“For our own success to be real, it must contribute to the success of others.”
Influences
— Eleanor Roosevelt
No success is achieved alone. This page honors the writers, thinkers, organizations, and ideas that have shaped my journey.
Here, you’ll find the books that inspired me, the causes I support, and the influences that continue to resonate in my work. May these resources spark something in you, just as they have in me.
Writing Influences
Authors, books, and organizations that shaped my writing.
Toni Morrison: The Bluest Eye and Sula
Gloria Naylor: The Women of Brewster Place
Maya Angelou: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Louise Erdrich: Love Medicine
Columbia College Chicago - Creative Writing Department
Jacqueline Woodson: Brown Girl Dreaming
Amber Scorah: Leaving the Witness: Exiting a Religion and Finding a Life
Charlotte Gullick: By Way of Water (professor at Vassar & WLT Writing Instructor)
Awakening & Research
People, experiences, and philosophies that shaped me.
Visions of Glory: Barbara Grizzuti Harrison
Jehovah's Witnesses and the Problems of Mental Illness: Jerry R.Bergman, Ph,D.
The Orwellian World of Jehovah's Witnesses: Heather and Gary Botting
Crisis of Conscience: Raymond Franz
Exiting the JW Cult: A Healing Handbook for current & former Jehovah's Witnesses: Bonnie Zieman
Giving Back
Causes and organizations I support.
The K.I.N.D Fund: Kids in Need of Desks - UNICEF USA
Recycled Reads - Austin Public Library
Thought Leaders
Ideas, philosophies, and thinkers that inspire my worldview.
Oprah Winfrey
Barack Obama
Professor Anderson, Western Michigan University
Jane Elliot: Brown Eyes/Blue Eyes
James Baldwin
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