“I am brand new to Writers’ League of Texas and look forward to meeting new people, sharing my work and learning from all of you at upcoming events.“
— Amanda Johnston
A member of the Writers’ League since 2022, Amanda lives in Austin, TX.
Scribe: Welcome, writer! Tell us — what do you write?
Amanda Johnston: I am currently writing my first book, a memoir called Wanderings of the Heart: Essays on Love, Travel and Resilience. The book is about a woman who travels the globe in search of love and adventure, and discovers how resilient she is, no matter how hard life gets. Each of the eight chapters in this book invite the reader to step into a different situation and a different country, providing an expansive backdrop for adventure.
Scribe: If you could choose one author to blurb your book, who would it be, and what would you want it to say?
AJ: That’s a tough one, maybe Arundhati Roy, the author of The God of Small Things. I would want it to say “Amanda Johnston is a captivating writer, once you start reading you won’t want to her stories to end. With humor, honesty, strength and vulnerability, Amanda has written an unforgettable memoir about love, travel and living with purpose. Don’t miss this book!”
Scribe: You have one book you’re allowed to push onto all of your friends, and they’re forced to read it to remain your friend — which one would you choose?
AJ: Some of my favorite work is by Isabelle Allende. Eva Luna is probably my favorite, the author created such a beautiful dream world and amazing characters with this one.
Scribe: Tell us your WLT story.
AJ: I am brand new to the Writers’ League of Texas and look forward to meeting new people, sharing my work and learning from all of you at upcoming events.
Scribe: Where do you see your writing taking you (or you taking it) in the future?
AJ: I am excited to launch my first creative nonfiction book this year, and I’m very open as to where my writing will take me in the future. For now, I’m just enjoying the process of improving my craft.
Scribe: Here at the WLT, we love sharing book recommendations. What’s one book that has come out within the past few years that you couldn’t put down? (Bonus points if the book is Texas related!)
AJ: I loved the Modern Love book series with articles taken from the New York Times Modern Love column. The latest one, True Stories of Love, Loss and Redemption, edited by Daniel Jones, came out in 2019, but I read it by the pool last summer.
Scribe: Is there anything else about you that you would like to share with the world? An opportunity for blatant self-promotion!
AJ: Please come by and visit my website! Samples of my nonfiction writing, a blog post about the upcoming memoir and a newsletter sign up form can be found here.
Scribe: Where can our readers find more of you?
AJ: I’ve just launched a FB page for the upcoming memoir, Wanderings of the Heart, please follow my progress here! I’m also on LinkedIn and Twitter.
