Courageous Wordsmith Podcast Por Amy Hallberg arte de portada

Courageous Wordsmith

Courageous Wordsmith

De: Amy Hallberg
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 How do we listen to our muses and show up for our dreams? Story coach, book writing mentor & author Amy Hallberg (she / her) presents conversations with real-life creatives. Because if you want to be a real-life creative, it helps to know what that looks like for you.©Courageous Wordsmith 2019-2022 Arte Ciencias Sociales Espiritualidad Historia y Crítica Literaria Relaciones
Episodios
  • Life as a Songwriter

    Life as a Songwriter
    Jul 14 2025

    From Amy:

    I am not a fangirl. I'm not that person who waits at the stage door to talk with famous people after a concert or someone who would approach a famous person at a restaurant to ask for an autograph. I'd rather go home and sleep than attend a loud afterparty where I have to engage in group small talk. Better still, I love to connect one on one, in a quieter setting, uninterrupted, around the stories behind the performance.

    Which is why this podcast episode is both surprising and not. Because it's all about connecting through creativity on genuine, human level.

    I've heard Jeremy Messersmith's name around the Twin Cities for years. His music is frequently played on The Current, the Minnesota Public Radio music station. Some years back, I heard that he was doing these house concerts where he played his ukulele in people's living rooms. Last summer, I attended one of these parties where I had a front row seat and interacted more with Jeremy than I would have expected. Afterwards, over catered appetizers, we got into a conversation around the parallels between his creative process and mine.

    Which led to this conversation around Jeremy Messersmith's creative process, and where he gets his inspiration and courage.

    In a world where it's loud out there and human presence feels increasingly rare, Jeremy has found a way to perform his songs and connect with people personally, much in the intimate way that a storyteller does. He's sharing this human experience. And it goes beyond performance to the creation. Jeremy interacts with fellow musicians to write his music, and his engagement with audience members reflects back meaning.

    And isn't that why we create?

    It's a good conversation. Enjoy.

    Travel safely,

    Love, Amy

    PS—Twin Cities real-life creatives....read below for my take on an interactive living room party for writers.

    Jeremy Messersmith is a singer/songwriter based in Minneapolis, MN.

    Instagram @jeremymessersmith

    Jeremy's linktree

    Coming Sunday, August 10, 9:45–noon in St. Paul, Minnesota: Courageous Wordsmith Sunday Morning

    Interested in my iteration of a Courageous Wordsmith Twin Cities living room party, inspired in part by Jeremy's idea? Join us for my first-ever Courageous Wordsmith Sunday Morning, part parallel writing session, part reflective circle. Get inspired in the company of kindred writers.

    $25 for a session, FREE for members of the Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life Writers.

    Email me at amy @ amyhallberg (dot) com for the details and payment link.

    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
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    31 m
  • My Greatest Fear Became Freedom

    My Greatest Fear Became Freedom
    Jun 23 2025
    From Amy:Timing for creative work is interesting. Sometimes you start a project that, for whatever reason, doesn't want to come together right then. Later the perfect timing arises, and you understand that this project was preparing itself to meet the moment.I recorded this conversation with Sigrid K. Nielsen two years ago; then my podcast went on a forced hiatus. (As in, my editor quit to be a musician, causing me to rework my production process.) Which meant that this and other conversations never got produced, but I kept them in reserve.Now it's Pride Month 2025; now is the moment.What I said then is equally true today: Sigrid K Nielsen lights up a room. I have spent time with her on many occasions, live and on Zoom calls, 1:1 and in groups, and she's never been anything but her most authentic, fully expressed, and yes, BLISSFUL, free self. That’s a choice on her part. When you read Sigrid‘s book (forthcoming) you'll see what I mean: Sigrid is incredibly vibrant. But you don't have to wait for the book to meet her. You can listen today.Be forewarned, Sigrid will force you to rethink things you thought you were certain of. Because she sure has rethought things. Courageously so.Back to the timing: As I release this episode, it's Monday, June 23. I wanted to release it on Friday, but that just didn't want to happen, even though it was ready. All the things were conspiring to delay publication. Then on Saturday evening, we learned that bombs were illegally dropped on Iran without notice and without any justification except to make an old man feel good about himself. As with so much right now, there is so much distraction.And I'm going to say this part out loud: Othering trans people, making them scapegoats for all the harms in the world, is keeping US ALL from being who WE ALL truly are, seeing what's right there for us to see. WE ALL have it in us to be compassionate, kind, loving people, when we're not running scared from each other. But that requires awareness.We can make another choice.This othering is not a new tactic. It was there in the 30's in Germany, when trans people were targeted (we forget that part because their libraries, their history, their rich artistic culture was obliterated), and it was there in the 80's when Sigrid and I were coming of age, and only rockstars could dress as they wanted. Because it was a "costume."Performance, you see. Heaven forbid YOU be queer. Or other. Sigrid’s former self knew that assignment.But that required hiding in plain sight. Even from yourself. And once you're aware of what's really there, you can't not see it. Pretending not to see is exhausting. You want to stop making believe.Isn’t that true for us all?Sigrid is a trans woman who transitioned at nearly 50 years old. AND. This is who she's always been.As much as I have always recognized Sigrid's voice as powerful, her writing sublime, her presence uplifting and joyous, there has never been a moment when her message was more essential.We have solutions to find for our one small, beautiful planet's great problems. Queer people are not one of those problems. They deserve all the love.They are leading the way, ahead of their time.It's going to require all of us to face our deepest fears and embrace our most profound gifts. Our humanity. And to be abundantly clear, this doesn't mean YOU have to be TRANS. Unless you are.We need YOU to be YOU. That's our agenda.Because, as Sigrid often reminds me, though our stories may look vastly different on the surface— hers is from the perspective of a trans woman who came out at midlife, and mine is a different kind of midlife revival—our real-life stories are universal.We are all human and we are all in this together.Thanks Sigrid!Love, AmySigrid K. Nielsen stepped into her truth in May 2021 and has been living her best self ever since. Her life is better now than anything she ever imagined in her wildest dreams. She works with people and companies as a speaker, coach, and Financial Advisor. 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 AudiobooksLearn about Courageous Wordsmith Circle for Real-Life WritersWork with Amy 1:1
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    31 m
  • Permission to Upspiral

    Permission to Upspiral
    Jun 9 2025

    From Amy:

    Cara Pacific Campbell was the first person who took me up on my offer of a 1:1 Book Writing Mentorship and put her trust in me. I was grateful that someone so vibrant felt drawn to working with me, but looking back, it makes perfect sense. When we are paying attention, we're drawn to our people. Cara and I are both high-performing women who worked way too hard and paid a steep price with our health.

    As in, our bodies made us quit our careers when our minds thought that we could—had to—power through. Instead, we were sidelined.

    And why did we think we had to power through? Well... how else would we have any meaningful impact in life? How else did we have value? Which is a societal misperception that has needed addressing for a very long time. What we've been through, many are going through now.

    Also... we are both people who communicate who we are through our colors of choice. I think of Cara in vibrant yellows and reds.

    These lively signature colors are very much at odds with what Cara was living with in her battle with chronic Lyme disease.

    There's a huge silver lining. Cara finally connected to her dreams of work in Peru, tapping into ancient knowledge that now infuses this book. And hey, I taught beginning Spanish for a few years. I've always thought that teaching Spanish was a way station on the journey to something beyond that. This book was one of those meaningful stops on the journey. Oh, and also...

    Pretty sure that Cara and I are going to host a Writing Revival in Peru someday.

    Picture yourself there with us. How awesome would that be?

    Meanwhile, you can actively witness the culmination of her book journey if that's calling to you, or simply take courage from hearing how it came into being. Me? I got to help Cara infuse this book with her witty, deep, infectious wisdom. I feel profoundly proud and grateful to know that I was there at Cara's beginning as an author, and that she was there at my beginning as a book writing mentor.

    What a beautiful testament to my vision for Courageous Wordsmith.

    It's a full-circle episode and it feels like that.

    Enjoy!

    Cara Pacific Campbell is a top-performing sales leader turned author, coach, and resilience expert. After a medical collapse ended her high-achieving career, she began an unexpected healing journey—one that blends neuroscience, ancient wisdom, and the gritty reality of burnout recovery. Her upcoming book is part memoir, part roadmap for ambitious women ready to succeed without self-destructing. Cara helps high performers reconnect with their power, rewrite their patterns, and rise—on their own terms.

    Cara's Links:

    www.linkedin.com/in/carapacificcampbell

    https://www.instagram.com/carapacificcampbell/

    https://www.facebook.com/carapacific

    Join the book mailing list

    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
    Más Menos
    30 m
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