The Stories We Tell Ourselves

April 2025

*Read to the very end for a call to action that will only take 30 seconds*

I spend a lot of time teaching people how to write stories, and let’s be honest, that’s sort of cliche being an author myself.

But let me pivot for a second. Not all of us want to be authors. And while that’s obvious, what may not be so obvious is that there’s another form of storytelling we all should consider. . . the stories we tell ourselves.

These narratives we ascribe to our own lives are what matter most. And, sure, they’re informed by our experiences and the stories we consume, but we also make a choice to believe them. That choice is very, very important. I visit many schools, and my talk to the students is centered on showing kids they can—and should—write their own stories. At the end of the day, however, it doesn’t matter what I think. These students have to choose to believe they can write stories.

Just the same, I want you to tell yourself that you can be a storyteller, but that’s not enough. It’s actually more important that the story you tell yourself is that you can make a difference. To believe that your actions matter.

It’s funny because so many narratives are built to teach that very lesson. Katniss Everdeen believing she can overcome the Capitol, Luke Skywalker believing he can topple the Empire, Avatar Aang believing he can stand up to the Fire Nation. . . if you don’t get these references, by the way, you’ve got some homework to do.

But the point is that all these characters teach us that individual decisions do matter. And where am I going with all this? Why do I want you to believe that you have agency?

Because too many people don’t.

I’ve heard from friends—especially in these difficult times—that it doesn’t matter if they continue to support evil corporations like Amazon because Amazon will be fine without them, so why bother boycotting? Or that it’s not worth engaging in political conversations with people who they don’t agree with because they’ll never change someone else’s mind.

And I won’t fool you. Whether it’s Katniss, or Luke, or you, none of us can change the world by ourselves. But our decisions can inspire others, and then we can change the world together as a community.

So, being that we all belong to this same flawed society, let’s choose to tell ourselves a particular story. One that says our actions matter. Then let this belief impact the way we live our lives.

Don’t give up.

April Highlights

A lot happened this past month. I visited more schools (in fact, that’s how I’ll kick off next month too), attended a couple of festivals and conferences, and got to share some exciting updates about Bashir Boutros and the Jewel of the Nile!

Presenting at the Maine School Librarian Association conference was a highlight, in part because I got to see all the librarians from the city of Lewiston, with whom I posed in the picture below.

Oh, and the South Jersey Children’s Book Festival was a blast because I got to meet plenty of wonderful readers while hanging out with awesome author friends like Eric Smith, pictured above. Eric just launched his own literacy agency as well!

Also pictured above is me visiting my sister’s school and had the opportunity to share embarrassing photos of her with almost a hundred students (a true big brother move).

The final highlight is getting to announce that Bashir Boutros and the Jewel of the Nile was selected as an Indie Next pick for April/May, which is a prestigious award given to only a few book releases every month! I was humbled that independent booksellers chose my book for that honor.

I’m not plugging any upcoming events. My only call to action, and I’d be humbled if you could participate, is to stop what you’re doing for 30 seconds and pre-order a copy of my upcoming book!!

There’s some other fun news coming up, but you’ll have to wait for the May update or follow my Instagram account!