627: Laurel Handfield: From Low Self-Worth And Self-Harm To Creating Books For Girls Of Color

Laurel Handfield began her writing career years ago in a small, suburban town outside of Philadelphia, PA. In college, she majored in business marketing and after graduation, she worked in sales, marketing, and advertising. However, a trip to the Bahamas led to a shift in focus and a rediscovery of her true passion: writing.

Her vacation to the islands turned into an unexpected romance when she met and fell in love with her now-husband. After two years in a long-distance relationship, she decided to move to the Bahamas permanently. While life in the Bahamas was slower and more relaxed, she also discovered that her marketing career didn’t hold quite as much opportunity on the islands as it did in the United States, so she went back to creating. She wrote and ghostwrote over five full-length novels, including a fictional tale about the only Black family on the Titanic.

Today, Laurel creates coloring/activity books for young girls of color. She still calls the Bahamas home and enjoys the laid-back island life with her husband, three children, and two dogs.

Listen in to hear Laurel share:

• Her journey of building her self esteem as a young Black girl and then a Black woman
• The impact of being teased for her looks and physical attributes as a young girl
• How the impact of her low self-worth led to self-harm in the form of an eating disorder
• How she healed from her low self-esteem and eating disorder - and recognized what an epidemic there was around the struggles she was facing
• What inspired her work to create books and coloring books for girls of color
• How moms can affirm their daughter’s worth in different ways
• Her advice to moms who might want to write a book

Links mentioned:

• Join me in Jen Lumanlan’s 10 week Taming Your Triggers workshop: shamelessmom.com/taming
• Connect with Laurel: www.happyislandpress.com
• Laurel’s Books on Amazon: Happy Island Press
• Laurel on FB
• Laurel on IG
• Laurel on TikTok

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