Meet amanda blackwood | Author, Artist, Speaker, Survivor

We had the good fortune of connecting with amanda blackwood and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi amanda, how do you think about risk?
There’s a huge amount of risk in what I do. Not only do I talk openly about human trafficking and educate others on what it actually looks like (and it’s not what you think it is either), but I’m a survivor of trafficking and the man who abused me is still free in the world today. Every time I book a public speaking event, a book signing, or anything where I show up in person and people know in advance where I’m going to be, I’m taking a risk. Lots of people, especially my former trafficker, would love to silence me forever. But it’s more than that, too. I took a risk when I first started telling my closest friends that I was a survivor of trafficking. It had been a secret for many years at that point, and quite a few of my friends couldn’t handle just those basic words. Knowing anything further about what I’d been through alienated many people and left me feeling isolated and alone. I still knew that what I was doing was important and I couldn’t quit, but my companions dwindled to only a select few now. I take a risk every time I open up to someone, knowing that I’ll likely be unfairly judged by the actions of others and the skewed perspectives of what social media wants people to think human trafficking looks like.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I started painting at the end of talk therapy in January of 2021, and four months later I’d already sold several paintings. Since then I’ve been written about in the Chicago Tribune, sold my art internationally, took part in a local gallery, had a solo exhibit in Denver, and painted several of my own book covers. To think I didn’t believe I could paint seems silly now that I’m looking back on it all, but we never know what we are capable of until we try, sometimes more than twice.

I’ve been a writer as long as I could figure out how to put words together to form a coherent sentence. I would write poetry and short stories in school when I should’ve been working on math or science. I always wanted to get a story published, but in 2018 I finally made that happen. Since then I’ve published over a dozen books, one of them being my autobiography as a survivor of trafficking. Probably the most powerful part of that was having other women read my book and seek me out to tell me “I don’t feel so alone anymore.” It was a huge challenge to get it out, but therapy was a wonderful and necessary help.

I think what I want the world to know about my story is that I’m more than the sum of what happened to me in the past. I’m a creative with a story to share, both good and bad. I’m not what you see, I’m what you hear and feel.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m blessed to have my best friend live only a half hour drive away, but if she didn’t live in such a close proximity I’d save up what I could and show her the time of her life. I’m a big ‘foodie’ and love to cool (one of my books is a cookbook) so I’m familiar with some amazing restaurants in the area. I’m a long time fan of the Buckhorn Exchange, and took my husband there for our first Valentines Day together. I also love West 39th and haven’t been there in a few years now. Without a doubt we’d head to Idaho Springs and eat at Beau Jo’s before wandering down the street to the tea and spice shop to browse for a little while. We might even hit a museum or two just for fun. But my best friend has a huge passion for photography and she’s quite good at it, so I’d likely research some of the best photo spots in and around the area, so she could get in some lens time.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d love to dedicate this to my amazing husband and my best friend. Both of them have supported me in ways nobody could ever imagine.

Website: https://growthfromdarkness.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/detailedpieces

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/authoramandablackwood

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DetailedPieces

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmandaBlackwoodSurvivor

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DetailedPieces/podcasts

Image Credits
The collage image – photo by Randy Poe
Motorcycle headshot – photo by Collette Susman
Book cover of Custom Justice by Michael Malvitz
(I can’t see the rest of the photos I chose, but I think the rest is artwork that I painted.)