A Woman of Letters

In Conversation with Amy White

We sat down with Amy White, International Best-Selling Author and Intuitive Medium to gain insight into the techniques that drive her bold changes and more subtle "ah-ha" moments that lead her closer towards her dreams.

What was the initial response to Closer to Paradise?

The day the book launched it went to Amazon Best Seller in several categories including “Hot New Releases” and “New International Releases.” Readers of the book began to immediately express their gratitude for the story and raw recounting of the journey that my son and I traveled. Many readers shared that through the telling of this story, they were able to find peace and understanding in their own stories of challenge and heartbreak. 

Photography by Nina Pomeroy

Have you always been a writer?

I have always been in love with writing. When asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, my answer was always “author.” Although, I did have a short phase when I was eight-years-old, where I wanted to be president of the United States. 

In elementary school, a close friend and I would play publishing house. She was the publisher, I was the writer. We’d make little books with printer paper. I had a rubber duck ink stamp, so we called our publishing house Duckside Pro-duck-tions. Writing brings me great joy. It feels as though there is something that rewires inside my body when I write. Especially when I write by hand. 

Today much of the writing that I do is channeled. This way of allowing the words to flow through me and onto the page isn’t a new process but it did take me many years to realise that much of my writing, even as a young child, was a co-creation with Source.

In what ways did writing help you?

In my family of origin, there wasn’t a lot of space to share experiences, feelings, or needs. The writing was the way that I could verbalise those things that I was not able to say out loud. Writing fictional stories became my way to daydream on paper and gave me a place to create my world in the ways that I dreamed and imagined. 

After my son experienced his mental health crisis, writing became a way that I supported myself, worked things out in my mind, and provided others with information, lessons learned and a view into my experience. I hoped that in sharing my story, those who were in the midst of similar circumstances could find grounding and support. 

The real value of writing stories, both my mental health blog and then Closer to Paradise, was that the mere act allowed me to come into deeper processing and healing of the experience. It was cathartic.

What’s next for you after Closer to Paradise?

I’m in the process of writing my next book. This book focuses on spiritual awakening and the ways that we can both accept that the Universe is an incomprehensible mystery and that it’s in this mystery that our true aliveness lives. From this realisation and embodiment, the sky's the limit for us to create the life we dream of living and we should thus thrive regardless of past or present crisis or challenging circumstances.


Were you writing as you worked through your feelings while caring for your son?

Yes! I wrote the entire time. I always had a journal with me, even from my first trip to the psychiatric emergency department. I felt so strongly guided to make sure that I had pen and paper with me, to both processes what was happening at the moment, but also so that I had a documented recall of all of the information, recommendations, and next steps as we walked this intense pathway of behavioural health mazes.

These journals became the inspiration for both my blog, Far From Paradise, and the book.

Graphic design by Amelia Asciutto

What were the challenges of pouring so much of your personal story into your writing?

I really didn’t have many challenges pouring so much of my personal story out into the world, but I certainly was very aware of how much of my son’s story was mine to tell. Given the circumstances, there were parts of his story that were omitted and my son was given the opportunity to review the manuscript before the publisher had sent it to print. As I shared, having the opportunity to write the story was very healing for me. I felt like I was writing the story for myself and it was less important if anyone even read it. The response to the book was a bonus for me but it wasn’t the sole purpose for writing it.

How do you envision your writing to help the choices and futures of your readers?

To me, shared stories and experiences are truly what connect people, not only to each other but also in a deeper awareness within themselves. When a reader can see aspects of themselves, which are often aspects that they may not have been aware of prior to reading my writings, they are then empowered to do deeper exploration and make choices that feel most aligned to them. This is the power of the writings that I create. My desire is to create awareness and open up an invitation for the readers to come into deeper contact with their inner-knowing. I believe that we are in a time where it’s not about following someone else’s advice on what are “right” or “wrong” ways of being, but instead provide opportunities for the readers to find their centre and move out into the world from a deeper place knowing what resonates most within their soul.

In your opinion, how does taking the time to understand our past translate creatively?

When we take time to understand the past, without wielding the stick of judgment about what we could have or should have done differently, it opens up awareness for recognition of the gifts in all of our personal stories. I believe that everything we experience in life provides a roadmap for clarity and decision-making about the life we want to be living.

As I look at my past experiences, those I’ve deemed both good and bad, they allow me to come into loving contact with myself in ways that I may not have been able to had I just written off the experiences as random things that occurred in my life. Touching in and celebrating the growth, lessons and evolution that came from these experiences provide a basis for me to create more of what I want. All of this translates into my writing for sure, but it also ripples out into relationships, health and wellness. It opens me up to allow new messages, stories and offerings to be birthed.

When you feel stuck in your own narrative, how do you shake things up? 

I have found that physical movement is one of the best ways I know to move stuck energy. For me, this energy often shows up as a holding onto old stories, taking responsibility for other people’s journeys or the feeling of resistance to something I want to create but don’t feel “ready.” The body is the strongest antenna we have to connect to our inner-knowing. When we block ourselves physically, we cut ourselves off from the source of truth and knowledge that is within us. The stronger we are able to come into connection with our physical body, the easier it is to love ourselves; mind, body and soul. This love is the place where we become unstuck.


If you could reassure your younger self of your future, what would you say?

I would tell my younger self that every experience is an opportunity to grow and evolve, and most importantly these experiences are pathways to remembering the truth of who I am. I would also share that things will always work out, in magical ways, even if in some moments it is hard to see the gift in the experiences. 

Photography by Nina Pomeroy

Final words of wisdom

There are many of us who have been conditioned to believe that our words are not important, or that when we share our feelings it makes us seem needy or weak. When we commit to honouring our voices, especially through writing or creative endeavours, we are able to validate our experiences. 

Write or create for the love of the process, honouring the stories that inspire and influence these works, and through it all, remember to love all the places within, which are calling for more nurturing, nourishment and gentle care. This is where true healing begins, and where the path to our most authentic way of living opens up.

WORDS: BIANCA BREEN
PHOTOGRAPHY NINA POMEROY