I am grateful to the Ginger Press for being the first independent bookstore to carry my book of poetry, Just Leaves.
You can find this stack of signed copies in Downtown Owen Sound!
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Signed copies of Just Leaves at Ginger Press in Owen Sound!
Checking out my great-grandmother’s dissertation from the library
5 years ago, I had a hunch I wanted to do a project involving my great-grandmother’s writing.
I didn’t realize I could just request her 1937 PhD dissertation as an interlibrary loan from the university, and have it waiting on the hold shelf at the local public library. It’s on The Changing Family In India, and I couldn’t have asked for a better companion in my research.
I picked it up today, finally. How long awaited, to have this physical copy in my hands.
This is part of my research for my performance poetry project Child in the Mist. I will be working with her 1933 parenting handbook to produce new poetry with sound art, thanks to funding from the Ontario Arts Council.
Reading her research and voice as a sociologist regarding the changing family in India will provide much-needed context. She had raised her own children primarily in India, and taught at Indore Christian College (and was later principal).
It’s a treasure trove for me at this stage of my research.
I’m incredibly grateful to have access to this as part of my process.
Just Leaves Audiobook available now!
Just Leaves is now available at your favourite audiobook retailers!
Click to go to the retailer for purchase. Don’t forget to give a 5 star review if you enjoy the audiobook!
Just Leaves purchase link for US
American poetry lovers, here’s your link to buy Just Leaves on Amazon:
Buy Just Leaves by Lauren Best
This link gives me a wee bit of commission. Thanks for your support!
Voice coaching minis at Choir Camp!
Public booking is now open for voice coaching mini sessions!
In collaboration with Choir Camp 2023, I’m offering 25 minute voice coaching sessions. These will take place July 10-14 mornings, in person at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Owen Sound.
Personalized support for your voice & creative practice:
- spice up your singing
- improve your performance skills
- troubleshoot challenges
- learn new tools
- get feedback that you can implement right away, and next steps to take with you
This is a special, one-week only opportunity with sliding scale pricing. My goal is to reach as many singers as I can, so please help me spread the word about this sing-a-thon!
ACE Voice celebrates one year of impact!
ACE Voice Method is my signature voice program.
It turns 1 today.
It’s been a whole year of seeing this thing I’ve created out in the wild, interacting with human beings with unique voices, and I’m proud of the results. I’m passionate about the possibilities.
To celebrate ACE Voice, I’m offering a special bonus to anyone who signs up for my 3-month 1:1 mentorship program before the end of June: an exclusive 70 minute Voice Wellness session with me.
My clients always gain tools and awareness to better use music and voice skills to support their wellbeing. I get tons of positive feedback about those aspects of voicework. Mental health and whole-person wellbeing is near and dear to my heart, so I decided to offer this extra session just to focus on Voice Wellness.
Luxuriously paced, deliciously nourishing self-care.
Time reserved for clients to support their vocal health as they glow up their creative power, and experience the beneficial ways music soothes, restores, and revitalizes us.
(You know where to find me to learn more)
I’m honoured to do what I do. This stuff altered my trajectory and my everyday experience, that’s why I keep going and won’t shut up about it.
My client said it best: “The benefits are life altering”.
It took me years of building my own voice, my own creative clarity, my own professional practice.
15+ years of challenges, duelling with discomfort, facing fears, stumbling but never stopping because I want to create more opportunities for other people to sing and feel fulfilled by self-expression.
For over a decade I’ve been voice coaching people from all walks of life, learning from world-class facilitators and teachers, and grappling with the problems often seen in traditional music education.
A year ago, I knew it was time to call out clearly to those who are looking for someone like me, and that’s why I reopened my 1:1 voice coaching practice with Aligned Creative Embodiment as my signature method.
I hoped to describe how I worked in a way that would inspire those who dream of spirited singing, those who want to express themselves with ease, those who are driven to make impact in the world with creativity and caring.
I provide integrated support for your creative voice as it works and plays in your mind, body, and soul:
- to journey inwards to unlock your innate musicality and creative edge
- to explore new possibilities and create lasting change
- to connect with others through creativity- whatever that means to you, for the reasons that are important to you
It’s how I help my clients have intuitive, expansive learning that opens up creative possibilities on a journey that they love.
The results speak for themselves:
- I see clients joyfully expressing themselves, confidently singing, growing as musicians and inspired to share.
- I see bountiful creative processes that nourish the creator and impact the world.
- I see my people speaking courageously in ways that inspire others, becoming more effective facilitators, practicing collaborative skills, putting their efforts into developing rewarding professional practices that impact their communities.
- I see my clients creating strategic creative plans for themselves that are full of so much caring, so much thoughtful choice to value themselves and their dreams, value the way they touch the world and the way they steward their energy.
I’m glad I’ve stuck with it, and tended and watered this idea until it grew into something that is blooming, resounding with hope, calling out opportunity to collaboratively create a better world together.
Poetry book Just Leaves on Amazon top 10 bestseller lists
It’s hard to believe that I’m here.
My first book is published. This happened. This is my life. This is my gratitude. I created this. I created this opportunity. I worked and overcame, disappointed myself and kept going, found ways of getting it done and here I am.
So much has changed since I started writing the poems and imagined the book.
So many people have believed in me, generously supported me.
I paddled, I plotted, I plod, I pirouette.
and I keep going.
Quoted in Collingwood Today
I was quoted in a recent article in Collingwood Today, talking about entrepreneurship and voice coaching at a great event put on by Georgian Bay Accelerator.
I’ve felt strongly about the benefits of music for years- anyone who knows me would say it’s something I’m passionate about. I’m also a believer in the impact of supporting creative entrepreneurs to make a difference in the world, creating connections and caring for our communities in ways that are regenerative and responsible.
I especially believe that entrepreneurs and anyone who is impact or mission driven, looking to make the world a better place, can improve their effectiveness and experience with music. In fact, I think that any professional that isn’t using music- and specifically voicework- as a part of their toolkit for wellbeing is missing out. Those who are creative as part of how they make their money can use music to become better innovators, collaborators, and creators.
We want to impress others with our rockstar vibes, do something that helps us tap into our own power, respect a journey towards self-mastery… but we don’t want to quit and fail and give up, and we don’t want it to take too much time or effort.
Music gives back to us for a lifetime, and we can compound our creative investments by inputting energy and heart. We can be strategic.
Our voice is essential to our communication, it’s a gateway to our heart and soul, it’s a cognitive challenge and nurturing practice that strengthens our mind and spirit. It’s an acrobatic movement within our bodies, innate and intimate, that allows us to build our self-awareness and self-actualization, to be able to connect with others, to raise our voices in song and rise to the occasion when it’s music making time!
Just a few of the reasons why I’m passionate about voice coaching. I get fired up about helping people who make impact, with tools and strategies for a joyful long-lived career and a thriving ecology of creative practices.
If this sounds like you want to talk to me, please get in touch!
Just Leaves: now available!
Just Leaves is now available for purchase! Paperback and Kindle ebook editions are available to purchase, with the ebook at a special low price for a limited time. Buy Just Leaves
I’m selling signed copies, limited edition merch, and more: contact me if you’re looking for personalized books as gifts, bulk discounts for book clubs and educators.
I earn a small commission if you buy from this link: Buy Just Leaves
Just Leaves Book Launch Poster Reveal
We celebrate Just Leaves at the Owen Sound Library on June 17 at 2pm, in collaboration with ambient music duo Lakewater.
