AMBER KIZER
Stories in Amber...Captured in Time
The Official Bio
Amber Kizer is not one of those authors who wrote complete books at the age of three and always knew she wanted to be a writer. She merely enjoyed reading until a health challenge, beginning in college, forced her to start living outside the box. After one writing workshop, she fell in love with telling stories; a million pages of prose later she still loves it. Her characters tend to be opinionated, outspoken, and stubborn—she has no idea where that comes from.
A food lover, she plans trips around menus, wishes cookbooks were scratch and sniff, and loves to make complicated recipes—especially desserts. When she’s not reading from a huge stack, she’s coaxing rose bushes to blossom, watching delightful teen angst on television, or quilting with more joy than skill. She takes her tea black, her custard frozen, and her men witty. She lives in the
A celebrated speaker and teacher, Amber gives writing workshops for all ages, including workshops for teachers. To request a school visit, workshop schedule or a book signing, please email Amber@amberkizer.com
The Unofficial Stuff
I never thought I’d have chickens—I’m a city girl at heart. I love traffic and sirens, crowds of people and shopping at the grocery store with anonymity. But I’m highly adaptable and I began my interest in chickens when the neighbor's flock came over for afternoon treats. The evolution and variety of chickens are amazing. I got hooked. Plus they're like moving yard art with personality. J Now our flock is varied with all kinds of breeds and a few hybrids. The men of the coop are Fabio, Hunk, Snow White and Pollyanna (we didn’t know Snow or Polly were roosters when they were named, turns out the names are apt). Fabio is named after the romance cover model, (sometimes he appears in I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter commercials) because our Fabio has long blond neck feathers he likes to throw about dramatically. He also thinks he’s quite the stud.
I usually read about fifteen books at once, not literally at once, but concurrently. Yes, the stack topples occasionally, but no one has been seriously hurt to date. I like to read a chapter and go on to the next one, until I get so hooked I have to finish it. It’s weird I know. Right now the stack includes: I Feel Bad About My Neck by Ephron, Choke by Palahniuk, Insatiable by Greene, Bourdain’s Nasty Bits, Maximum Ride by Patterson, New Moon by Meyers, Under the Persimmon Tree by Staples, American Cookery by Kalpakian, Smashed by Zailckas, The Botanist and the Vineyard, Coyote Blue by Chris Moore, The History of Love by Nicole Krauss, Arrow of the Blue Skinned God by Jonah Blank, From Baghdad With Love by Lt Col. Jay Kopelman. I’d highly recommend Laurie Notaro for anyone needing a good laugh—I’m eagerly waiting for her next book.
When NCAA basketball starts, I read on commercial breaks and during time outs—you’d be surprised how much can get read! I usually cheer for beautiful ball regardless of the team, but I do have favorites—what can I say? Go GW! Go Big 10! March Madness is an incurable condition!
I love to bake. Seriously, I dream in flavors. My latest cheesecake recipes have been a green tea with fresh blackberry topping and an almond-apple with homemade caramel sauce. But the creation I’m most proud of is a wedding cake I made for a friend this past summer. She wanted color and shape and something non-traditional to go with the outdoor summer party of their reception. The best part is that guests came back for seconds because it tasted so good! (All the flowers are made from gum paste and fondant--want to know how? Check out books by Colette Peters--including Cakes to Dream On )
I started writing about seven years ago, after I developed a rare nerve condition during my freshman year of college. It's a complicated condition that affects both of my legs. The simplest way to explain it is to say my legs don’t always work, but they always hurt. The muscles, skin, bones and nerves are completely wonky. Normal nerve signals usually reserved to tell the body to stop doing something (the OUCH! response) fire in my legs 24/7. However, unless you’re a close friend you wouldn’t notice—I work very hard to walk normally, smile and keep the ouches to myself. I have a motley crew of tools I use to deal with the symptoms including meds, acupuncture, massage, physical therapy, heat, ice cream and cheesy movies. Everybody deals with something, right? It did mean changing my ideas of personal success and future plans. Now, I have to take things as they come and prioritize constantly. Writing is wonderful because I can work around the legs and bad days. It’s as flexible as I have to live. I’m blessed with a wonderful agent and dedicated editor and I’m thrilled Gert gets to debut next fall in all her glory.
"Let Them Eat Cake!"
Check out the pictures below of my recent cake creations!
