Interview With Author Amanda McKoy Flanagan
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am Amanda McKoy Flanagan, author, podcaster, blogger, and motivational speaker. A native New Yorker turned Coloradan, I blend street smarts with tree hugging for a sensible and spiritual approach to loving and losing; I am no stranger to either. Co-founder of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Castle Rock Clubhouse, a recovery clubhouse that serves as meeting space for various twelve-step programs, I'm passionate about sobriety, meditation, and spirituality. Through my commitment to climate action, I hold the spirit of loving-kindness, faithful perseverance, and compassionate service in high regard. A lover of horses, drumming, running, vegan eating, and dancing, I also enjoy singing with abandon to loud rock music, sometimes while driving a little too fast!
I hold a bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York at Albany in English and journalism and a master’s degree in social work from Stony Brook University, New York. Nevertheless, life has been my greatest teacher by far. I live in Castle Rock, Colorado, with my family and pup, Dolly.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Trust Yourself to Be All In: Safe to Love and Let Go.
Three years of intense healing around grief and generational family dysfunction (false messages I carried with me my entire life about love and loss) inspired this book.
My brother died from an overdose in March of 2018 and shortly after, my marriage took a big hit. I spent a few years unraveling what I call "The Great Myth:" a deeply-rooted belief that everyone leaves me or hurts me so I must protect my heart and always love a little less. This allowed me to keep a certain amount of emotional distance from my husband, one that I thought would keep me safe should anything happen to him (he is a 9/11 first responder with chronic respiratory illness and also 12 years older than me). "The Great Myth" was an unconscious belief that forced me to emotionally protect instead of love with an open heart, and my brother's death brought this belief to the surface. In 2021, I experienced a moment of divine inspiration and my book was born.
I wholeheartedly believe many others are suffering from this same false narrative, now more than ever. COVID and the 2020 election created a severe disconnection within humanity and I knew I had to use my story (pain turned into purpose) to help bridge people back to their true self and to one another. This is more than an inspirational memoir. It's a guidepost to collective healing, for "When you heal, I heal, and we heal, the world heals."
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
This book was born on my treadmill. I would listen to music and run, and the lyrics and beat coupled with the endorphins was a moving meditation that put me in a space to feel things and know things; it helped me to connect the dots of my life and the reason for my experiences, mostly the pain, and then understand the lessons. Ideas and thoughts rushed in frantically, too quickly to write, so I would talk into the notes app of my phone, email it to myself, and find a place for it in the manuscript. It was a puzzle that came together perfectly (after about 4 rewrites!). No outline, just trust.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Brene Brown, Braving the Wilderness
Gabby Bernstein, The Universe Has Your Back
Wayne Dyer
Kathryn Shulz
Thich Nhat Hanh
Ram Dass, Walking Each Other Home
Emily Dickenson
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Edgar Allen Poe
What are you working on now?
Marketing my book, writing my blog, and producing my podcast, Sol Rising: All In on Love, Loss, and Connection.
I have written a prologue for a potential realistic fiction novel and I have many other ideas on the back burner. I am also submitting articles to magazines to be published.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
https://www.amandamckoyflanagan.com/
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Dig deep. Get as honest and vulnerable as possible. If you are writing a memoir and you haven't cried, you haven't gone deep enough.
For other genres, ask whoever or whatever you think is out there helping you to understand your purpose (God, Higher Power, universe, spirit) for inspiration and guidance and just start.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Show don't tell…and stop posturing!
What are you reading now?
The Alchemist, Paulo Coehlo
The Other Year, Rea Frey
Wild, Cheryl Strayed
I always have more than one book going at a time!
What’s next for you as a writer?
I'm waiting for my next big download, a moment of divine inspiration. If it takes too long, I'm going to continue fleshing out my outline for that realistic fiction book I mentioned above and jump in!
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous
Trust Yourself to Be All In
Living Buddha, Living Christ
Author Websites and Profiles
Amanda McKoy Flanagan Amazon Profile
Amanda McKoy Flanagan’s Social Media Links
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