The Storytelling with Heart Podcast

Do you want to inspire and motivate people? Want to build a community, or rally people around your cause? Need to get buy-in (and potentially funding) for your idea, mission, or organization? If so, this episode is a must-listen, featuring Sandy Dang. Sandy Dang is a social entrepreneur, leadership trainer, community organizer, and management consultant. She is the Co-founder and Principal of Co-lnnovate Consulting, a company that provides leadership training, capacity building, and strategic planning to companies, foundations, and nonprofits. Born in Hanoi, Sandy left Vietnam when she was ten years old. After living in rural China and Hong Kong refugee camps, Sandy resettled in the United States at the age of thirteen. Sandy went from a childhood without books and very limited education, to being the only kid who didn’t speak English in her school, to becoming an internationally recognized speaker, leader, educator, and master storyteller. Most of all, Sandy has used her experiences and stories to empower others. For more than a decade, she served as Founder and Executive Director of Asian American Leadership, Empowerment, and Development (AALED) an organization that supports refugee families through a broad array of educational and social services. Sandy was also appointed by President Obama to serve as Executive Director of the Vietnam Education Foundation (VEF). These days, Sandy teaches leaders — especially community organizers, and founders of mission-driven organizations — how to use storytelling to enhance their leadership capacity, and inspire and motivate others. She serves people all over the world, and works in both the US and Asia, including Vietnam and Thailand. In this episode, you’ll hear Sandy’s inspiring story, and gain all kinds of useful intel about powerful, purposeful storytelling. Themes we explore: – Storytelling as a survival tool: Sandy details how she used storytelling to get support, gather resources, build community, and navigate life in the US (even when she was just learning to speak English) – Using your story to help others: Sandy shares how she used her story to build her non-profit, going from $15,000 to over $1.7 million dollars in its annual budget – The truth: Why the heart of storytelling is truth-telling, and how honesty and authenticity are essential to build connection, community, and support – The healing power of storytelling: Why telling your story might be one of the most healing and important things you can do for yourself, and for others – The power of public narrative: How to translate your lived experience into a story that demonstrates your values and makes people feel inspired and motivated to join your cause – Taking control of your own story: Why leaders need to share stories about themselves; how to use your story to build trust; and the problem with letting other people decide your story for you – The three stories all leaders must have in their arsenal — plus, Sandy’s process for putting the stories together into a cohesive narrative. – “This will only work in the US, not here”: How to adapt the concepts of personal storytelling for a more community-oriented mindset, and how to work around concerns about humility and bragging – Tips for trainers, coaches, facilitators, and leaders: Sandy distills her advice into her #1 takeaway. Practical advice, heartfelt insight, and an inspiring and uplifting story…this episode has it all.

How do you know if you’re becoming a better writer? What kinds of things should you focus on to improve your writing skills? And for that matter, should you even bother trying to improve? Why not just take shortcuts? If you’re a thought leader (or you want to be), or just someone who wants to express their thoughts and ideas more effectively, you’ve come to the right place. Communicating effectively is a MUST to get your ideas across and make an impact. But it’s so much more than that. Strengthening your writing skills can be immensely satisfying—especially when you can observe (and many even celebrate) your progress. In this “Coaching with Cam” episode of the Storytelling with Heart podcast, Camille explores: - The value of improving in the first place…why sucking at a thing and being a beginner is awesome, and why it’s worth putting in the work to improve your skills - Why the skill of writing *still matters*, and why it’s worth fighting for, even if you use other services or experts (like me!) to help you do it better - How to avoid the danger of “de-skilling” yourself — and keep building your skills (rather than eroding them) - Why you shouldn’t rely entirely on audience feedback to know whether your writing is improving - Top 10 signs your writing is improving…some signs and signals that indicate your work is getting better (regardless of audience response!) Along the way, you’ll get some great hints and tips about how to improve your writing too!

Communications — particularly professional, technical, and educational materials — can easily become boring, unrelatable, or stiff. How do you write, speak, and educate in ways that other people will actually enjoy? And, how do you make the process more meaningful, engaging, and interesting for yourself? These are the kinds of questions I explore with Dr. Krista Scott-Dixon. Dr. Krista Scott-Dixon is an expert coach, communicator, and thought leader in the fitness and health industry. She has more than 20 years in fitness and health coaching under her belt, and 10 years of university teaching and course direction. Krista is currently the Product Director at Simple, a nutrition app with global reach. Previously she served as Director of Curriculum at Precision Nutrition, leading the development of the PN Academy and PN Certifications. She is the author of several books and co-author of textbooks, many of which we worked on together, plus she has an extensive portfolio of academic publications, book chapters, articles, and reports, not to mention own self-published book Why Me Want Eat. Before working with Precision Nutrition, Krista was a researcher and faculty member at York University in Toronto. In the mid-1990s, her website Stumptuous.com was one of the first to promote women's weight training, and since then she's focused on helping people make meaningful change. She has lectured and taught internationally across North America as well as in the UK, Ireland, China, Australia, and Southeast Asia. Krista is undoubtedly a professional communicator, but she has also built her career around making her communications relatable, playful, interesting, and fun (even funny) — even when they cover technical, educational, and/or “serious” material. In our conversation, I dig into Krista’s process, sifting through her childhood experiences, her personal beliefs and habits, and some of the methods she uses in her own life and work as both a coach and communicator. Through our conversation, we explore how we can all communicate better by employing humor, empathy, curiosity, experimentation, collaboration, play, and getting out of our own boxes. We cover: → The value of letting your freak flag fly. → Why empathy is non-negotiable for all communicators, and how to cultivate it. → Why interest, curiosity, and skill are such a powerful combination, and how to nurture them. → The danger of waiting for someone else to give you permission to create your thing. → Where good ideas ACTUALLY come from, and the problem with “The Great Man” theory. → The role of practice, rigor, feedback, experimentation, and collaboration in developing and refining your ideas and knowledge… and why you should never try to develop good ideas in isolation. → How to get out of your own box or comfort zone, and why you should seek out unfamiliar and deeply uncomfortable experiences. → The role of play in communications and creative work, and some unusual ways to make your work more playful. → The difference between Creator Brain vs Editor Brain, and why (and how) you need to put the Creator Brain in the driver’s seat. → Plus, a fun assignment to challenge writer’s block. Follow Krista on Instagram (@stumptuous) on Facebook (www.facebook.com/coach.krista.scottdixon) or Linkedin.

Life can throw some pretty big stuff at us. If we’re lucky, we live to tell the tale. Then the question becomes: how do we tell that tale? How do we turn our most challenging experiences into meaningful stories that will help other people? For some inspiration on this subject, look no further than Jennifer Broxterman, RD. Jennifer Broxterman is a Registered Dietitian and founder of both NutritionRx (her private practice) and PROSPER Nutrition Coaching, a world-class nutrition certification for gym owners and coaches. She is also a stage 3 ovarian cancer survivor who was given less than an 8% chance of living to 5 years. Five years later, Jen is healthy, thriving, and actively sharing her story. Her journey—spanning years of undiagnosed symptoms, a terrifying prognosis, a difficult surgery, and a remarkable recovery—is emotional, challenging, and ultimately inspiring. This episode is a bit of a departure from my usual format; as you’ll hear, most of this episode is Jen telling her own story. There’s lots to learn, simply by listening to Jen and hearing how she walks us through the chain of events that turned her life upside down. Her story is not only inspiring and powerful to listen to, it’s also a useful example of how to tell a personal story. That said, we do dig into some details about the storytelling process including: → The importance of personally processing traumatic events before sharing your story publicly, and why this will make the whole storytelling process easier and less emotionally exhausting. → The mindset tools Jen used to not only make it through her most difficult moments but also to help her process and share them with others. → Why it’s worth considering the big idea you want to leave behind in the world. → The value of building your communications around the needs and interests of your audience. (Plus, a simple principle to ensure you’re communicating clearly and effectively for your audience.) → How to share the “messy guts” of your story while it’s still happening. (Here, Jen provides her thoughts on social media, why she chose to share the details of her journey publicly, and what happened as a result.) → And finally, how to use your story to help other people… and why podcasts might be a great place to start. To access the free tools and materials Jen referenced on this call, check out https://www.prospernutritioncoaching.com/freebies, or find Jen on Instagram at @prosper_nc and @nutrition_rx

Chandra Crawford is a high-energy seasoned speaker, an Olympic Gold Medalist and 3 x Olympian in Cross Country Skiing born and raised in Canmore, Alberta, Canada. After retiring from ski racing in 2014, Chandra completed her MBA at the University of Calgary, got married, continued to lead the national charity she founded in 2005 ("Fast and Female") and had 4 kids. Chandra’s purpose is to share her high-vibe energy and growth mindset to help people turn their challenges into opportunities. Her speaking topics include Beating Burnout, Excellence, Resiliency, Positive Rivalries and Mental Health as well as custom topics. With great vulnerability and humility, Chandra shares not only stories of her Olympic win in 2006 but also the lows of her life such as the loss of her younger brother to addictions and her own struggles with eating disorders – all in service of connecting with her audience. In this episode, we explore what it really takes to overcome your inner critic, embrace vulnerability, and show the real you. (And why it’s absolutely worth doing.) Topics we cover: → How to handle your inner critic – Chandra shares the challenges she’s faced with her inner critic throughout her life, walks us through the mental performance strategies she used to outwit her inner critic while training for the Olympics, AND explains how she deals with her inner critic throughout the course of her daily life. → How self-compassion changed Chandra’s life, why it’s ideal for high-achievers, and why she really wants you to give it a try. (Plus, a super simple way to practice it.) → How Chandra learned to “take it easy on the gold medal stories” and lean into the relatable details of her life that make a bigger impact with audiences. → How challenging it can feel to “put yourself out there” and give keynotes, create courses, or share your story – but why it’s totally worth it. (Plus: how Chandra once “chickened out” but ultimately overcame her fear of telling her most difficult stories.) Towards the end of the interview (46:57) Chandra turns the tables on Camille and seeks her advice on storytelling and speechwriting. We cover: - How to make the audience the hero of your story - The narrative arc and why your audience is going on a journey with you - Why you shouldn’t get too worried about doing things “right” and should embrace the process instead.

Storytelling and effective leadership go hand-in-hand. If you’re still on the fence about that — or you’re wondering how to tell the perfect story — listen to this episode. Karen Eber is an author, international leadership consultant, professional storyteller, and keynote speaker. Her talk on TED.com: "How your brain responds to stories – and why they’re crucial for leaders", has almost 2 million views. As the CEO and Chief Storyteller of Eber Leadership Group, Karen helps Fortune 500 companies build leaders, teams, and culture one story at a time. Karen is also the author of the book THE PERFECT STORY: How to Tell Stories that Inform, Influence, and Inspire. In this episode we discuss why leaders and professionals should take the time to tell stories and improve their storytelling skills. Plus, we dive into common questions and challenges that many leaders and communicators face, and explore how anyone can level-up their storytelling skills to make a bigger, better impact. Topics we cover include: → What you should know if you think you’re not a good storyteller: Karen offers inside knowledge, hope, and practical tips if you aren’t good at storytelling (yet). → How to navigate the personal, the professional, and the private when it comes to storytelling. And how to bring enough vulnerability into your storytelling without revealing “too much”. → The difference between David Bowie and Sting, and an easy way to connect better with your audience. (Hint: share more than just the songs.) → How to get started when you don’t know who your audience is. → Tips on public speaking for introverts – how to manage your energy and wellbeing when you’re in the spotlight. → Communicating data – why you need storytelling when sharing data, and why storytelling is more than just data visualization. → When you shouldn’t tell a story; when being straight up and to the point is more effective. → How to handle your fear of disappointing others or not being good enough, and a simple way to move forward if you’re afraid of falling short.

The term “thought leadership” isn’t new, but it feels more like a buzzword than ever. What does thought leadership actually involve? How do you become recognized and respected as a true thought leader in your space? And how do you ensure your efforts actually make a difference, so you’re not just wasting your time? In this “Coaching with Cam” episode, Camille breaks down the two essential elements of thought leadership: both the thoughts, and the leadership. Then, she walks you through a series of thoughtful questions that will help you build an effective strategy for your thought leadership communications. By exploring these foundational considerations you’ll ultimately save time and, more importantly, achieve better, more meaningful results from your communications. Grab a pen because this episode is more like a mini-workshop than a podcast. Make notes as you listen and you’ll be well on your way to developing your own thought leadership strategy — or upgrading your current approach.

It’s easy to get stuck in the same-old, same-old. If you’re like many people these days, you might feel like you have to put your own creative, playful leanings aside for the sake of business or all the responsibilities of adult life. Maybe somewhere along the way, you put your passion projects on the shelf. Or you started playing within your comfort zone, just doing things you’re good at, rather than branching out and trying something new. If any of this rings true for you — or if you simply want a dose of creative inspiration — check out today’s podcast episode. Fair warning, this episode is a bit unusual: rather than a traditional interview, it brings together a group of old friends who explore the lessons they learned from the ‘90s hardcore punk scene. What can a niche subculture (and a group of aging punks) teach us? Turns out, quite a bit. While also covering a bit of ‘90s nostalgia (big pants! Mix tapes!), Camille and her friends explore topics like: (Plus, the proper length for any mixtape!) In this episode, you’ll hear from host Camille DePutter, along with Colleen Burgess, Megan DePutter, Paul Hammond, Lukas Neville, Matt Nish-Lapidus, and Kim Walters.

Do you ever wish you could wave a magic wand and get other people to change? Dr. Rachel Miller did. She initially got into medicine to help people, but wound up feeling frustrated by the lack of leadership training and skill development within the healthcare industry. One day, from within her bathroom with the shower running, Rachel had a realization: maybe she could be the change she was looking for. Today, Dr. Rachel Miller, a distinguished board-certified Obstetrician & Gynecologist, expertly combines her medical expertise with her passion for leadership development. As a Certified Executive Coach and author of “How to Succeed as a Healthcare Leader,” Dr. Miller is dedicated to empowering healthcare leaders to drive meaningful change within their organizations and their private practices. She offers transformative guidance to physician executives and front-line leaders through her company, Pocket Bridges. And, she has an award-nominated podcast, Life, Love, and Leadership for Physicians, where she shares her expertise and interviews experts, including myself. In this podcast, Rachel and I explore how you can positively channel your frustration into impact. We explore how you can positively influence and impact the people around you, including this nugget of wisdom: start with yourself. In our discussion, Rachel comments on the American healthcare system, but there’s wide applicability here for anyone who wants to be a better leader or effect change around them. We explore: ^ This part of the interview is my favourite bit of the show, by the way! If you’re frustrated AF right now, tune in around 39:00 and you’ll get right to the part where we talk about how expressing yourself (through things like writing or podcasting) can help you turn your frustration into something productive and meaningful. When you’re done listening, check Rachel out at wwwpocketbridges.com. You can also find her on LinkedIn – Linkedin.com/in/rachelmillermd – and Instagram as @drrachelmillermd

Do you want to become a more impactful leader, while staying true to your values, your vision, and yourself? Be sure to check out this interview with Jayson Krause. Jayson Krause is a leadership strategist, executive coach, award-winning author, speaker, and the founder of Level 52. He works with leaders running billion-dollar businesses from Singapore to Silicon Valley, helping them to develop strong cultures of innovation and meaningful leadership. Before his career in leadership and coaching, Jayson won four national championships as a Canadian bobsleigh athlete. Much of what Jayson learned about growth and development as a high-performance athlete shapes the work and methodology of Level 52 today through an award-winning framework he developed called The Science Behind Success™. In this episode, we unpack ALLLLLL the business and leadership buzzwords, examining topics like: Plus, the everlasting question… When you’re done listening, be sure to learn more about Jayson and Level52 at www.level52.ca

Have ever thought that if you just put your head down and do great work, eventually you’ll be recognized for your talents? Have you ever felt squeamish about marketing, self-promotion, or talking about yourself? Do you want to get more recognition, more opportunities, and more influence – but you don’t want to spend more time on social media or just “add to the noise”? Enter Lisa Bragg. Lisa Bragg is an author, speaker and advisor who helps leaders navigate savvy self-promotion that is authentic and gets results. She helps high-achievers of all sorts be seen, heard, and share their value with the world. Lisa then takes it a step further to show leaders how to help less visible people on their teams to do the same. Lisa’s book, Bragging Rights: How to Talk about Your Work Using Purposeful Self-Promotion, launched as a best seller in May 2023. Bragging Rights is based on insights from Lisa’s career as an award-winning journalist, entrepreneur and consultant, as well as an extensive international research study on bragging and self-promotion. In this episode, we explore how leaders can embrace purposeful self-promotion to make a bigger impact while staying true to themselves. Topics we cover: Don’t miss this energizing and inspiring episode! And, when you’re done, check out this FREE tool Lisa offers exclusively for podcast listeners: https://www.lisabragg.com/listener-love Be sure to find Lisa at www.lisabragg.com, and follow her on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

In “Coaching with Cam”, Camille takes a break from interviewing guests to share lessons, tips, tricks, and other communications guidance with listeners. In today’s Halloween-themed (but actually timeless) episode, Camille (aka Cam) tackles the scary side of storytelling. Cam explores how fear and vulnerability can stop us from telling our best, most impactful stories — but they don’t have to. She then walks listeners through some simple methods to move through the fear so you can build stronger connections with your audience, and actually enjoy the process. This episode is geared towards Halloween but is relevant to any time of the year, offering some timeless principles for embracing fear and expressing yourself with bold authenticity.

Have you ever wondered whether your personal story could help you professionally? Could sharing your own story help you differentiate yourself, stand out, connect better with people, overcome imposter syndrome, or simply grow as a person? Yes – all of the above, says Coach Jon McLernon. Jon is a nutrition coach who struggled with PTSD, depression, binge-eating, and poor health after a traumatic incident. After recovering and transforming his life, he went on to share his stories—and differentiate himself as a coach. Jon says his story became his biggest asset in business. Since then, he went on to launch Between the Before & After, a podcast that shares inspiring real life stories of remarkable people overcoming significant adversity in their life. On his podcast, Jon has interviewed over 100 individuals about their stories, never shying away from the gritty and vulnerable details that make us messy and human. In this episode, Jon opens up about his own story, how it’s helped him in business and life, and what he’s learned from other people’s stories. We explore: Find Jon and Between The Before And After Podcast here: https://freedomnutritioncoach.com/between-the-before-and-after-podcast/

What does it mean to work (and live) in alignment with your true self? What do the words “authentic” and “heart centered” look like in practice? … And what happens if the things you’re doing, saying, or writing about no longer feel like you? In this episode, I go deep into these concepts with Drima, aka Amir Ahmad Nasr, a multifaceted writer, musician, speaker, and coach. Drima is the founder and head coach at Assertive & Co., where he facilitates a values-based method for awakening creators, coaches and experts to their true voice, so they can grow and lead with more purpose, freedom and fulfillment. Under his given name (Amir Ahmad Nasr), Drima’s writing has been featured and reviewed in over 13 languages including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, The Economist, The Guardian, WIRED, and dozens more telling stories about faith, spirituality, human rights, and human flourishing. Drima brings a human, heart-centered perspective to all of his work and storytelling. In this interview, I ask him to share his thoughts on concepts like authenticity, conviction, vulnerability, and heart-centered. We explore what these words mean in practice, and how to tell stories that deliver not only better results, but also greater satisfaction, meaning, and fulfillment. In this conversation, we explore: If you want to challenge the status quo and work and communicate in a heartfelt way that feels true to you, this episode is a must-listen. Learn more about Drima and Assertive and Co here: https://assertive.co

Want to become a recognized authority in your area of expertise? Then you’ll definitely want to listen to this episode with Rochelle Moulton. A leading voice in the independent consulting space, Rochelle Moulton helps soloists build vibrant authority businesses. Rochelle earned her consulting stripes by leading introverted brainiacs at two powerhouse consulting firms and turning around the failing consulting arm of a Fortune 500 company. She built three professional firms from scratch—including selling one to Arthur Andersen. Rochelle is a champion of independent professionals, aka soloists. She hosts “Soloist Women”, co-hosts “The Business of Authority” podcast, and wrote the book The Authority Code: How To Position, Monetize And Sell Your Expertise. I am delighted to have Rochelle on the show since I’ve been reading and listening to her stuff for years! In this episode we dive into what it means to build authority and reputation, along with authenticity and satisfaction. Topics we cover include: And be sure to check out Rochelle Moulton at rochellemoulton.com.

Do you have habits you want to change… stuff you want to get better at… self doubt you want to overcome? In this episode, Karin Nordin shows us what’s possible. She provides compassionate, science-based guidance for personal and professional growth, while debunking myths about behavior change along the way. Karin Nordin is a PhD expert in behavior change and mindset theory. After graduating with her doctorate, Karin had a striking realization: The typical self-help and productivity approaches of the personal development industry were shockingly inconsistent with the actual research on change. That inconsistency became the fuel for her business Body Brain Alliance, where she’s on a mission to teach compassion-first change techniques that actually work. In this episode, we cover: This is a fantastic episode, full of both practical and compassionate advice. And be sure to find Karin at bodybrainalliance.com, and on Instagram: karinnordinphd and bodybrainalliance.

In “Coaching with Cam”, Camille takes a break from interviewing guests to share lessons, tips, tricks, and other communications guidance with listeners. In today’s episode, Camille (aka Cam) reveals five fundamental communications principles. Here’s the big question: are you communicating effectively with your audience? Many leaders wrestle with what to say and how to say it. Especially when the stakes are high and you’re communicating big ideas or complex issues. You might find that you’re not really sure exactly what to say. How do you define what your key messages are? And, even if you do know what you want to express, how do you say it in a way that is clear and genuinely compelling for your audience? Furthermore, how do you connect with people, and help your audience feel seen and inspired? And what if you seem to be saying “all the right things” but still feel a sense of dissonance or dissatisfaction, either from your audience… or yourself? If any of these concerns strike a chord with you—or you just want to be a better communicator—be sure to listen to today’s episode. Camille explores some of the common traps we can fall into when communicating, and then reviews five principles that are essential for any leader striving for influence and impact. Work on improving / adopting any of these principles and you will start to get better results (and more satisfaction) from your communications. If you are using AI-type tools to help you write, this lesson is even more important, as it will help you remember the basics even as you use technology to help you generate words. At the end of this lesson, Camille also gives you advice on how to begin putting these principles in place. If you want to be a better writer or speaker, or a more persuasive and impactful leader, don’t miss this episode!

The path to leadership (including thought leadership) is never a straight line. Have you ever wondered what it really takes to build a business — and a reputation — around the thing you’re most passionate about? Are you curious about what the journey to thought leadership looks like for someone else? Have you considered writing a book, creating a course or certification, or dreamed of building a mission-driven business or community? This episode will give you insight into all of this, through the lens of someone who has done it. Molly Galbraith is the co-founder of Girls Gone Strong (GGS), the world’s largest platform providing evidence-based health, fitness, nutrition, pregnancy, and menopause education for women and the health and fitness professionals who work with them—including industry-leading certification programs and coaching. Through her GGS Academy, she has certified thousands of professionals in over 125 countries, helping them become the go-to coach for women in their gyms and communities. She's also the author of “Strong Women Lift Each Other Up,” a book dedicated to helping women create a better life for themselves and a better world for women and girls through lifting women up. I’ve been working with Molly and GGS for a number of years. I’ve worked on all of their current certifications including their newly released Menopause Coaching Specialist Certification. And I served as Molly’s storytelling partner in her book Strong Women Lift Each Other Up. In this episode, we give listeners a behind-the-scenes look at what it really takes to make a name for yourself as a thought leader, to become a published author of non-fiction, to create courses and certifications, and to build a business around your passion and your values. Topics we cover include: Learn more about Molly Galbraith and Girls Gone Strong at https://www.girlsgonestrong.com and check out the GGS Menopause Coaching Specialist Certification at https://go.girlsgonestrong.com/menopause-pre-sale-list2

Donna Lichaw is an executive coach, speaker, and author of the Amazon bestseller, The User's Journey and her new book, The Leader’s Journey. Her mission is to help startup founders, tech executives, and senior leaders unlock their leadership potential so that they can make a greater impact and a difference at work and in the world. Donna works with superheroes at companies like Adobe, Amazon, Disney, Google, Logitech, Mailchimp, Twitter, and Trello as well as a ton of non-profits, startups, and scale-ups. And she has taught at technology and innovation programs at New York University, Northwestern University, Parsons School of Design, and the School of Visual Arts. I love the storytelling-based approach Donna takes with her work. If you’re in a leadership position – or growing into one – you’re going to love this episode. Topics we cover include: And so much more. Learn more about Donna (and check out her new book, The Leader’s Journey) at https://www.donnalichaw.com/

Have you ever dreamed of writing a novel? Ever fantasized about seeing YOUR name on the shelves of your favorite book store? Linh Nguyen did. In fact, at a young age, she wrote a letter to her future 30 year old self that said, “congratulations on your first book.” Young Linh was right to have faith in her dreams, because she did it. If you can relate to the dream of writing and publishing (especially if your sights are set on writing children’s books or YA), you’re going to want to listen to this. Linh Nguyen (she/her) is a Vietnamese-Canadian immigrant and writer who specializes in children’s literature and creative non-fiction. Her debut middle-grade fantasy novel, No Place Like Home, was released with HarperCollins Canada in March 2023. Prior to working as a full time author, Linh was working a more “typical” full time job. In this interview we explore how she found time to write, got her book published, and is now living her dream of living and working as a full-time author. In this episode we cover: Linh’s work can be found at www.linhsnguyen.com or more frequently on Instagram @linh.s.nguyen.