Kathy Sparrow has spent 30 years in the world of words — on magazine and book publishing staffs, as a fly fishing lodge owner who wrote about women on the water, as a ghostwriter, screenwriter, and now as the literary midwife to authors whose stories deserve to be in the world. She didn’t plan that title. The universe handed it to her. Every time she introduced herself as a writer, someone would say “I’ve always wanted to be a writer” — and after enough times, she recognized the assignment.
Watch the Replay above. Here is a small clip
Overview
That’s how Kathy works. She listens for what wants to happen, then she holds space for it to unfold. Her pre-writing process — she calls it “capturing those pivotal moments” — is intentionally messy. A loose outline that gets rearranged, moved, questioned, surrendered to. Because she believes most books arrive as a job from the universe, and your only real task once you say yes is to ask: what really wants to be said here?
One of the things she does with every new client is ask them to share what got edited out. Not what an editor cut — what they cut themselves, out of fear of how it would land. That moment always brings a little wistfulness. And that, Kathy says, is exactly where the juice is. The self-edited parts are almost always where the real connection lives. She laughs with her clients, cries with them, polishes with them — and then they present. She calls it reverence. She calls it surrender. It’s a sacred process, and she means that without a trace of performance.
Her clients range from Olympic athletes to thought leaders in private equity and healthcare to a children’s book author now coaching girls into golf through First Tee. One client, John DeGregory, rode the Transamerica bike trail — and in his story of resilience and epiphanies on the road, Kathy already sees a screenplay. Another is Jake Sloan, an 80-year-old who was part of the original 21ers at Mare Island, a group that spearheaded a civil rights action around labor injustices. Kathy is working with screenwriting mentors to get that story to the screen because, as she put it: it’s a story that should not be forgotten. Then there’s the project she’s ghostwriting now — a book where nature itself is a character. The author is learning what he needs from allowing the land to tell him things. Surrendering to what the land wants to teach. It’s the same philosophy Kathy brings to everything.
And in her own work. The Whispered Teachings of Grandmother Trout — touted as the feminine version of A River Runs Through It — is being retitled Laguna Madre and reimagined for the screen. She started writing it when she owned a fly fishing lodge in the lower Laguna Madre. The bones of the story were always there. But when she pulled it out to begin adapting it as a screenplay, she realized something had been left on the table — material she wasn’t ready to go into the first time around. One evening, glass of wine on the balcony, she was thinking about Taylor Sheridan’s The Madison and suddenly saw it: the title was too long, too literary, too much of who she was then. The new title landed after weeks of sitting with it, and with it came a fuller version of the story — and a clearer picture of who she’s become. The woman who spent decades helping others be visible was finally ready to be seen herself.
Her Wisdom Bomb at the close said it all:
"If you hear a story that wants to be given voice to, honor that. Trust it. You don't need to know where it's going. Maybe it's just something you need to put down for yourself. But I think we need to trust that more and bring our stories out — whether it's for a big audience or our kids."
Highlights
How the literary midwife was born
Kathy began her career in magazine and book publishing, identifying as a writer. But every time she introduced herself, people responded the same way: “I’ve always wanted to be a writer.” After hearing it enough times, she recognized the pattern for what it was — a direction. She started coaching writers, pre-internet, when it was purely about the story. Over 30 years, that evolved into the full journey: from idea to manuscript to marketing to the life a book takes on once it’s in the world.
The projects that have her completely lit up right now
Kathy is working on three projects she describes as everything she’s worked toward. A man who rode the Transamerica bike trail — resilience and epiphanies on the road, a story she sees heading to screen. An 80-year-old civil rights figure whose story of labor justice at Mare Island she believes should not be forgotten. And a collaboration where nature is a character — a book about surrendering to what the land wants to teach you. Each one is a different expression of the same thing she’s always believed: that stories arrive as assignments, and our job is to be ready.
Kathy Says…
“Writing a book is reverence. It’s surrender. Most projects come to us when the universe goes, ‘I got a job for you.’ And our job is — after we say yes — we have to surrender and listen. What really wants to be said here?”
Kathy Sparrow
About Kathy
In my early childhood, I knew I wanted to be a writer.
I read voraciously and penned stories but never shared them with others. When I was entering high school, I was told by my guidance counselor that I’d never be a writer.
Luckily, my soul’s voice was much louder than his, and I began to write. Initially, I wrote personal essays, and one submission led me to a long-term gig, writing personality profiles for a community newspaper. Since I lived in Upstate New York, not too far from New York City or the Berkshires in Massachusetts, I was able to capture the stories of many artists, writers, and musicians.
One rainy Sunday afternoon, I sipped tea with Kermit Love, the creator of Sesame Street’s Snuffleupagus and Oscar the Grouch. Another time, I sat in the storeroom of one of The Body Shop stores, interviewing the Founder Anita Roddick. Soon after, I met New Age music pioneer, Stephen Halpern and later penned a story about his music journey.
Over time and with many other publications, my responsibilities grew from freelance writer, to contributing editor, to managing editor. Then the world of book publishing opened up to me, and I began working with a number of publishing houses, including the For Dummies publisher and Masters Press in Indianapolis.
My work has been celebrated by my colleagues, and I’ve received several awards for my non-fiction writing and my poetry, including:
Gallery ‘05 Student Literary Arts Journal, Second place for my poem, “So This is the Arroyo.”
Valley Byliner’s Contest, First place, nonfiction, “Black Drum Speaks.”
Society of Professional Journalists Best in Indiana Journalism, Second place for profile on Margot Adler.
Combined Health Appeal Award, Coverage of health topics, The Bristol Press.
As my portfolio grew, so did the number of people who knew about my work. I often heard the remark, “I’ve always wanted to be a writer, but never knew how to begin.”
That’s when I began coaching private clients in crafting their stories.
I’ve been blessed to work with a number of aspiring authors, guiding them through the writing process to bring their vision alive. After I completed my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English from the University of Texas Pan American (now Rio Grande Valley), I was hired to teach in UTPA’s First-Year Writing Program.
I’m currently teaching at National University, Pikes Peak Community College, and Southern New Hampshire University, teaching first-year composition classes and also marketing for aspiring writers.
Connect with Kathy
Have a question for Kathy? Drop it in the comments — I’ll make sure she sees it. And come back next Wednesday at noon ET, we have interviews booked months in advance. Or catch the replays.
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