Tag

Books

Health & Wellness, Nature, Non Fiction, Psychology

JUL 07: Dr. Rochelle Calvert – Healing with Nature

Mindfulness and Somatic Practices to Heal from Trauma

The WHO says more than 70% of us experience trauma; and 78% of those who’ve had a traumatic experience will develop post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In addition, the average American spends 87% of their time indoors. It’s little wonder many of us spend most of our days with shoulders hunched around our ears.

Psychologist Dr. Rochelle Calvert shares how somatic healing, combined with mindfulness, and nature-based therapy, can help heal trauma and PTSD. We look at the science behind this therapy – and the research that shows the benefits of spending time in nature. We also share how to incorporate Dr. Calvert’s practices into everyday life.

About Dr. Rochelle Calvert

Rochelle Calvert, PhD is a clinical psychologist in private practice in San Diego, and the founder of New Mindful Life. She specializes in mindfulness, nature-based therapy, and somatic experiencing. Dr. Calvert works with individuals struggling with life transitions, depression, anxiety, PTSD, pain conditions, and eating disorders. She also works with families of developmentally delayed children and adults. Healing with Nature: Mindfulness and Somatic Practices to Heal from Trauma is her first book.

Continue reading
Journalism, Non Fiction, Social Issues

JUN 16: Gabrielle Bluestone with Hype (& Why We Fall For It)

How Scammers, Grifters, & Con Artists are Taking Over the Internet – & Why We’re Following

Gabrielle Bluestone says we are at the natural end of a society primed to trust their own emotions over objective, verifiable facts.”   She joins us to share insight into why scammers do it, and why – despite the availability of myriad resources – we blindly believe what we’re told without verifying facts.

From celebrities to politicians, and the little-known, we discuss why we get sucked into their spiel. The role of influencers and social media. How messaging and soundbites create images that can make or break reputations and campaigns. Why Fyre was the greatest festival that never happened. Where greed plays a role. And why you shouldn’t trust cosmetic surgery photos because even they are often digitally altered.

About Gabrielle Bluestone

Gabrielle Bluestone is a journalist and licensed attorney from New York whose writing has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, New York Observer, Sunday Times Magazine, and more. She’s the Emmy-nominated producer of Netflix’s  documentary Fyre. And the associate producer of Different Flowers, winner of the 2017 Kansas City FilmFest Festival Prize.

Continue reading
Non Fiction, Psychology, Self-help, Spirituality

JUN 02: Wendy de Rosa on Becoming an Empowered Empath

Being overly empathic can lead to overwhelm, burn out, and chronic health issues

If you’re feeling this way after the past year or two of turmoil, WENDY de ROSA offers practical, real world solutions.

We discuss ways to stop being a victim to other people’s energy and emotions by Becoming an Empowered Empath. How inherited energy can shape or block you. How trauma, fear, and scarcity, impact your energy body, and what to do about it. How “removing the blindfolds can lead to spiritual growth” … and more.

About Wendy de Rosa

Author Wendy De Rosa is the founder of The School of Intuitive Studies, and a popular faculty member at the Shift Network. She’s been helping empaths develop intuition and experience personal transformation for over two decades. Becoming an Empowered Empath: How to Clear Energy, Set Boundaries, & Embody Your Intuition is Wendy’s second book. 

Continue reading
Fiction, Writers on Writing

MAY 26: Joani Elliott with The Audacity of Sara Grayson

“Do that thing that makes you feel alive.”

JOANI ELLIOTT believes in the magic of stories, a good cup of tea, and the power of living a creative life. So maybe it’s no surprise that her debut novel is about a writer who’s just landed the toughest assignment of her life.

Joani shares great insight into her creative journey, and some of the challenges she faced, while writing her debut novel. Like her willingness as a writer to step into the unknown. Why this former academic had to learn to tap into her own emotions, to gain the truth of her emotional scenes. How she came to terms with the messy process of writing…and more.

About Joani Elliott

Joani Elliott taught writing at the University of Maryland and Brigham Young University. The Audacity of Sara Grayson is her first novel. Find book club resources, virtual author chats, and more at joanielliott.com.

Continue reading
Fiction, Writers on Writing

May 19: The Woman With The Blue Star by NYT Bestseller Pam Jenoff

A testament to the power of friendship & extraordinary will to survive

Today’s guest says, “After 25 years of studying World War II and the Holocaust, when I find a story that makes me gasp, I know I am onto something that will make my readers feel the same way.”

Pam Jenoff returns to Conversations Live to share how Jewish tunnel dwellers, hiding from Nazis, inspired The Woman with the Blue Star. We discuss why Pam had to rewrite her entire first manuscript–and how she did it during the height of a pandemic. How she used the themes of isolation, connection, and unlikely friendships to shape her story. And why she teaches fiction storytelling techniques to her law students.

About Pam Jenoff

Pam Jenoff is the author of 11 novels of historical fiction, including the international bestseller The Kommandant’s Girl. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international affairs, a master’s in history, and a JD. Jenoff’s novels are inspired by her experiences working at the Pentagon and as a diplomat for the State Department handling Holocaust issues in Poland.

Continue reading
Personal Development, Psychology, Self-help

May 12: Go Big Now with Julia Pimsleur

8 Essential Mindset Practices to Overcome Any Obstacle and Reach Your Goals

Many people work out daily to improve their core strength. But how many of us work on developing our core mindset? And what does that even mean? Winners know, for sure, and Julia Pimsleur‘s new book is based on the eight mindset practices that highly successful people have in common.

Today we discuss a little about Neuro-Linguistic Programming and how your brain filters information via its RAS. Why we should pay attention to areas where we feel resistance. What changes when we practice BE-DO-HAVE. How to bust our limiting beliefs. And how women can use the 8 Essential Mindset Practices to help them thrive in the pandemic “She-cession”.

About Julia Pimsleur

Julia Pimsleur is the author of Go Big Now: 8 Essential Mindset Practices to Overcome Any Obstacle and Reach Your Goals and the bestselling Million Dollar Women. She is a master practitioner and coach of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and the founder of the Million Dollar Women social venture. Pimsleur also developed the #1 language teaching company for kids, Little Pim, into a multimillion-dollar business.

Continue reading
History, Journalism, Memoir, Non Fiction

May 05: The Explorer Shipwrecked at the Edge of the World

ICEBOUND by Andrea Pitzer

In the 1500s, William Barents became the first Dutch polar explorer to set sail in an attempt to discover a northern route to China. Andrea Pitzer became fascinated by his story. So much so, that she did what all curious journalists would do—she set sail to retrace his journey.

We discuss what Andrea learned about Barents’ three Arctic expeditions, and some of the little known history around his challenges and successes. Andrea also shares how her own expedition to the Russian Arctic was life changing; what surprised her the most. And the highlight of her experience sailing on a tall ship, where she spent time high up the mast.

About Andrea Pitzer

Icebound: Shipwrecked At The Edge Of The World is the latest book by critically acclaimed author and journalist  Andrea Pitzer. Her writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The New York Review of Books, The Daily Beast, Vox, and Slate. Andrea’s two previous books are One Long Night and The Secret History of Vladimir Nabokov.

Continue reading
Memoir, Non Fiction, True Crime

Apr 21: The Babysitter: My Summers with a Serial Killer

Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan

In her own words Liza Rodman was a lonely little girl. During Cape Cod summers, her mother worked days in a motel and danced most nights in the Provincetown bars, leaving her with a local handyman–Tony Costa. He was one of the few understanding adults in Liza’s life. But years later, she was haunted by nightmares, and that’s when she learned her charismatic babysitter was also a vicious serial killer.

Part memoir, part true crime Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan joined forces to tell this chilling real life story in The Babysitter: My Summers with a Serial Killer. Today we look at how Liza came to know the truth about her babysitter, and how that unwittingly helped her deal with her own childhood demons. We discuss what’s known of Tony Costa; what made him a monster. And how the authors resolved three cold cases during the course of their research. We also explore how these two friends of 40+ years wrote this book together, and what they took away from the experience.

About Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan

With a BA focused in creative writing, this is Liza Rodman’s first book. Jennifer Jordan is an award-winning author, filmmaker, and screenwriter with decades of experience as a news anchor and investigative journalist. The Babysitter is her fifth book.

 

Continue reading
Career, Creativity, Personal Development, Self-help

MAR 24: Why We Stop Right Before the Finish Line with Bridgit Dengel Gaspard

The Final 8th: Enlist Your Inner Selves to Accomplish Your Goals

If you’ve ever got close to a goal but found yourself stuck right before completion, Bridgit Dengel Gaspard helps take us over the finish line in The Final 8th: Enlist Your Inner Selves to Accomplish Your Goals.

Bridgit shares how to tap into the powerful resource of our “inner selves“. She highlights why those inner selves frequently have competing motives; and why symptoms such as body aches and insomnia could be caused by inner selves that don’t communicate verbally. We also look at tools and resources to push you over the finish line and stop self-sabotaging.

About Bridgit Dengel Gaspard

Author of The Final 8th: Enlist Your Inner Selves to Accomplish Your Goals, Bridgit Dengel Gaspard is a therapist, coach, and master facilitator of voice dialogue. She’s led workshops for the Omega Institue, the National Association of Social Workers, the Actors Fund, and others. A former performer and comic, Bridgit has a private practice in New York where she specializes in helping clients overcome creativity blocks, transitions, and being stuck short of the finish line.

Continue reading
Fiction, History, Writers on Writing

MAR 17: The Girl From the Channel Islands with NYT Bestselling Author Jenny Lecoat

Inspired by the true story of a young Jewish woman trapped on the Isle of Jersey under Nazi occupation in WWII

Based on her background, maybe Jenny Lecoat’s first novel was destined to start a bidding war and become a New York Times Bestseller.

The Girl From the Channel Islands is based on the true story of Hedy Bercu. We discuss why Jenny told Bercu’s story via fiction versus nonfiction; where she took creative license and why. How Jenny’s background influenced her; and how the book sparked a bidding war with two major publishers.  Jenny also shares some of the true stories she ran into during her research. And what it took to go from successful screenplay writer to successful novelist.

About Jenny Lecoat

Born in the Channel Islands, Jenny Lecoat grew up with family who passed down their own stories of life in German occupied Jersey. Following an early career in stand-up comedy, and writing features for periodicals, she became a screenwriter. Jenny Lecoat’s feature film Another Mother’s Son was released in 2017.

Continue reading