Meet Audrey Stimson: Journalist and writer

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

Hi Audrey, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I was fortunate as a child to have the opportunity to live in both the United States and Europe. Because my father was an American diplomat during the Cold War and my mother a survivor of Allied bombing attacks on Berlin in 1945 I was always interested in finding out how we can make peace a lasting idea. My work as a television journalist and now as a writer has been more about the how than the who, what, where, when. How can we come together to embrace diversity and live in harmony? How can we all express ourselves and celebrate our unique voices? How can we learn to live in communion with nature? I have always been excited to explore what I don’t know and sometimes do it the hard way? I have traveled by foot, by bicycle, by sailboat, by car, by train, and by plane to figure out what it feels like to be alive. It’s always been about a parallel journey of exploring the outside world while diving deeper inward. My challenge has been translating what I have experienced into my art. My travels and conversations with people all over the world have helped me develop deep-seated empathy for all of humanity because I have learned that we are all in this together. We are all connected, not separate. And it is about the “we,” not the “me.” I have been able to meet kings and queens, rock stars and movie stars, presidents and generals, Olympic medalists and NBA players, hurricane survivors and firefighters, mom and dads and sisters and brothers, doctors and directors, fishermen and hunters, medicine men and gurus, authors and fashion designers. The amazing stories of the people I met as I crisscrossed the globe a few dozen times have given me the courage to pursue my voice through my art, whether in video work, photography, animation, illustrations, poetry and now memoir writing.

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 have spent over 30 years working as a television journalist, working both in entertainment and hard news. Television news producing satisfied my desire to see as much as I could as fast as I could. My career was a way for me to get out into the world and touch down into the lives of thousands of people. I was privileged to pull back the curtain and look behind the scenes of the rich and famous lives and even not so famous, from presidential campaigns to Oscar campaigns. About three years ago, I decided to drop out of that career to dig deeper into my art. Who was I? What could I do with the rest of my life? How could I be the change I wanted to see in the world? I sat with those questions during what I called “A year of Listening.” What spoke to me the loudest was the written word. Today I am writing my first book, a memoir about a bicycle trip across the United States in 2015. I made the hard shift of gears late in my career because I thought it was time to give myself the permission to pursue my own voice. What sets me apart is the risks that I am taking late in life to start all over again. I am finally ready to tell my version of what I saw out there in this great big beautiful world. I have learned that the most rewarding thing in life is facing your fears head-on and just do it. It’s in the hard things that you get closer to who you really are. Writing has helped me live a more connected life by paying attention to everything, especially the small perfect moments that we tend to miss if we move too fast.

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?
There is so much to experience in Los Angeles but I would definitely take them to the beach. The ocean is my favorite part of the city. Go to the Venice Beach boardwalk, then pick up a sandwich at Bay Cities in Santa Monica then hike to inspiration point in Will Rodgers park. I would suggest having a happy hour cocktail overlooking the ocean at Moonshadows. I would recommend a downtown visit to Grand Central Market for a coffee at G & B coffee or maybe a vampire taco at Mexicali Tacos on Figuera. Then visit The Broad Museum and Moca if they have time. 

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Jack Grapes and his Method Writing Class Tresha Haefner and The Poetry Salon

Website: www.audreystimson.com

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/audrey.stimson

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1YImjdRc-n0mw2yl_3__0Q

Image Credits
I hold rights to all images.