writing from the messy middle of everything
(which is where everything meaningful exists)
one great story at a time
Enjoy the entertainment.
Learn the craft.
Get weekly essays written with humor, humility, occasional profanity, and estrogen-driven philosophy about navigating an unconventional life.
plus invitations to explore the writing craft for creativity, business & legacy
Like spending a warm night on an amber-lit porch with your favorite smart, funny friend,
and if things go off the rails a little, that’s just another good story waiting to be told.
so you wanna hang out?
Read in the privacy of your own inbox.
Reply when you’re ready for conversation.
Your stories are the fibers that
make your legacy make sense.
might as well write them great.
You can call me Amy Collins.
There are people on my list who’ve been reading these emails since 2009. At least two of them are obsessed with my boobs sentence structure.
A magazine once published a feature I wrote on an Alabama woman who raised heritage turkeys as pets. Then she became my chicken surrogate.
When a student in one of my storytelling workshops said, “You have a real skill for critical feedback in the moment which not a lot of people can do!” I bought a pint of ice cream to commemorate a rare interaction with a stranger when my "rude" direct nature was appreciated.
Wrote and self-published a lesbian erotica novel one reader suggested should decide if it wanted to be explicit or implicit, which pretty much nails my whole character.
I’ve lived 500 lives, each one chasing the most important question of all time: Will this make a good story?
Because story is how we connect, how we feel less alone, how we discover who we are and who we no longer want to be.
Your story is how you are remembered.
Also known for:
- Wine nerding in sales and sommelier (formally and formerly)
- Stand-up and improv comedy performing, producing, hosting
- Visual art dabbling
- Absurdity seeking
- Wandering and meandering
- Marketing, Copywriting & Creative Strategy-ing
- Collecting dead things
- Personal styling: Dad Casual
- Becoming without arriving
- Inappropriate jokes
reading is a learning + bonding experience.
Lock in to high quality bondage with this one.
A Manifesto & Artist Statement
Life is not a brand. It’s a series of experiments and projects.
Changing direction does not mean you’ve lost the plot.
It means you are alive in the most profound way a human can be.
At age 50, when this project kicks off, I’m on a mission to dismantle an ill-formed belief that I live a messy life.
That my *too* many interests are unruly and unsustainable.
That my art has to be clear, coherent, and niched down to the knickers.
That non-conforming is a weakness.
But the truth is, it’s all the messy middle.
Every project, every job, every move, every story you start writing will be messy at some point.
Might as well embrace it!
Sensitivity is not a death knell in our culture obsessed with money and competition and winning.
Being “understood” is not the ultimate goal.
Bucking the system is not a personality disorder.
You can be your whole self in every place and still live a rewarding life in all the ways, including financial ways.
It starts with story.
Because no matter how you best learn, we all learn from story.
It's in our DNA.
It's how we know ourselves and how we feel less lonely and alone in this cray cray world.
Connection is the prize and the payoff.
I’m fascinated with the myriad of stories that inform our everyday moments, from the ones we tell ourselves about our own existence and worth, to the ones we read in the media, to the many forms of narrative entertainment including books, television, movies, and song.
Story lets strangers connect on a deeper level that often defies verbal conversation.
This is why we read.
Both fiction and nonfiction stories teach us something about ourselves, who we used to be, who we are now, and who we might become.
True, unique story slips under the skin and settles like a layer of goose down, something familiar and reliably present.
Your story is your legacy.
This is why we write.
It’s nice here. And funny. And a little bit woo. And a little bit off the rails. And it's all honest.
love notes from readers...
“I read Amy's emails like I do the work of Lamott, Gilbert, and Doyle. Yes, they're entertaining and make me think, but as a writer, I have an ulterior motive. I'm there to study the language, their approach to the timeless art of diction and syntax. I'll read everything Amy writes so that I can laugh and study all at the same time.” — Corrie M.
"Wow did I laugh a lot at this!”—Liz W.
“You're so good at mythologizing yourself.” —Grace B.
"With a newsletter this good, the world is most definitely your oyster.”—Amy K.
“Equal parts thought-provoking and hilarious.”—Grace F.
"Reading this email was such a lovely part of my day. Thank you <3”—Kristin M.
this is NOT for you if you:
- Experience sphincter contractions every time a woman swears.
- Are obsessed with your own hierarchy.
- Dream in beige.
this IS for you if you:
- Would rather read honest human typos than polished bot copy.
- Consider belly laughs as part of your wellness regimen.
- Respect Bonnie Tyler but aren’t waiting on a hero.
If you want to learn to tell better stories for your business, your legacy, and for yourself,
you will find opportunities to do that here.
If it's a great reading experience you're after, one that will make you laugh, think, and
feel something other than complete desperation or rage, I got you.
If you're out of fucks to give and just want to hang around other tired ass evolved women, let this be your gateway.
Wanna see inside this show?
Engage whenever you wanna.
It’s always a private conversation in the inbox
and I respond to every reply I get.
ALSO, WE GAY HERE.
LOVE IT. RESPECT IT. OR GTFO.
written in Alabama.
not as bad as you think.