The mother of all stories; local author seeks moms willing to contribute to book

November 4th, 2016

Jennifer Westendorp from The Kemptville Advance, wrote this article about my book in order to get more moms to step forward and share their stories. Thank you Jennifer! If you know any mother who would like to share her story, please send her my way.

http://www.insideottawavalley.com/community-story/6945860-the-mother-of-all-stories-local-author-seeks-moms-willing-to-contribute-to-book/

The mother of all stories; local author seeks moms willing to contribute to book
Every mother has a story to tell; of love, heartbreak, exclusion, judgement, friendship, frustration, pure joy, insomnia or guilt. Mothers have been through it all.

Local author and art therapist Anne Walsh has set out on a mission to gather these stories and compile them into a book all mothers can relate to.

And she wants your help.

“I am writing a book called Mommy Monologues, which is basically a book about motherhood,” explained Walsh.

Working as an art therapist has shown here that often mothers feel alone.

“Mommy’s have monologues running through their heads; I didn’t make it to an activity at my child’s school, I wasn’t there for them, I didn’t get this done, my child doesn’t have their boots on like everyone else, they left without mittens.”

Motherhood has become a competitive sport, said Walsh.

“Where there is competition, there is no vulnerability, so people don’t see you need support. Meanwhile, people are struggling and nobody knows.”

The goal of the book is to break through the barrier of taboo; to show struggling doesn’t mean you’re a bad mom.

“I want to show the variety of mommy monologues,” said Walsh. “To show moms they are not alone.”

When you think about motherhood, you see images of the ‘soccer mom’ or ‘working mom,’ she explained.

“There are so many more varieties out there; moms who adopted, moms who are gay, moms with addiction issues, moms with mental health issues or who have kids with mental health issues. There are all these different types of moms out there with no community. All they see are moms who are able-bodied and not struggling, so they feel isolated.”

“What I want to do is interview all these moms,” she continued. “I am looking for moms from all walks of life. I want to hear it all. My goal is for every mother to be able to pick up this book and be able to find her story.”

Walsh, who has interviewed 10 moms so far, hopes to include stories from about 100.

“I’ve talked to many moms about this and a lot of them say ‘oh, you wouldn’t want my story in your book.’ They don’t feel like they are good enough to be included. I want to honour all stories by putting them in the book. No story is insignificant.”

If you are interested in sharing your story with Walsh, email her directly at artnsoul@ripnet.com or send her a message on Facebook. People who participate do not have to use their real name in the book.


Jennifer Westendorp is the reporter for the Kemptville Advance. She studied journalism-print at Algonquin College. Her interests include reading, writing and being outdoors.