Welcome to Amy Mangan's Web site

Find It Here!

Reviews

First and Foremost...

"First and foremost, Amy Mangan is a thorough professional. She pursues every assignment with enthusiasm and great resourcefulness to arrive at a successful outcome. She helped us launch our Sense of Place column at Southern Accents and produced the first two years of stories, scouting top Southern writers, editing their stories, writing introductions to the stories, and literally making the process seamless. On another note, Amy is just a joy to work with, a colleague who becomes a dear friend."

Frances MacDougall, Executive Editor Southern Accents magazine

Letter to the Editor, Ocala Star Banner • January 20, 2009

In response to Amy Mangan’s column Learning to Never Waste a Minute (Jan. 12), I felt like I needed to write and thank her. Hopefully, reading it will make people stop and appreciate what they have. It seems that so many people wish their lives away, and at the same time always want more material things.

We are the type of people that are always thankful for the little things and appreciate what we have. 2007 was a pretty bad year for my husband and I. Between fractured ribs, gallbladder surgery, dental work and more, we were pretty glad to see 2007 leave and laughingly said 2008 had to be better. I will never say or even think this again.

On Feb. 26, 2008, my 29-year-old daughter was murdered. I not only lost my daughter, but she was also my best friend. My 7-year-old grandson and my 5-year-old granddaughter also lost their mother. The world also lost one of the sweetest and kindest people ever.

This year has been a horrible and challenging year for our family, but at the same time I have learned what an awesome family I have.

New Year’s Eve this year really caught me off guard, because instead of wanting this year to be over, I didn’t want it to end. I somehow felt like I was leaving my daughter behind. About 4 a.m., I finally let myself fall asleep because I knew that 2009 was here whether I wanted it to be or not.

I will never again wish for a better year because I have found that it can always be worse

I only people would just be thankful for what they have. They need to slow down, look around, take a deep breath and just appreciate the moment. It can all be gone too soon.

Karen Fine

Show More Testimonials

E-mail Amy!

Amy's Last Word

Amy on Facebook!

Winner of Two Florida Magazine Awards 2010 for Writing Excellence:
Best Editorial/Commentary/Opinion (Gold “Charlie" Award) and Best Column (Silver Award)

About Me

Welcome to my Web site. I feel like I should offer you a cup of coffee or something, so a virtual Latte perhaps? The imagined caffeine might help as you scroll through the site that, hopefully, offers insight into my professional world. However, as any writer will tell you, writing is more than just a profession. Writing has a way of seeping into the personal crevices of our lives, permanently setting up shop and planting a "No Vacancy" sign.

Writing is my life. I can't turn it off. For several years, I tried. I was a college history professor. I was dean of a new academic division. I began a doctoral program in higher education. I got married. Had two kids. Added a pampered dog to the mix. Ample distractions from the creative itch, right?

Not exactly.

Every milestone proved to be great writing fodder. So, I dusted off my rusty skills honed from undergrad journalism school and started dabbling. Originally, non-fiction essays seemed to be the best fit which turned into a regular column in a local magazine which turned into a full-time job at same magazine which evolved into conceiving, writing, and editing a home and garden book. In between all of this, I landed a few stories in some national magazines like Southern Living, Better Homes & Gardens' Creative Home, and Southern Accents and picked up a newspaper column. Now, I'm editor of Ocala Magazine and Ocala HOME.

I'm also working on my first novel, The History Lesson, about a history professor trying to escape her past. No, it's not a memoir – just years of observation and imagination rolled up into something good, I hope.

It's easy to corner writers into specific genres, though I don't like being in a corner unless I have a really good book with me. Sometimes, I try to make sense of things. Other days, I try to make sense of why nothing makes sense. I laugh at myself and hope readers will, too. I also worry. Goodness, do I worry. And I ponder. I get angry. And I've grieved more than I've wanted to.

Basically, I live. So, I write.

You've probably finished your virtual coffee by now, so take a look around my site and see if you like anything.
Thanks for visiting. Come back soon.

My best,
Amy's Sigature