Action Pulp!

By Adam Messer

“We are the backbone of health systems, enabling our care providers to do their work. Our roles are just as mission critical as the doctors and nurses.” – Amy Moudy Comeau.

Amy Moudy Comeau writes to help others learn how to lead during difficult situations.

Please introduce yourself.

Hello, my name is Amy Moudy Comeau, author of the award-winning book Every Storm Runs Out of Rain – a leadership book about leading oneself and one’s team through crisis, challenge, change or chaos. The lens is leading my Emory Healthcare marketing team through the pandemic. The lessons we learned then are applicable to the chaos and challenges we’re experiencing today. Professionally, I’ve spent my career in marketing and communications leadership roles in the performing arts, higher education and healthcare industries. Today I bring that depth and breadth of knowledge to my consulting clients. 

What genres do you write and why?

My first book is non-fiction and a personal leadership memoir. I like writing about my experiences and sharing them with others in hopes they’ll find humor, comfort and/or meaning in my words. 

What is your earliest memory of reading?

I have read since a very early age. While I’d love to say I remember reading my first book, I cannot. That said, I have many fond memories of reading at an early age – devouring Trixie Belden, Nancy Drew and Encyclopedia Brown books. Fighting over Where The Sidewalk Ends with my sisters. Spending my summers reading Mary Higgins Clark, and more. 

When did you know you wanted to write? How did it happen?

I knew I wanted to write since middle school. I wrote many short stories and poems. I dreamt of writing a book, but never knew what it would be. Even tried to take a creative writing class my sophomore year in college but it was “sold out”. I took Reading and Writing Poetry instead and it just wasn’t the same. 

What’s one of your favorite scenes in one of your books?

Wow – this is a great question and one I never considered. One of the favorite passages in my own book is “Yard Sale Lessons” where I share my first experiences in marketing giving yard sales as a kid in Buffalo, NY. 

What makes a good character? A bad one?

A good character is one that feels alive and real to you. I’m currently re-reading the Harry Potter series and you cannot help but cheer for Harry, every step of the way. I also love characters with depth and complexity – like Sirius Black in book 3. A bad character is hollow. I don’t know how else to describe it. Just hollow. 

What moves the story for you?

One were you cannot wait to see what happens next. 

What is your favorite book and why?

The Alienist is one of my all time favorite books. There’s something mysterious and magical about historical fiction and historical thrillers. 

What do you want to say to your audience?

In my book, Every Storm Runs Out of Rain, I wanted people to see and experience the pandemic from the inside of a healthcare system, and through the eyes of a non-clinical healthcare worker. Non-clinicians often are overlooked as true HCWs and important contributors to healthcare. We are the backbone of health systems, enabling our care providers to do their work. Our roles are just as mission critical as the doctors and nurses.

I also want people to know they can be different and still succeed. I’m not your traditional chief marketing officer archetype and still I led very successful marketing teams throughout my career. People who read my book and my writing will see through example how to lead with authenticity and vulnerability, and how that connects with their audiences. 

What advice do you have for new writers?

Just start writing. You never know where it will lead you. This was not the book I intended to publish first, and yet it is the book I published first. It happened because that first week of the pandemic I decided to write a Friday email to my team to get us through shelter-in-place. That became a habit I kept until my very last day at Emory – my final Emory email was my Friday email to my team. Those emails paved the way for me to write and publish my first book. 

Do you have anything else you would like to add?

I enjoyed this series of questions and look forward to our conversation. 

Website: www.everystormbook.com