read. reflect. connect.
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Inspiration, Encouragement & Direction for Creative People
When the doubt monster comes calling, dip into this book.
For everyone who worries if they're good enough to pursue ambitious goals and swing for the fences, this gentle volume of short, lyrical essays offers assurance that while we cannot banish doubt, we can make peace with it--and progress too.
Everybody's Talking About the Doubt Monster!
Welcome to the Conversation!
LISTEN TO THE PODCASTS (A SAMPLE)
- WYPR Midday with Tom Hall, NPR Member Station
- #AmWriting with DJ Dell'Antonia
- Imposter Syndrome Files with Kim Meninger
- The Selfish Gift with Maggie Langrick
- Chasing Happiness with Ryan Dement
- Author's Voice with KAJ
- Creativity Found with Claire Waite Brown
SELECTED COVERAGE & ESSAYS
- A doubt monster primer with celebrated author Lisa Tener
- A Baltimore Banner profile by columnist Leslie Gray Streeter
- Doubt Has Rule My Life.
MY WEEKLY REFLECTIONS
ACCOLADES FOR DOUBT MONSTER
Readers Rave about WRANGLING THE DOUBT MONSTER
Accessible & Reassuring
Accessible & Reassuring
Accessible & Reassuring
“This accessible and reassuring book offers much-needed and actionable strategies and techniques for those experiencing a block at any point in their creative endeavors ... Many of the concepts can be applied more generally to other facets of life as well.”
—Kirkus Reviews
Inspirational
Accessible & Reassuring
Accessible & Reassuring
“Artists of all stripes dance with doubt—should we? are we? why do we?—and this gentle, inspirational guide is your friend in the studio, to turn to for a moment of reassurance and renewal. Keep it handy, dip in as you need, and scribble in your own doubt-dispelling passages...”
—Allison K Williams, Seven Drafts: Self-Edit Like a Pro from Blank Page to Book
A Wise Gift
Accessible & Reassuring
A Wise Gift
“I loved Amy Bernstein’s Wrangling the Doubt Monster so much, I had to buy five more copies to give as gifts! The wisdom in this lovely book applies to artists and creators of any kind who come face to face with doubt."
—Mary O'Donohue,
Oprah Show Veteran, Media Coach and #1 Bestselling Author
Mindset Expertise
5 Ways to Overcome Doubt and Build Self-Confidence
We all have doubts. And sometimes, they overwhelm our capacity to make timely decisions and plans. I'm sharing five strategies to cope with doubt and keep your future on track.
You're in the right place for...
…books a bit off the beaten-path, story-wise (scroll down)
…workshops to help authors deepen their command of craft (Happenings)
…collaborating on writerly adventures—I’m up for it!
Creativity holds the key...
...to making sense of the human condition
...to imagining radical empathy
...to expressing and sharing joy, sorrow, and everything in between.
Other Published Books
THE POTRERO COMPLEX
FINALIST, 2020 PETRICHOR PRIZE
From Regal House Publishing (August 2022). Journalist Rags Goldner is battle-scarred and heartbroken after covering a devastating pandemic that rages in Baltimore for five years. She leaves the city with her partner in search of a simpler life in small-town Maryland—only to discover nothing in Canary is simple. A teenager is missing and it falls to Rags to fight the forces of apathy, paranoia, and creeping fascism to learn the shocking truth about Effie Rutter’s fate—and the fate of thousands
like her.
Praise for THE POTRERO COMPLEX
“Bernstein sets us in a post-pandemic time just the barest bit beyond our own, on the way to a dystopia that feels too frightening and too familiar. A thoughtful, complex, well-executed novel--not a who-done-it? but a much scarier what-in-the-hell-is-happening?”
--Robert Kanigel, Hearing Homer’s Song and The Man Who Knew Infinity
"A scarily prescient novel that deftly explores the fraught connections between individuality, society, public policy, and technology."
--Courtney Harler, Harler Literary LLC
THE NIGHTHAWKERS
BOOK FEST AWARD-WINNER!
Archaeologist Pauline Marsh is convinced she’s an unlovable freak. Who else in the world shares her ability to locate ancient artifacts without a map, hear their stories, and commune with long-dead artisans? But all that changes when handsome, charismatic Grey Henley persuades her she’s the girl of his dreams. For Pauline, Grey is the family she never knew. And for Grey, Pauline’s treasure-finding skills will make him immensely rich. But the lovers are keeping secrets from one another that push their relationship to the breaking point. Grey is in league with a criminal relative and Pauline is visited by an other-worldly stranger with a message. Sometimes, it takes a broken heart to discover your true destiny—and find eternal love where you least expect it. From The Wild Rose Press.
Praise for THE NIGHTHAWKERS
"A swashbuckling adventure with fantasy, love, and, at its heart, a search for peace and truth. Absorbing and fascinating."
--Leonie Mack, Italy Ever After
“From the world building to the detailed character development, this fantasy story was very engaging and kept me wanting more throughout. The book is fast paced and has a good mix of mystery, adventure, romance and mysticism...” --Booksprout
DREAMS OF SONG TIMES
YA Urban Fantasy. Sapphic Fiction. LGBTQ-friendly. Suitable for 15+.
An explosive fantasy about love, loss, and
unexpected redemption.
When sixteen-year-old Ell Gossamer's two mothers mysteriously disappear, the teen human-mermaid hybrid quickly flees home with little more than a mysterious family keepsake, a book called “Dreams of Song Times.” Ell will learn astonishing secrets about her past—but only after endangering her life to save others.
"I don’t know exactly how I landed a short while ago at the tide’s edge on this island, with its blue rocks, singing sea grasses, and powdered sand. ..."
Praise for DREAMS OF SONG TIMES
"Ell is incredibly real and her mermaid song will stay in your heart. Exquisitely portrayed. Rawly human."
-- Theresa L. Ford, Maz, Origin
“A wonderful first-person coming-of-age and coming-out narrative on the loneliness and pain of otherness.”
-- Linda Ashton Trott, Immortal Desire
FRAN, THE SECOND TIME AROUND
WINNER, Maryland Writers Association YA Fiction Award, 2022
Fran Singer is a regular 8th grader, when suddenly, everything changes. A tragic accident with major consequences shoots her out of her ordinary world into one racked with guilt, shame, and complete alienation. Starting over after all that is not easy— but is it possible? Will Fran’s life be better, the second time around?
PRAISE FOR FRAN
“This book was gripping, from the moment I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I would highly recommend it, especially to middle schoolers or older.”
– a 13-year-old reader
“This story is not just another teen angst but a story of redemption, forgiveness and self-actualization. It’s mouth-dropping plot element are sure to keep the reader wondering the next move.”
– Daneace Jeffery, Author/High School Educator
“A suspenseful story full of teen obstacles that provide humor, compassion, and despair. This page turning story is relevant and paints a clear picture of how unexpected events can lead to an appreciation for friends and family.”
– Stacey Nunn, Library Media Specialist
Take the DOUBT DECODER Quiz!
How much doubt is in your life? Take this revealing quiz and find out!