Today we’d like to introduce you to Heidi Barr.
Hi Heidi, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Today, I call myself a writer who’s also a wellness coach, but it wasn’t always that way. Until a few years ago, I would have called myself a wellness coach who happens to have published a few books. I’ve been in the health promotion and wellness coaching field for 15 years now, and somewhere in there the balance shifted–I’ve claimed writing as a central part of my professional life.
The back story is that about ten years ago, I got the idea that it might be fun to make a seasonal calendar of farm photos for my family who had just ramped up their gardening game, offering a small CSA to the community and getting back into farmer’s market selling after some time away. And then for a while, I thought that instead of a calendar, maybe I’d make it into some sort of pamphlet, or maybe put the calendar photos together with some anecdotes from my family plus a recipe or two, and have them bound at the local printing store. And then I thought, hmm, maybe I should add another story or two, and a few more recipes and be more intentional about what photos to include. At that point, my conglomeration of stories and recipes was starting to be a little book like and I thought, “Maybe it should be a book instead of a pamphlet.” I put the idea down for a while.
Then a friend and writing colleague of mine introduced me to another friend of hers who ran a small press out of Minneapolis. He had a publishing opening later in the year in 2015 and liked the project enough to send a publishing contract. Turns out when you have an idea and you want to make it a reality, persistence and patience are key qualities to embrace. My first book, Prairie Grown: Stories and Recipes from a South Dakota Hillside, same out in June of 2016. Late that year, I submitted a collection of essays to Homebound Publications, a small indie press based on the east coast. They’ve published four of my books (I added some poetry collections to the mix) and I took on an editorial position at their literary magazine, The Wayfarer, where I also curate a wellness column in each issue. In 2021 Ellie Roscher (another Minnesota writer) and I co-authored 12 Tiny Things; Simple Ways to Live a More Intentional life which tied my wellness coaching together with writing. In 2022, I was named a Poet of Place in the lower St. Croix River Valley, and served a role similar to that of a poet laureate in the region. Now in 2023, my seventh book, Collisions of Earth and Sky: Connecting with Nature for Nourishment, Reflection, and Transformation is due out at the end of January from Broadleaf Books of Minneapolis. It’s available for sale starting Jan. 31 anywhere books are sold, but especially from Valley Bookseller of Stillwater, Minnesota, where signed copies are available.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The road has certainly been full of ups and downs, as most roads are. Writing can feel like a solitary endeavor, and there have been times when I felt like my work wasn’t reaching anyone. But all it takes is hearing from one person that an essay, poem, or book resonated with them, or helped them in some way, to remember why I do what I do.
Publishing takes a long time, sometimes pitches fall flat, or an editor doesn’t like the piece that you spent so long working on. What you think will get a great response (here’s looking at you, social media) sometimes garners less attention that a photo of your cat or what you had for breakfast. A great idea will fly into your head on a hike and it’s gone by the time you’re back to the car and your journal. But I’ve found that the struggles add more depth to the experience – sometimes they even give me something to write about.
Some days writing comes easy and I feel like I have brilliant new ideas to work with; some days I get home with nothing on my mind except for the fact that I haven’t yet thought of anything good to make for supper. But the days when the ideas strike, those are the days that make me feel like it’s worth it to keep getting out there, paying attention, and sharing what comes into being when I notice. As Annie Dillard wrote, “Something more will arise for later, something better. These things fill from behind, from beneath, like well water.” There is always something to notice.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
At the heart of my work is nature. Everything I write about seems to somehow tie back to the fact that we humans need wildness to thrive, and that noticing what’s going on outside makes us healthier, happier, and more likely to fulfill our role in adding to the healing of the world. I write nonfiction and poetry, and much of my work incorporates coaching concepts like motivational interviewing and appreciative inquiry (behavioral psychology techniques). I started my published writing career as primarily an essayist, but I’ve since added poetry and long form nonfiction. I write about mindfulness, nature connection, and living simply, but I also write about the need for social justice and deep self-inquiry. One of the authors, Linda Åkeson McGurk, who endorsed my latest book (Collisions of Earth and Sky) said, “Barr’s writing is a bold rejection of the culture and policies that have alienated humans from the natural world. I haven’t read anything like it in the nature connection genre.”
So, I suppose I’m a wellness coaching poet, someone who uses words and imagery to elicit responses in others that I hope will help them add their own version of healing to the world.
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
I didn’t take any writing or literary courses in college or graduate school, other than those required for my degrees, which were in Health (BA) and Faith and Health Ministries: Community and Congregational Care (MA). I’ve always enjoyed writing, but I’m mostly self-taught. And I really hated poetry in school. It wasn’t until I started writing it myself and came to understand that it doesn’t have to rhyme or be dissected in any formal way that I gained an appreciation and love of the genre.
Contact Info:
- Website: heidibarr.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heidicbarr/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HeidiBarrwriter
- Other: https://heidibarr.substack.com/
Image Credits
Tasha Herrgott
Holly Scherer
