A slightly different vibe for today's Storyshaped! We're sitting down with Rebecca Schiller - smallholder, parent, memoirist, creative writing teacher, neurodivergent person, and author, for a wonderful chat about her recent ADHD diagnosis, creativity (and permission to enter into creativity), parenthood, the art of writing a memoir, the beauty of children's literature, and how vital it is for children to feel empowered by the things they read. We also make some pit-stops along the way, where Rebecca traces the influence of some very important books, ones that shaped and affected the course of her life and career. We'd love you to come with us on this bookish ramble, where we'll find out how Rebecca is Storyshaped.

Find Rebecca online at her website

Follow Rebecca on Instagram

Rebecca founded the Mothers Who Write community

More information on the courses Rebecca runs for writers and creatives

Books mentioned in this week's episode include Rebecca's own:

Earthed: A Memoir (published as A Thousand Ways to Pay Attention in the United States)

Your No Guilt Pregnancy Plan

Amazing Activists Who Are Changing Our World, illustrated by Sophie Beer

And the stories which have shaped her include:

The Peter and Jane books, published by Ladybird

Stories from the Bible

The Wild Other, by Clover Stroud

Anne of Green Gables, by LM Montgomery

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte

A Little Princess and The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Railway Children, by E. Nesbit

The Regeneration Trilogy, by Pat Barker

Life Class, by Pat Barker

The Skylarks' War, by Hilary McKay

This Must Be the Place, by Maggie O'Farrell

Hamnet, by Maggie O'Farrell

Shopaholic Ties the Knot, by Sophie Kinsella

Also mentioned: Five Children on the Western Front, by Kate Saunders

The Passion, by Jeanette Winterson

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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