Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalie Hanemann.
Hi Natalie, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I began working in publishing 25 years ago after graduating college. Books were the only thing I really cared about as a teenager, so I decided to do all I could to learn about book publishing, as I knew I’d never be able to devote a career in a field I cared nothing about. I took a job in-house at Duke University Press and learned the inner workings of how a book gets made. Then in 2002, I moved to Nashville and started working at what is now HarperCollins Christian, formerly Thomas Nelson.
My entrepreneurial side grew itchy under the constraints of life in corporate America and when I was 36, I left my position as Fiction Acquisitions Editor and began a freelance editing business. Over the course of my career, I’ve helped hundreds of authors elevate their writing.
Five years ago, a publisher asked if I would ghostwrite for a client and that opened up the doors to what I’m doing full-time today. I’ve ghostwritten 8 books so far and am working on two personal projects: one is a book on the craft of ghostwriting and the other is a memoir about my spiritual journey, which has been a large part of my life and, I believe, my success.
Being an “insider” in publishing for so long gave me the credentials to grow a robust writing and editorial business that expanded into an LLC in 2024. I expanded the business further to include the spiritual side of creativity, specifically storytelling, whether it is through the written word, song, or some other shape of art. At Be/Wilder Writer, the goal is to explore the intersection of creativity, wilderness, and spirituality. Our creativity doesn’t originate with us, but it is communicated and grown in the interior space of spirit, mind, and heart. The best way I’ve found to get in touch with this part of ourselves is by going into wilderness.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Most of the struggles I had, once I started my own writing and editorial business, were in the “me versus me” category. Self-doubt and immaturity are toxic to success. It takes time and a lot of messing up to learn what you’re good at, who you can trust, and what it looks like to have healthy boundaries.
I always wanted to write but didn’t have the confidence. As a book editor, I read a lot, and there are writers who are so good with language and turns of phrases that I felt both awed by their talent and humbled. I never believed that greatness was in me, so I didn’t try. I don’t think I would have ventured into ghostwriting if someone hadn’t seen potential in me and simply asked if I was interested.
Not every book is meant to be literature. I learned that I excelled at organization and structure, clarity in communication, and an ability to thread together long strands of narrative in a cohesive and compelling way. As I’ve grown more comfortable writing, I feel more willing to find creative ways to say things — to bend and stretch words so they tug at the subtlety of meaning. Writing is right-brain/left-brain work and playing with words strengthens the creative center of our minds. It’s been fun to play around with style and form in my own works.
It was a long journey to get to this point in my writing life, and I still feel like a beginner.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Be/Wilder Writer, LLC?
Be/Wilder Writer was born from my long career as a book editor and my passion for exploring the nature of creativity, which I believe is impacted by our interior lives. A large part of my journey as a writer and as a person who believes in God involves time in the wilderness. That began during COVID when the world was on lockdown and we had no where to go but outdoors. I started taking walks alone on nearby trails. That grew into wanting to experience time in the desert like the early Desert Father and Mothers, so I booked a flight to Albuquerque where I tested my physical limits, which seemed to unlock something spiritual in me. I fell in love with New Mexico and the desert night sky.
I worked to find a way to have my company Be/Wilder Writer — the name of which is a command (you, go be wilder!) and a nod to the origin of the word, which means “to cause a person to be lost in the wilderness” with synonyms like “dazzle, mystify, puzzle, and astonish — include the more mysterious parts of our creativity and humanity. The interior lives we lead, which includes the feelings, thoughts, and images that flow inside us, when explored can unlock more creativity and more communion with our Maker.
I lead Contemplative Hikes once a month in and around the Nashville area so people can experience time in the wilderness in silence. I like to say “Let’s go get silent together” because if you aren’t familiar with the prayer practice of contemplation, it can help to use a guide. You can read more about this and sign up through my website.
What were you like growing up?
I was a happy, social girl until I hit my teenaged years and things got stormy. I always had my books, which were my close friends, and I had music. I grew up when grunge became popular and I loved Pearl Jam and Soundgarden. Recently I began playing some of those old songs and it’s like a lightning bolt time jump to the girl I was at 17, riding around in my 1981 Honda Accord hatchback, wearing flannels and Birkenstocks. I was voted “most likely to lead a revolution” my senior year in high school. I went to college in the mountains of North Carolina and there, I experienced real movement toward the woman I am today. Right before I graduated college in 1998, I became Catholic and that has radically changed my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.youbewilder.com
- Instagram: natalie_the_wild_writer
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-hanemann-14ab7630
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@natalie_wildwriter
