God and how a questionable death can change life and leave a young girl vulnerable and unwanted. This change leads to many consequences and puts in front of her choices she was unaware of and ashamed of. This girl lived her married life concealing these secrets, even from her own children. This memoir tells how her life of unhappy, undesired, and unexpected actions after a death could be replaced with joy, peace, and contentment from God through His Word and His revelations. Her now-grown children heard for the first time her life’s details through this book—her letter to them. Their responses included “wow,” “shocking,” “incredible to have survived,” and “a testimony of God’s redemption.” https://carolelgilbert.wordpress.com/the-book/ And finally from South African blogger and poet Yacoob Let it Flow is my debut anthology, consisting of poetry and reflections I've written over a period of more than ten years. It's a deeply personal collection of material written through my twenties and thirties...a creative chronicle of my struggles, growth, observations, and journey – from an insecure young man, to the quest for marriage, fatherhood that followed, and adapting to the toils of adult responsibility, after a childhood that didn’t prepare me for such burdens. I hope it will inspire others, encourage those going through difficulty, and generally just be of some kind of benefit – however readers choose to interpret the material. The e-book version is available worldwide on all the major platforms, with a printed edition available in South Africa only. ore info at: https://dreamlife.wordpress.com/book. Corona Times: Words from the Pandemic is a collection put together by a colleague and I in the space of roughly two months. This year - the first few months of lockdown, especially - has been absolutely unique for most of us, and with this book, I wanted to capture the living reality of life under lockdown. The emotions, anxieties, fears, hopes, positive lessons...the human side. Because years and decades down the line, this period will be recorded in history - but in statistics and news stories. Mere facts and figures which will fade into our past, while so much of the deeper experience is lost, remaining only in the memories of those of us who lived through it. So, I collected material from writers around the world - pieces that really spoke to me, and acted as good representatives of this period - and put it all together into this book, which is available completely free. My colleague and I - who put this together - are not publishing professionals. We both work in communications - she's a graphic designer and I'm stronger with the writing - and we combined our efforts to put together this book. It's available as a PDF download here and also on Google Play Books.
And finally - mine...
Healing the Broken Things was published in late 2019, and is my first book of poetry. "May you live in interesting times" the old Chinese curse played out on my life for a decade or so. This small collection of poems was taken from that time . This poetry particularly resonates with women given the themes around relationships, caring for and losing elderly loved ones, growing older and suddenly finding yourself the owner of an empty nest. That said, a surprising amount of men have also told me they loved it. The heart is certainly not a gender specific organ
The Steps We Take Within by comparison is from a relatively short period of time, I'm a well established poet now, who writes prolifically. This collection spans about six months, but the lessons come from a lifetime. There is nearly one hundred poems in the book which was released last month. As always, I write from my life experience, so the poetry is philosophical and autobiographical in content. Relationships, emotions, spirituality - all the human stuff we have to deal with is here, told through the eyes of one human but resonating with many, because we are more the same than we are different. You can find my books on the links below. Thanks for reading, see you next month! https://www.amazon.com.au/Steps-We-Take-Within-ebook/dp/B08GZZ24LG
https://www.amazon.com.au/Healing-Broken-Things-Athousandbitsofpaper-com-Anthologyebook/dp/B0813Q3PF6