Beyond the Draft

Guy Morris escaped an abusive childhood at 13 to become a homeless runaway, yet earned three degrees by 25, including acceptance to Harvard's MBA program. After a 38-year leadership career across Fortune 100 software, tech, and global energy companies, he became a multi-award-winning author of intelligent thrillers often compared to Dan Brown and Michael Crichton, and wrote the nonfiction guide, T...

Steven Ferrara built one of the largest privately held financial services firms in the country, serving as CEO for 25 years. But his deepest work began after the loss of his 23-year-old son, which opened a 20-year journey of journaling, reflection, and spiritual transformation. That journey became his acclaimed book, From Grief to Gratitude: A New Paradigm on Death, praised by Jack Canfield as one...

Dianna Gunn decided she wanted to be an author at eight years old. Since then, she's published six fantasy and horror books, including the Moonshadow Rising Duology, and founded Weeknight Writers, an organization dedicated to virtual community and educational support for fiction writers. In this episode, Dianna shares what convinced her that writers needed community as much as craft, why she built...

Shanti Hershenson has been creating stories since she could hold a crayon, and published her first two novellas back in the sixth grade. Now eighteen and a senior in high school, she's written 38 books, with 22 published, across science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary genres, and she's built a following of over 50,000 on TikTok while also advocating against bullying in schools. In this episode,...

Carol Tice founded Freelance Writers Den in 2011 after struggling to earn a living as a writing coach and blogger. The community grew to over 1,500 paying members, generating nearly $6 million over a decade, before she sold it in 2021. Now, at 65, she's built a new platform, Community Growth Academy on Skool, teaching coaches and consultants how to build their own paid communities. In this episode...

After a 43-year career with ODOT, Robert Bowers began writing a few years before retirement, turning a lifetime of fishing, hunting, and unexplained encounters into stories that blend humor, suspense, and a touch of the supernatural. He's the author of the four-volume Campfire Tales From Uncle Rob series, along with cryptid horror novels Red Eyes at Black Mesa and Have Dog Will Travel. In this epi...

Valerie Willis is an award-winning dark fantasy and paranormal romance author who's designed hundreds of book covers and interiors, co-founded 4 Horsemen Publications, and built a career living at the intersection of mythology, monsters, and modern book marketing. In this episode, Valerie shares how she uses myth and folklore in her storytelling without letting it feel recycled or academic, what a...

Terry Whalin is an editor and author of more than 60 books, several of which have sold over 100,000 copies, and has written for more than 50 magazines. He's one of the top content producers in the world with over 1,700 blog entries on The Writing Life. His book, 10 Publishing Myths, was written to give authors realistic expectations and practical action steps for publishing success. In this episod...

Brigitta Dau began her professional life as an actress, starring on a Canadian television series before relocating to Los Angeles at 21. Today, she's a Reiki Master, life coach, and co-author of Landing on Your North Star: A Guide to Finding Your Life's Purpose, helping people reconnect with their inner wisdom through a fusion of energy healing, coaching, and creative expression. In this episode,...

What happens when an engineer, farmer, conservationist, and poet looks at the world through the same lens? In this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Matt Thomas, a poet, smallholder farmer, engineer, and author whose work explores awareness, nature, time, relationships, and the meaning hidden inside ordinary moments. Matt built a 30-year career in software engineering before turning...

What happens when we stop seeing disability through limitations and start seeing the person, the story, and the possibilities? In this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma welcomes Jennifer Chassman Browne, a writer, storyteller, speaker, educator, and disability advocate. Jennifer has lived with rheumatoid arthritis since childhood and has spent years helping organizations better understand disabili...

What if the person who helped create a bestselling book was never named on the cover? In this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Dr. Marcia Layton Turner, one of the leading voices in professional ghostwriting and the founder of the Association of Ghostwriters. Marcia has written more than 80 nonfiction books and has worked with CEOs, executives, entrepreneurs, and experts to transfo...

What is staying invisible really costing you? In this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Ange Dove, The Unchained Coach, copywriting expert, personal brand strategist, entrepreneur, and founder of one of Singapore's longest-standing copywriting agencies. After spending years helping other people find their voice, Ange realized she had been hiding behind her own business. She eventual...

Is there a book inside you—or is your ego simply telling you there should be? In this episode of Beyond the Draft, we sit down with Dr. Judith Briles, bestselling author of 49 books, book publishing expert, mentor, and founder of The Book Shepherd. With more than one million books sold, over 70 book awards, and decades of experience helping authors succeed, Judith shares the truth about writing, p...

What does it take to keep moving when life keeps testing you? In this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma welcomes Ryan Reichert, professional speaker, mindset trainer, executive coach, bestselling author, and retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel. Ryan served 23 years in the U.S. Army, including 42 months in combat, before transitioning into Fortune 500 leadership and eventually building a career ce...

What do you do when the dream you've spent years chasing starts to feel impossible? In this episode of Beyond the Draft, we sit down with Greig Watts, bestselling author, songwriter, publisher, music producer, mentor, and A&R professional. Greig shares his incredible journey from discovering songwriting in the 1980s to building an internationally successful songwriting and publishing team, working...

What separates a writer who publishes one book from an author who builds a lasting career? Lana McAra is an award-winning, international bestselling author and ghostwriter of more than 50 books with over one million copies sold. Founder of Vendela Publishing, she's spent more than two decades teaching fiction writing and helping authors build long-term careers that reach readers beyond the algorit...

Every company has a conference room quietly bleeding hundreds of hours a month, and almost nobody notices until someone actually goes looking for it. Dan Kurtz has spent twenty years in digital marketing, working across Fortune 50 companies, Microsoft, Nielsen, and scrappy startups. In 2018, he discovered five graphic designers each losing 40 hours a month to manual busywork, 200 hours gone, fixed...

What if the book you're pouring months into isn't actually the book your business needs? Ally Machate is the founder and CEO of The Writer's Ally, a bestselling author and publishing consultant who has led serious authors toward success since 1999. With a background as a "Big Five" editor at Simon & Schuster, she's built a career helping nonfiction authors write strategic, high-quality books that...

What does decades of crisis PR work teach you about writing a mystery novel that actually keeps readers guessing? John David is a longtime public relations and crisis communications consultant, corporate ghostwriter, and debut novelist. His first novel, The Bystander, won the 2025 Page Turner Award for Mysteries and was named one of the Best Thrillers of 2025 by BestThrillers.com. The story follow...

What happens when a bestselling author, by every outward measure successful, realizes she's lost the person who set out to become one in the first place? Nina Amir is the Inspiration to Creation Coach, an Amazon bestselling hybrid author with 20 books on the Amazon Top 100 list. After 15 years of chasing publishing industry success, she found herself empty and disconnected, until a friend asked he...

What does it really mean to go out and live when life has tested you in ways you never expected? In this powerful episode of Beyond the Draft, I sit down with Jonathan Brandt, cancer survivor, health coach, personal trainer, holistic nutritionist, and host of the GoOutLiving Podcast. Jonathan shares his journey through cancer, the lessons he and his late wife Kristie learned while navigating illne...

Pat wanner

What does it take to build a creative career that spans music, film, and literature, all at once, and keep reinventing across every decade? James Hand is a musician, songwriter, filmmaker, author, and educator with more than 30 years of experience in the arts. His song "I'm Trying To Get To You" won Triple J Unearthed in 2001, his short film Just Friends screened at Cannes in 2006, and today he pe...

What if a single promise made to a dying parent could reshape the next twenty-five years of your life? Matthew Cossolotto, known as The Empowerment Pro, made a promise to his dying mother to finish a book she'd been encouraging him to write. Harness Your PromisePower: Change Your Life, Transform the World, with a foreword by Jack Canfield, is rooted in that make-or-break promise. It's the second b...