Lisa Montanaro

With a foot on each coast, Lisa Montanaro is part no-nonsense Italian-American New Yorker and part sunny Californian. Lisa has a unique background, having traveled the path of a performer who didn't want to be a "starving actress" so said no to Broadway, worked as an instructor and interpreter of the Deaf to put herself through law school, and became a lawyer specializing in employment law for 9 years. She then "defected" from the practice of law and started her productivity business on the heels of the 9-11 tragedy.

Lisa has a life-long love affair with the written word. She has been keeping a journal, by long-hand, since she was 8 years old, which she has filled with hundreds of pages of prose and poetry. Her book, "The Ultimate Life Organizer: An Interactive Guide to a Simpler, Less Stressful & More Organized Life" was published by Peter Pauper Press in 2011. Lisa is a prolific non-fiction writer and has published hundreds of articles on topics such as productivity, life-work balance, law, and entrepreneurship. For the past few years, Lisa has been freelance writing for The Bike Campaign focusing on cycling as a means of transportation, environmentalism, and exercise.

Lisa is currently revising what she hopes will be her debut novel, a dual timeline family drama featuring an Italian American family spanning from the 1960s to present day struggling with a secret that they first attempt to hide, then to live with, and eventually to own.

Lisa is a Business, Branding, Mindset & Productivity Coach for Writers and Entrepreneurs. She has had the pleasure of serving as the Webinar Program Leader and Host for the Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA) since spring 2019. Serving in this role keeps her finger on the pulse of the writing community, and affords her a front-row seat to the changes and trends of the publishing industry. She often speaks for writer groups and organizations, working closely with agents, editors, book coaches, authors, and other experts in the publishing industry.

For the past decade, Lisa has resided in beautiful Northern California with her veterinarian husband, where she is a professed community theater geek, an avid runner and cyclist, and enjoys spending time spoiling her crazy but lovable rescue mutts!