Elaine Ambrose

Bestselling Author, Ventriloquist, & Humorist

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Author Wins Global Writing Awards in Three Genres in Three Years

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On May 9, 2019, the Independent Press Award recognized Frozen Dinners – A Memoir of a Fractured Family by Idaho Author Elaine Ambrose as the winner of a 2019 Distinguished Favorite in the memoir category. This is the third consecutive win for the author in three different genres: humor, children’s books, and memoir. The author’s books won the 2019 award for memoir, the 2018 award for children’s books, and two awards in 2017 for humor.
The Independent Press Award competition is judged by experts from different aspects of the book industry, including publishers, writers, editors, book cover designers and professional copywriters. Selected award Winners and Distinguished Favorites are based on overall excellence.


Frozen Dinners – A Memoir of a Fractured Family was released in November by Brown Books Publishing Group and remains a national bestseller. The book is available from local bookstores and online in hardcover and eBook, and the publisher recently sold the audio rights for the author to read the manuscript for an audio version to be released this summer. The memoir describes the author’s childhood on an isolated farm outside the village of Wendell, Idaho. Her father, an intense entrepreneur, made a fortune hauling frozen food throughout the Northwest. After his early death, the family and fortune were destroyed, and the author spent half a century seeking warmth and freedom.

For the 2019 competition, the INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD had entries from across the globe. Worldwide participation included books submitted from cities such as London to Madrid; Dallas to Philadelphia; Calgary to Melbourne, Chicago to San Francisco, and many different countries such as Australia, Africa, Canada, Egypt, India, Japan and Scotland as well as others.

“We are overjoyed to announce the winners and distinguished favorites in our annual 2019 INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD. Independent publishing is prospering in every corner of the earth, and we are thrilled to be highlighting key titles representing global independent publishing.” said awards sponsor Gabrielle Olczak.

Books by Ambrose have won multiple international writing awards in the past five years.

In 2017, Midlife Happy Hour – Our Reward for Surviving Careers, Kids, and Chaos
* Finalist for INDIES Book of the Year Award for Humor
* Independent Press Award – Distinguished Favorite – Humor
* Independent Press Award – Winner – Midlife
* 5-Star Review from Foreword Reviews

In 2018, Gators & Taters – A Week of Bedtime Stories
• 2018 “Distinguished Favorite” for Children’s Literature from the Independent Press Awards
• One of 50 Children’s Books Selected for Bowker’s National Recommended Reading List


Also in 2018, The Magic Potato – La Papa Mágica
•2018 Silver Medal Winner from the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards for Children’s Literature
Adopted by the Idaho State Board of Education for the statewide curriculum.

In 2014, Midlife Cabernet – Life, Love, and Laughter After Fifty
• “Laugh-out-Loud Funny”- Publishers Weekly
• “Erma Bombeck” – Foreword Reviews
• Silver Medal for Humor from the Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY)

Find more information about the author’s books and blog at ElaineAmbrose.

U of I Hosts Ambrose Storytelling Workshop

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Elaine Ambrose speaks at the U of I Storytelling Workshop

MOSCOW, Idaho — April 24, 2019 — Storytelling through film is the focus of the University of Idaho’s second annual Ambrose Storytelling Workshop, to be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 24, in the Idaho Commons Whitewater Room.

The free community workshop will introduce participants to visual storytelling and demonstrate how filmmakers can use tools at their disposal to make high-quality films.

“This year’s Ambrose Storytelling Workshop will be a fun event highlighting the power of story through film. Participants will learn directly from award-winning filmmakers and go home with usable skills,” said Benjamin James, a clinical assistant professor who teaches screenwriting in U of I’s Department of English. James is the recipient of the inaugural Ambrose Storytelling Endowment faculty research award.

James will be joined at the workshop by Palouse filmmakers Martin McGreevy and Jace Wrigley.

Following the workshop, participants will have 48 hours to submit their own short film utilizing the skills and techniques taught in the workshop. U of I seniors taking part in the workshop will compete for the Ambrose Senior Award and $1,500 prize.

The Ambrose Storytelling Workshop was started in 2018 thanks to a donation by bestselling author and U of I College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences alumna Elaine Ambrose. She created the Ambrose Storytelling Endowment to share her gift of storytelling and to honor her late brother George, a U of I alumnus.

“My entire career has been writing and telling stories,” Ambrose said. “I wanted to give back to the university to encourage more storytelling. We live in an age of sentences through Twitter and instant messaging that don’t quite communicate a story the same way a rich paragraph or dialogue does.”

More information on the workshop, including registration information, is available at uidaho.edu/ambrose.

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Media Contact
Benjamin James
Clinical Assistant Professor
Department of English
bjames@uidaho.edu

Free Workshop: How to Write a Children’s Book

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The Hungry Giant stars in one story in “Gators & Taters”

Free Workshop Thursday, April 18

Do you have a splendid idea for a children’s book but don’t know how to write and publish a book? Bestselling author Elaine Ambrose will present a free workshop Thursday, April 18 at Collister Library from 7:00 – 9:00 pm. She will discuss the tools you need to create the book. Topics will include story, characters, illustrations, cover design, and publication. Free Workshop Thursday, April 18

Ambrose has written ten books, including two award-winning children’s books featuring her home state of Idaho. Gators & Taters – A Week of Bedtime Stories won a writing award from the Independent Press Award Program. The stories are designed to be read aloud to children. Illustrations for both books were created by Boise artist Patrick Bochnak.

The Magic Potato – La Papa Mágica is a storybook written in English and Spanish and features a fun story of children flying around Idaho of a potato. The text includes key words, phrases, colors, numbers, days of the week, and locations in English and Spanish. The book has won several awards, including the 2018 Moonbeam Children’s Book Award for children’s literature. The State Board of Education adopted the book for the Idaho statewide curriculum.

Read more about Ambrose’s books, blogs, and events at www.ElaineAmbrose.com.

Sample page in “The Magic Potato” written in English and Spanish.

Writers as Instruments of Peace

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Can a group of Idaho writers help bring respect and civility to a country polluted by vitriol and criticism? Yes, they can. We proved it over the weekend.

During the past 12 years, I have organized more than 20 writer’s retreats and workshops. Our recent workshop focused on “Your Journey is Your Story,” and the participants were prompted to share personal experiences that could shape a future blog or memoir. The workshop included a “Music as Muse” exercise as I played different songs and gave writing prompts.

The last music played was Peacemaker by Irish singer Máire (Moya) Brennan. The song included the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi with the singer’s young son providing words in Irish Gaelic. The words in the original prayer include the phrase “make me an instrument of your peace.” After the music exercise, participants read their works aloud to the group.


The first writer read her story about being thrilled to take her daughters to an event to hear former First Lady Michelle Obama. The writer is scheduled to travel to Seattle in May to hear Hillary Clinton.

Another writer spoke about praying and seeing the face of Jesus.

Other writers included a former Republican state representative who read about patriotism, a mother who spoke and sang about her love for her children, a woman escaping sexual abuse, a student who wrote about surviving after World War III, a humorous memory of a departed relative, and a kind grandmother who shared the pain of being estranged by an adult son. Every speaker was respected and appreciated. There was no drama, no criticism, and no insults.

If ten people from various backgrounds and from ages 12 to 72 can come together to a writing workshop in Meridian, Idaho and value opposite opinions, others can do it, too.

Over the past two years, I’ve winced at the hateful, bitter comments written by associates on social media. These continuing assaults have changed nothing nor have they improved the public discourse. I appreciate spirited debate and have posted several satirical memes about politics, but I’ve never personally attacked anyone. In my opinion, the atmosphere is more polluted with hostile verbal garbage than with plastic bags.

I’m traveling to Las Vegas soon to present a similar writing workshop using music as motivation and inspiration. It’s my goal to inspire attendees, ten people at a time, to use their words, laptops, and pens as instruments of peace.

“Frozen Dinners” Sells 873 eBooks During March

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Ambrose Trucking, 1952
873 eBooks Sold in March

Frozen Dinners – A Memoir of a Fractured Family sold more than 28 eBooks every day during the month of March for a delightful total of 873. The memoir was published in November 2018 by Brown Books Publishing . Hardback books are selling well across the country, and the eBooks started to gain traction in February. The 873 eBooks sold were on Amazon Kindle, and additional eBooks were sold on Barnes & Noble Nook, KOBO, and Apple iTunes. During March, the eBook sold well in several foreign countries, including the United Kingdom, India, Canada, and Australia.

The eBook ranked #7 in a memoir category on Amazon. According to Just Publishing Advice, there are more than 4.8 million eBooks on Amazon Kindle.

Ambrose Trucking, 1954

The memoir describes the author’s childhood in the Idaho village of Wendell, Idaho, and explains how her father rose from poverty to build a multi-million-dollar trucking empire hauling frozen food throughout the Northwest. After his untimely death, his survivors implode in a maelstrom of brutal courtroom drama, illness, and dementia. The author spends half a century searching for love and warmth beyond the contaminated legacy of her fractured family. Now the author’s parents and brothers have died, and the family and the fortune are all gone.

The author discussed her memoir in a podcast for “Magnificent Midlife Woman” with Sheree Clark. Listen to the interview here.

Books are available from local bookstores and online. EBooks are on Amazon Kindle, KOBO, iTunes, and Nook. The audio version will be available in the summer.

Upcoming Speeches and Workshops

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Elaine Ambrose

Review my Speaker’s Page for signature speeches, videos, and testimonials.
https://elaineambrose.com/speaker/

Recent and Upcoming Speeches
January 5-6 – Sun Valley – Private Writer’s Workshop
January 7 – Boise – Richelle Silagy White’s Book Club
March 14 – Meridian – Paramount Elementary – Read and Donate Books
March 16 – Boise – Speak to Delta Gamma Alumni Luncheon – Hillcrest Country Club
March 20 – Boise – 4-Author Book Signing – The Local, 5616 State
March 30 – Meridian – Speak at LPGA Luncheon – Spurwing Country Club
April 5-6 – Spurwing Country Club – Facilitate Writer’s Workshop
April 13 – Las Vegas – Facilitate Writer’s Workshop
April 17 – Meridian Library, 1326 W Cherry Lane, Speak about “Music as Muse”
April 18 – Collister Library – Boise – Speak about Publishing Children’s Books
April 26 – Boise – Sponsor Idaho Writer’s Guild Reception
June 28 – Wendell – Speak at High School Reunion