Amanda Woods, Children's Author
Amanda Woods was born in Manchester, NH, but fate chose York, Maine, to be the place where she would meet her husband. From that chance meeting, she became a mother of two wonderful children and her life became “…nothing short of crazy.”
Amanda refers to herself as a Power House. A well-befitting title for the mother and wife who is the Marketing Director of the Wiggly Bridge Distillery and the VP of the Board of Directors for the York Region Chamber of Commerce. She also helps to run other family businesses and squeezes in any time she has left to do volunteer work.
"I consider myself an incredibly empathetic person to a fault. I feel other people's stress or emotions. My theme song in life is from Tim McGraw - Humble and Kind. I hope that is how people view me in life,” the thirty-year-old says. This amazing author plays the violin, and she’s an artist who loves to stay active.
Woods, a “nap time writer,” says she finds the time to write while
her kids are napping or in bed for the night. In those “napping” hours, she’s managed to produce 7 books. Of those seven, she published The Robot & The Ballerina. The other six, she’s given to family members as Christmas gifts.
Interviewer: Tell us a little about The Robot & The Ballerina
Woods: It’s an adventurous and playful story about a little girl named Belle. Belle is a bright, fun, and bold girl. She loves to dress as a ballerina who pirouettes and chassés her way through her everyday life and adventures. One morning when she wakes up early and wanders around the house to see what fun she can stumble upon. She finds a box and her imagination runs wild. The Robot & the Ballerina can be purchased on Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com.
Woods wants to create a foundation called “Stories for Students”. Her foundation would connect with other local authors and every new school year, they will gift a book to a student, grades K-12. “This age range would target multiple genres of authors and let kids know that people in their own backyard are publishing and doing some awesome things."
An active blogger, Woods shares insights about her family business and gives visitors a behind-the-scenes view of the distillery on her Tumblr blog called WigglyGirlAmanda To take a virtual tour of the distillery, visit their website and Facebook page.
Amanda never decided to become a published author and finds the title "Author" hard to relate to. Writing is “...something I enjoy doing and something I do in the midst of life.” She freely admits that grammar, punctuation, writer’s block, and time to write are her obstacles. For writer's block, she's created a resolution. “Just write. Even if it doesn't make sense. Write many versions of the same thing until you like it. Just stopping has never worked for me and often makes me procrastinate, so even if I write something and it doesn't make sense, I write.” She says if that doesn’t work, writers should, “…take a break and grab a drink...preferably from Wiggly Bridge Distillery :-D”
After publishing her first book, Woods gained a new sense of respect for authors. “I realized firsthand the blood, sweat, and tears that go into publishing. So anyone who has done it is an inspiration.”
With kids, work, and volunteering, her writing schedule is governed by the “nap time” solution. So, how does this busy author relaxes? “Drinking...just kidding...well sort of. Ha! But for real, going for a run or listening to music.”
Amanda’s favorite motivational phrase is from an unknown author: The Devil whispered in my ear. You’re not strong enough to withstand the storm. Today I whispered in the Devil’s ear, I am the storm. “It is just powerful and amazing.”
Interviewer: What is your favorite book and why?
Woods: I have a feeling many of you will scoff or even laugh at this, but The Harry Potter Series! I have never been so captivated for so long from every single book of this series. They came out when I was younger, so they were part of my growing up.
To those aspiring writers who question themselves, Woods says, “From the words of Nike, ‘Just Do It’.”
To learn more about the author, Amanda Woods, visit any of her sites below:
