Amanda Elaine West

Over the last four years, I've interviewed hundreds of people for articles published by The Exchange Media Group in their markets across Middle Tennessee; Bowling Green, Kentucky; Lynchburg, Virginia; and (soon to be) Huntsville, Alabama. I've also served as the lead writer for Good News Shelbyville magazine since 2024. I have created bios for business owners, written marketing mail-outs for new businesses, and collaborated with teams of designers, freelance writers, proofreaders, business leaders, and photographers to publish over 100 magazines since 2022. As a multi-published writer, my work has also been published by Guideposts Books (13 stories debuting in 2026 and 2027. WOOHOO!!). LifeWay has also published my work in their ParentLife magazine and Open Windows devotional, and I have been featured in the Tennessee Baptist & Reflector. Collaborating and brainstorming with other creatives, whether they write fiction, nonfiction, devotionals, articles, poetry, memoirs, or short stories, is something I love to do! You'll see my ideas are endless. I help writers move past fear, gain momentum, and find their stride while I stand on the sidelines cheering until they reach the finish line. In fact, I taught “From Passion to Profession: How to Kickstart Your Freelance Writing Career” at the Florida Christian Writers Conference in 2025. While there, I was also featured on Linda Goldfarb's “Your Best Writing Life” podcast. The booklet I created for my students takes freelance writers from “Pitch to Published to Paid,” and I'm offering this resource to you as a gift for booking a coaching session with me. As a fiction writer, my manuscript “Embracing Esperanza” won first place for contemporary fiction in 2025, and in 2024, my historical fiction “Hidden Heirlooms” won second place at the Florida Christian Writers Conference. I am a self-proclaimed history nerd, so I am intrigued by names, events, and situations that cause my characters to leap right onto the pages of a history book. After attending the Blue Lake Christian Writers Retreat in Andalusia, Alabama, in 2019, I launched Word Weavers South Middle Tennessee and serve as the president. I also served for several years as the president of Page 51, an online Word Weavers group for historical fiction writers.

I grew up in Georgia, where we called our aunts “aints.” We drank sweet tea from Mason jars and snapped green beans over a metal bowl for Sunday “dinner,” which was at noon... (of course!). As an adult, I've lived in four Southern states, where unique customs, dialects, and folklore have continued to fuel my curiosity and creativity. I've been married to my high school sweetheart for nearly 30 years, and despite my doctor telling me I would never have a baby, God graciously gifted us with four. I began homeschooling in 2010 and, over the years, somehow managed to balance home education with working part-time as a branch manager of a public library. As our children grew up and began graduating, I slowly began investing in a calling God placed on my life at an early age: writing! My freelance writing career certainly didn't happen overnight, and boy, did I have a lot to learn, but God has been faithful.  If all of this isn't enough, I serve alongside my husband, who is a full-time pastor. We put “boots on the ground” in 2016 during a horrific flood in Northwest Louisiana and saw God use us mightily (read all about it under the “Musings” tab). So, we recently became certified chaplains through the Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief program. We enjoy traveling together, visiting museums, touring historic homes, and escaping to out-of-the-way B&Bs. Not only do we have four children, but we also have four sweet kitties who were adopted from rescues. They fill our hearts (and our laps!) with lots of warmth.  I whole-heartedly believe words have the power to restore what feels broken and to remind us God isn't finished with us yet; beauty is still being made from the piles of ashes we surrender to Him. If you've read this far, thank you for taking time to learn about me. I hope you have a blessed day, my sweet friend!