Dear Friends,
Since the pandemic started in early March, I have been focusing most of my content on supporting folks through this time:
Grief, Government Stimulus, Girlfriends and Giving.
Navigating Student Loans During The COVID Crisis.
Baking, Donating, Researching, Reading.
Debt Triage in the Time of COVID.
And, more recently:
Today, I want to share some of the new and exciting Art of Money projects that are happening over here.
First up: I finally got an audiobook deal!
Yes, it’s only taken four years to make this happen. (I’ve been patient, mostly.)
A few details:
1. The audiobook will be published with Tantor Media on 8/18/2020! This is very soon. It will be available in all the places online. **You can now officially order: The Art of Money Audiobook!
2. I will have a narrator read the book. There were many discussions about this behind the scenes, but at the end of the day, this feels right. I chose the narrator. I listened to a few different voices and knew right away which voice I wanted. Also, the woman I picked did the narration for one of the books that was on my desk when Art of Money was being created as a role-model for classic books. I think she is the perfect voice for the book. (Plus she has a home studio so can record with a quick turn-around).
Thank you, everyone, for all of your support! Dreams do come true with lots of patience…
**UPDATE**: You can now officially pre-order The Art of Money Audiobook!
Second: I hired an editor-collaborator for my 2nd book – journal.
After two months of grief, fog, soul searching and baking (during the beginning of the pandemic), I finally hired a collaborator/writer/editor for my upcoming Art of Money journal.
I realized (for the 100th time) that I have the hardest time in very particular situations when I don’t have someone to bounce ideas off of or students to work with directly to structure big things like a book or distilling all my content into baby pieces. I need collaboration in certain moments, it’s simply how I work best, in co-creation.
I’ve gotten in trouble with this over the years. When I realized the road I was going down, I would eventually get help or teach an energetic group of students and record that instead of trying to record hours of my teaching and methodology alone. I have shared some of these stories over the years, and it’s still a pattern that I find myself in until I realize I’m stuck in a creative loop.
So I finally reached out and had a meeting with a writer-editor who helped me with some content creation for my money memoirs in January. She has read my first book, taken copious notes and has been reviewing my program material. But she’s still new and fresh to my work, and she loves journals. I’ve hired her to help me take all my prompts, exercises, quotes and framework and co-create the journal together.
Writing my 150-page thesis, when I was single in my 20’s, was torture. When I created my first book, I had a fantastic team, but somehow I thought I could do this journal alone. Gratefully, I realized that now as a mom, wife, teacher, I need a co-pilot and collaborator for big projects like this. Plus, I was given a new deadline from my publisher that is doable, especially since I now have an additional collaboration partner. Look for this 2nd book, which will be a journal to accompany (and stand-alone) in the fall of 2021.
Third: The Art of Money 2021 year-long program will open for early bird registration on October 8th.
We are currently in the 8th year of our year-long program. Every year brings beautiful and challenging events. While we never know what kind of year we will be in when we join, this year has added extra curveballs that no amount of planning could have predicted. So, while the foundation of our Art of Money framework is needed more than ever and will remain the same, we will be adding some essential new components to our 2021 curriculum to help support you.
The biggest new thing happening with my Art of Money program for this next round is that in addition to us not raising the cost of the program we’ll also offer a new payment option: you and a friend/mother/father/brother/sister/colleague/etc. can join the program together for the same low, discounted rate we’ve always offered couples who join the program.
That means you and a friend will be able to join at the discounted couple’s rate and you can split the expense between you.
With all that’s going on in our painful and beautiful world, it’s more important than ever to find a safe community space where you can talk through money issues. That is one of the most important parts of the Art of Money program. We’ll be opening for our early-bird registration on October 8th. So, stay tuned and get ready. If you could use some extra affordable support in your money life, I can’t wait to welcome you…
Fourth: The Art of Money book was sitting in the middle of Alanis Morissette’s book stack on Instagram. Yes, I absolutely LoVED seeing this.
Fifth: Behind the scenes:
Baking this almond flour cake over and over. Jump Roping for some new exercise. I’m parenting a pre-teen human child! And, mothering a new baby kitten that has stolen our hearts and that has also kept me on overnight mama-care duty for the last three weeks.
Ok, that’s a little update of what’s happening in Art of Money land and behind the scenes. I hope you are all staying safe and healthy, and please continue to let us know how we can support you during this important year.
With my dearest wishes,
