Tiffany Sunday

Author | Poet | TEDx Presenter

Blog

A Silver Lining Leads to a New Beginning 

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Several years ago, a stranger offered advice as we waited for our haircuts. We were talking about life and the problems we were encountering. Then, as his name was called, he turned to me and said, “I discovered there is always a silver lining. The fun is finding it.” To this day, I can recall the memory and his advice.  

For me, 2022 has been an interesting and challenging year, both professionally and personally. So in April, I started encountering problems with my book distributor, which only compounded my stress. The company stopped paying royalties, books disappeared, and readers didn’t receive their orders. 

After weeks of researching a solution, I realized the only way to solve the problem was to change distributors and republish all my poetry collections. All reviews and work I had done would disappear. However, I knew continuing with the distributor would only make matters worse.  

The advice I received so long ago kept looping in my mind, telling me to search for the silver lining. Finally, weeks passed, and I knew I had to take a chance and change distributors. The best part of this transition was being introduced to a brilliant new editor and book designer. Little did I know, she would be my silver lining. Thinking back, I never thought I would say, “I am glad” the previous distributor created so much stress and then failed to correct the problem, but I am. Because if I had not made the change, I would not have met my new editor. 

Taking risks isn’t easy because we are unsure of the future, the unknown. Listening to the advice I received, I searched for the silver lining. I glazed across the ocean of possibilities and imagined a better path. So often, we become caught up and trapped by the drama of the problem that we miss the silver lining. 

Even as a writer, I struggle to think of the words or phrases that could describe the transformation that occurred working with my new editor – she has helped me become a better writer and is now an invaluable part of my writing process. 

I am excited about the new editions: To Be Human – Always and Insatiable Consumption of Being. The books also honor my editor’s artistic skills as a book designer. 

Both books include new content, design, and editing. In addition, new flash fiction stories were added to Insatiable Consumption of Being. 

The first editions of my poetry books have been removed from the market, and Proper Grey Areas will not be re-released as a second edition. So instead, I am writing a new book focusing on fiction and dystopian short stories. 

To Be Human – Always Second Edition is available now from Itasca and will soon be available at independent bookstores and Barnes and Noble. 

May you always find a silver lining, 

Tiffany 

Tiffany Sunday Guest: Late Night Coffee Hosted by Dyslexic Distributors

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Open Coffee is a free, informal, one-hour community gathering for individuals with dyslexia or anyone interested in the topic. The event is hosted by Dyslexic Distributors, founded by Marnix Langstraat, and based in Amsterdam.

Tiffany and Marnix will discuss her internationally recognized books: Dyslexia’s Competitive Edge and How Dyslexics Will Rule the Future. Plus, how she utilizes her creativity fueled by her dyslexic brain to write flash fiction, poetry, and short stories.

Event Details

Tuesday, October 4, 2022 at 20:00 pm CET (Central Europe Time) or 1:00 pm CST in the U.S.

Event Link:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dyslexic-disruptors_opencoffee-dyslexicthinking-dyslexia-activity-6980464050837041152-tyOq?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Visual Thinkers, Dyslexia and Neurodiversity

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Creative Commons

With the rapid acceleration of digital visual technology, video content surrounds us everywhere we go. As a result, individuals who possess visual thinking and spatial awareness skills have an advantage.

For individuals with dyslexia, visual thinking and spatial reasoning is both a skill and talent. All our thoughts and ideas appear in our minds, like movies. We can imagine an idea in 3D with a 360-degree perspective.

When we think about new ideas, we can often see the whole picture and how the idea will work. Currently, I am working on a fiction manuscript and see the book as a movie more than words on a page. My visual thinking skills enable me to see the book first, making it easier to write.

Once we have a lock on what we are creating, we back into the idea to transform thought into a tangible product. As a visual thinker, I rarely, if ever, read instructions for putting things together. Instead, I look at the IKEA box and then build it. 

The downside of being a visual thinker is conveying what we see in our mind’s eye to others. We know the forest, the trees, and everything in the forest from top to bottom. Most of the time, we can envision all the details and have a gut on how our vision will work. Transferring our mental blueprint to others is always the most challenging part of the process, which is rarely a straight line. Instead, the process consists of squiggly movement as we test and build the idea. However, often, what we envision is created. 

We Must See First

Being neurodiverse, I rely heavily on visual cues. However, when I receive too much visual information, I become overwhelmed, which is why I avoid clutter. Last month, I spoke with a group of college students, and we talked about how we had to “see it” to create it. Whatever it was, we had to see it. The group discussed dealing with research and term papers.

One of the students talked about their frustration as the professor did not provide a template or sample paper. As a result, the student had no roadmap to follow, which added to her frustration. For the past month, I have thought about our discussion and realized just how much time I spend seeking visual templates for my brain each day. If my dyslexic brain cannot see, it does not exist. Period. 

Value of Spatial Reasoning and Thinking

With all the frustrations of finding templates, I would not trade the visual thinking and spatial reasoning skills my dyslexic brain possess. From my book research for, How Dyslexics Will Rule the Future, I concluded that visual thinking might be another form of human intelligence as information can quickly be conveyed through graphical images derived from our imagination. I also spoke about visual thinking during a podcast interview with Sean Douglas following the 2018 British Dyslexia Conference.

I believe this is why Einstein felt that imagination was more powerful than knowledge because he understood the importance of visual thinking. 

Tiffany Sunday, Key Presenter at Region One Dyslexia Conference, April 22, 2022

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Tiffany Sunday is a key presenter at this year’s Region One Dyslexia Conference on Friday, April 22, 2022.

She will be sharing information with the students about how dyslexia is the DNA for entrepreneurship and innovation. Tiffany is the author of Dyslexia’s Competitive Edge, a book that discusses how dyslexia is a competitive edge for entrepreneurship and business ownership.

The Dyslexia presentation is based on Tiffany’s 2015 TEDx Talk – Dyslexia 2:0: The Gift of Innovation and the Entrepreneurial Mind.

Region One Presentation Topic: Dyslexia DNA of Entrepreneurship and Innovation

During her presentation, she will include examples to help the students understand how the challenges they encounter at school build tenacity and resiliency which are invaluable traits.

Tiffany will encourage students to focus on their creative talents, problem-solving skills, and unique abilities. She will share stories about when she was in school, and how she worked to overcome challenges including failing classes.

Key Points for Teachers and Parents Unable to Attend the Conference

Dyslexics are creative, entrepreneurial, and innovative.

Dyslexia enables individuals to solve complex problems.

Dyslexics develop tenacity from dealing with adversity and bouncing back from setbacks.

Finding downtime for the dyslexic brain to explore, dream, and think is important.

Dyslexics are strong leaders, who understand the big picture.

Many of our decisions are made from a “gut feeling.”

Thank you

Tiffany would like to express her gratitude to everyone at Region One for this opportunity. She believes it is important to share positive information about dyslexia with students.

Tiffany Sunday, Poetry Night Discovery Workshop, April 6, 2022 – Dallas Public Library

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Tiffany Sunday will be conducting a poetry discovery workshop on Wednesday, April 6, 2022, from 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm at the Forest Green Branch of the Dallas Public Library.

Are you new to poetry, as a reader or a writer? Discover the art of poetry and the poet within you. Tiffany Sunday will share different styles of poetry and discuss how poems have the power to transform our lives. During the second part of the workshop, she will offer inspiration for new poets and guidance on how to start writing poetry.

During the workshop, Tiffany will discuss poetry, read a selection of poems, and discuss the importance of poems and art. Attendees will have opportunities to write and to discover their inner poet. Tiffany will also read from two previous collections, To Be Human – Always and Proper Grey Areas.