From Cult Survivor to Coach: Writing as a Path to Healing with Alexandra Amor

From Cult Survivor to Coach: Writing as a Path to Healing with Alexandra Amor

Audio on the From Expertise to Authority podcast at https://pod.link/1865211396 [https://pod.link/1865211396] Article at https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple [https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple] Video at https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple [https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple] What does it take to turn the hardest chapter of your life into a career built on helping others heal? In this episode, Matty Dalrymple talks with Alexandra Amor, who spent ten years in a cult in her twenties before leaving and spending decades making sense of what had happened to her. Alexandra shares how the disconnect between what a group preached and how it behaved became the signal that something was deeply wrong, why she turned to psychological and sociological research to understand her experience, and how that research eventually became an award-winning, best-selling memoir. She talks candidly about the difference between being taught and being led, why cult survivors often don't realize they're in a cult until well after they leave, and how writing her story became the foundation for a second career coaching other survivors and independently published authors. The conversation also covers what Alexandra looks for before saying yes to a podcast interview, the value of speaking in “sound bites” without losing your humanity, and why she believes creativity, more than expertise alone, is what helps people heal after trauma. Whether you're interested in the psychology of cults, the process of turning a difficult personal story into a book, or practical tips for showing up well as a podcast guest, this conversation offers something valuable. Alexandra Amor coaches cult survivors who want to tell their stories in writing. She began her writing career with an Amazon best-selling, award-winning memoir about ten years she spent in a cult in the 1990s. She is also The Self-Publishing Coach, helping writers to publish their books while avoiding the scams and hassles. Matty Dalrymple is the author of the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers, beginning with ROCK PAPER SCISSORS; the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels, beginning with THE SENSE OF DEATH; and the Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts. She is a member of International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. More at mattydalrymple.com [http://mattydalrymple.com]. Matty also writes, speaks, and consults on the writing craft and the publishing voyage, and shares what she’s learned on THE INDY AUTHOR PODCAST. She writes nonfiction books for authors; her articles have appeared in Writer’s Digest magazine; and she is a Partner Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors. More at theindyauthor.com [http://theindyauthor.com]. She also guides professionals in building their presence through a sideline or second act through her platform From Expertise to Authority. More at theindyauthor.com/authority. Get full access to From Expertise to Authority at mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe [https://mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

My Substack Course Adjustment

Article at https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple [https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple] Video at https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple [https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple] Have you ever started down a path that seemed right—only to realize mid-journey that a course adjustment was in order?In this episode of From Expertise to Authority, host Matty Dalrymple shares the behind-the-scenes story of how a conversation about creator patronage prompted her to rethink her entire Substack strategy—and ultimately her YouTube approach as well.What you'll learn:• Why Matty moved away from a paid/free content split on her FETA Substack• How the goal of writing a book shaped (and complicated) her content strategy—and why she let it go• What a more informal, exploratory tone means for the future of FETA content• How her YouTube channel is evolving to prioritize audio over videoWhether you're building your own platform for a sideline or second act—or just navigating the ever-shifting landscape of content creation—this episode offers an honest, relatable look at what it means to stay flexible and follow what actually works. #ProfessionalDevelopment #SecondActCareer #SidelineCareer #CareerTransition #Sidehustle #FromExpertiseToAuthority Matty Dalrymple is the author of the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers, beginning with ROCK PAPER SCISSORS; the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels, beginning with THE SENSE OF DEATH; and the Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts. She is a member of International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. More at mattydalrymple.com [http://mattydalrymple.com]. Matty also writes, speaks, and consults on the writing craft and the publishing voyage, and shares what she’s learned on THE INDY AUTHOR PODCAST. She writes nonfiction books for authors; her articles have appeared in Writer’s Digest magazine; and she is a Partner Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors. More at theindyauthor.com [http://theindyauthor.com]. She also guides professionals in building their presence through a sideline or second act through her platform From Expertise to Authority. More at theindyauthor.com/authority. Get full access to From Expertise to Authority at mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe [https://mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Scaffolding Your Expertise with Jean Burgess

Audio on the From Expertise to Authority podcast at https://pod.link/1865211396 [https://pod.link/1865211396] Article at https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple [https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple] Video at https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple [https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple] What if every unexpected career turn you’ve taken was actually building something powerful? In this episode of the From Expertise to Authority podcast, host Matty Dalrymple talks with Jean Burgess—author, editor, playwright, and former theater educator—about how a deliberately zigzagging career can scaffold expertise in ways a straight-line path never could. Jean shares how decades moving through professional acting and directing, college-level theater education, marketing, and now fiction and nonfiction writing have stacked on top of each other to create a uniquely versatile platform. She reflects on the surprising way skills from running marketing for an IT business transferred seamlessly to promoting her debut novel—and why understanding what is truly transferable (versus what just looks transferable on the surface) makes all the difference. Jean and Matty also dig into the mindset shifts that make career pivots work: why Jean doesn’t have the phrase “writer’s block” in her vocabulary, how she conquered imposter syndrome by reframing it as a problem to solve, and why she believes community building—not selling—is the real engine of an author’s authority. Plus, Jean shares what it felt like to realize she had arrived as an author: not when she got her first speaking fee, but during the Q&As at her presentations, when the audience’s questions tell her she had truly connected. If you have a non-linear career and have ever wondered whether all those pivots are working for you or against you, this conversation will give you a new way to see your own story. #ProfessionalDevelopment #SecondActCareer #SidelineCareer #CareerTransition #Sidehustle #FromExpertiseToAuthority Jean Burgess is an author, editor, playwright, and former theatre educator. She writes both nonfiction and fiction, enjoys presenting writing workshops and presentations, and volunteers as a facilitator with a local Teen Writing Club. Jean holds a Masters in Theatre from NorthwesternUniversity and Ph.D. in Educational Theatre from New York University. Matty Dalrymple is the author of the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers, beginning with ROCK PAPER SCISSORS; the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels, beginning with THE SENSE OF DEATH; and the Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts. She is a member of International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. More at mattydalrymple.com [http://mattydalrymple.com]. Matty also writes, speaks, and consults on the writing craft and the publishing voyage, and shares what she’s learned on THE INDY AUTHOR PODCAST. She writes nonfiction books for authors; her articles have appeared in Writer’s Digest magazine; and she is a Partner Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors. More at theindyauthor.com [http://theindyauthor.com]. She also guides professionals in building their presence through a sideline or second act through her platform From Expertise to Authority. More at theindyauthor.com/authority. Get full access to From Expertise to Authority at mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe [https://mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

The Two Shifts from Hobbyist to Authority

What happens when the thing you’ve loved as a hobby becomes something you want to be known for? In this episode, Matty Dalrymple explores the two-level shift that happens when a hobbyist starts building authority in an area outside their day job—the internal shift in how you relate to the activity itself, and the relational shift in how you navigate the communities you’ve already built around it. She explains what signals to watch for to know whether authority-building will deepen your passion or drain it, why trying to turn your hobby peers into your audience usually misfires, and how to handle the transition transparently so that relationships built on one footing don’t quietly collapse under a different one. Whether you’re an accountant who wants to be known for genealogy, a lawyer pursuing authority in competitive birding, or a novelist who spent decades in corporate IT, this conversation is for you. #ProfessionalDevelopment #SecondActCareer #SidelineCareer #CareerTransition #Sidehustle #FromExpertiseToAuthority Audio on the From Expertise to Authority podcast at https://pod.link/1865211396 [https://pod.link/1865211396] Article at https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple [https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple] Video at https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple [https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple] And if you’d like support developing a personalized pathway from expertise to authority for yourself, please check out my consulting service at https://www.theindyauthor.com/authority [https://www.theindyauthor.com/authority], and if you’re an event organizer, I’d love to share with your community a framework they can use to develop their own path. If you’d like to get in touch, just drop me a note at matty@mattydalrymple.com [matty@mattydalrymple.com]. Get full access to From Expertise to Authority at mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe [https://mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

From FBI Files to Fiction with Jerri Williams

After 26 years as an FBI special agent specializing in economic fraud and corruption investigations, Jerri Williams retired in 2008 to pursue a long-held ambition: writing crime fiction. But her transition didn’t begin on her last day at the Bureau. It began years earlier, when she made a strategic decision to step into the FBI’s spokesperson role—not only because she wanted the job, but because she knew it would put her in regular contact with the reporters, authors, producers, and TV professionals she would later need. In this episode of From Expertise to Authority, Jerri talks with host Matty Dalrymple about: - Why she took the FBI spokesperson role as “a strategic movement” on her part - The reporter friend who tore apart her first manuscript — and then introduced her to the developmental editor who taught her how to write fiction - The hard lesson that fiction is “the entertainment business, not the educational business” - Why mistaking your professional peers for your audience can sink a sideline before it starts - Becoming an “accidental indie author” after her first novel died on submission - How a self-published nonfiction book led to TV consulting opportunities with J.J. Abrams - The serendipitous ThrillerFest meeting that led to her current traditional book deal with Sourcebooks / Poisoned Pen Press Whether you’re still in your primary career and thinking about what comes next, or already navigating a second act, Jerri’s story illustrates how the moves you make inside your day job can lay the groundwork for everything that comes after. #ProfessionalDevelopment #SecondActCareer #SidelineCareer #CareerTransition #Sidehustle #FromExpertiseToAuthority Audio on the From Expertise to Authority podcast. Article at https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple [https://substack.com/@mattydalrymple] Video at https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple [https://www.youtube.com/@mattydalrymple] And if you’d like support developing a personalized pathway from expertise to authority for yourself, please check out my consulting service at https://www.theindyauthor.com/authority [https://www.theindyauthor.com/authority], and if you’re an event organizer, I’d love to share with your community a framework they can use to develop their own path. If you’d like to get in touch, just drop me a note at matty@mattydalrymple.com [matty@mattydalrymple.com]. Get full access to From Expertise to Authority at mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe [https://mattydalrymple.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]