about me

Linda Joy Schmidt

Cedar Rapids, Iowa 

lindajoy57@gmail.com

319-365-8690

When I was 12 I started babysitting and used my  earnings to buy one of the first cassette tape recorders with a real microphone. The concept so fascinated me that I  worked 100 hours to get that recorder! I loved to walk around with my microphone and interview my family, recording anything they wanted to tell. Now I'm a writer and have experience interviewing and writing for various news outlets. Hearing people's stories is my passion. I volunteer at a continuing care retirement community and enjoy talking to the folks who live there. I have a degree in microbiology, but my passion has always been writing. I have an English minor, am an avid reader, and have taken many writing courses and writing workshops over the years, a book making course, and am a certified Guided Autobiography facilitator using the proven methods of Dr. James Birren, a pioneer in the field of gerontology, and renowned professor and author. He developed the course in guided autobiography which I facilitate. Working with people to help preserve their legacy is an incredible privilege.