Tom Bird – The Man Behind the Method

While serving as a publicist for major league baseball’s Pittsburgh Pirates, Tom Bird had a life-changing, perspective-altering, spiritual awakening. This awakening would set the compass for the remainder of his life, produce the sale of his first book and reset, forever, how he would see writing, publishing, and life.

Tom’s awakening and eventual success as a best-selling author and the innovative, spiritually led approach he took to get there, directly disputed all he had learned, been taught, or read about writing books up to that point.

True to a promise he made to share what had been revealed to him, Tom has spent the last thirty-five years sharing the unique, inside-out approach with authors and writers of all types worldwide.

During that time, besides writing more than thirty books himself, Tom has appeared before hundreds of thousands of aspiring authors through webinars, retreats, seminars, radio talk-show appearances, and through more than 4,000 lecture appearances at hundreds of different colleges and universities.

His unique method has led to the completion of tens of thousands of books, more than one hundred of which have ended up as Amazon best-sellers.

What Tom’s method has done for so many, it can do for you as well.

Tom lives and works in Sedona, AZ, although his workshops and writing seminars are offered in many locations across the U.S.

Here’s a sampling of proof:

What Our Authors Are Saying

Thank you! I’m growing into my book.

Realizing dreams and a writing studio in a 111-year-old farmhouse I just acquired. Been a while since you helped me get that book out. It’s needed more than ever considering the times. Tom, you are riding shotgun with me even if you don’t know it! You have given me permission to be ‘OK’ with my time line for my writing! Love to you and yours!

Alison: Grateful writer in progress.

This retreat has opened the door…

This retreat has opened the door to the rest of my life – the life I am meant to be living as an author, speaker, and coach. It has shown me what I already knew but had to be reminded of: that all the answers and power are inside of me, they just had to be accessed and Tom has shown all of us at this retreat how to do that.

Alex Bratty

Practical and inspirational ways

The retreat has given me both practical and inspirational ways to let my books that are already written in another dimension, reveal themselves to me: how to write, revise, complete, publish, and begin the next… and the next. I have tools to get the left brain out of the way so the right brain can receive inspiration to write and revise my books. Then the left brain can do its job of projecting sales, etc. It has been a life-changing, inspiring, and practical experience.

Jane Lipman

I am so thrilled…

I am so thrilled to be able to be in this retreat and be treated to learning a totally new creative process… This is the exact opposite of what I was previously taught about writing…I finally learned to LOOSEN UP…

Lisa Wojcik, Boca Raton, FL

It was a great adventure…

It was a great adventure… I really surprised myself… When the student is ready, the teacher appears…

Nancy Duke, Boca Raton, FL

The most memorable…

The most memorable part was finishing…only because it was a process that has been a part of me for a long time…

Mika Nelson, Boca Raton, FL

Thank you…

Thank you for teaching me this valuable method…it really works…

Geanne Bowman, Tampa, FL

I felt the shift…

It could be the first time I felt the shift and felt the words pouring out of me faster than I could type…thank you for allowing me to accomplish something I always felt I would do…

Christine Kirby, Lake Worth, FL

Life changing…

Life changing…Ground breaking…I will never go back to old methods

Katy Davis, Los Angeles, CA

Your teaching affects my writing…

My novel, ‘Reflections,’ that I wrote in your retreats has won its 8th win BEST Screenplay. The last three days I’ve had five producers asking for the script for consideration. I plan to attend your November retreat in Sedona. Your teaching affects my writing with every pen to paper stroke.

Lori Howell

My sincere gratitude

I just wanted to express my sincere gratitude for all you provide to up-and-coming writers/authors. I listened again to your webinar, “Write Your Book in a Weekend,” and I realize now, that because of how I was robbed of my career, then black-listed, and then the continuation attempts…I was scared to death that I was going to get attacked again when this book comes out, but I am not afraid anymore. I am standing for what I know is right.

Dolores Johnson

Tom Bird is amazing.

His intuitive writing method exactly matches the way I like to work. When I talked to Tom before the retreat, I told him I didn’t have to be published or make money. I told him I wanted to learn his system because I wanted to do it for me, for the healing aspects of writing in his intuitive style. He said he wished all his authors felt that way. Writing is very healing. In this book I still feel pressing upon me, I’m speaking from experience. I knew I would have to share deeper about my life to establish my authority to write it. I shared with him my fear of writing about things I did not usually talk about. Tom assured me that writing the book does in fact offer a complete release from past pain and that I was in good hands. He didn’t mean just his team, but was subtly referencing the Divine help surrounding the entire experience as well. I had already gotten quite an amazing number of insights while I did the preparation exercises they ask you to complete prior to coming.

Tippy Mueller

I always knew…

I always knew there was a way to [write and channel my books] but couldn’t quite figure it out… I have known for many years I needed to write this book but it was one that I had difficulty writing due to the subject matter. When I remotely attended your retreat in June I was able to write the story for the third time, as young adult fiction this time and love how it ends.

Trisha Miller

After 56 years…

After 56 years, I have started writing the book I always wanted to write as a direct result of buying your book: “Call of the Writer’s Craft.” You are the one who opened the blockages that were making me attend classes and read book after book on Creative Writing. I think you are a genius. Thanks so much for sharing your secret with aspiring but frustrated writers like me.

Almas Hussein, Author

We can do anything…

Tom Bird reminds us that we can do anything through our connection with the Divine, and that writing is a divine way to do it.

Nancy Aronie
Author of Writing From the Heart

Bird has a system.

A professional writer, no matter how talented, is nothing if he can’t get his work published…Bird has a system.

The Pittsburgh Press

Thanks…

Thanks for showing me how to get published….half a million copies sold to date.

Jan Larkey
Author of Flatter Your Figure

Finest writing instructor…

Tom Bird is simply the finest writing instructor in the world.

Paul McCarthy
New York Times Best-Selling Author and legendary editor to nine #1 New York Best Selling Authors, including Clive Cussler and Stephen Coontss

Tom Bird is a frigging genius.

There are no words to describe the breakthrough I had tonight from doing Tom’s homework assignment this week… I LOVE this work. Tom Bird is a frigging genius.

Karen Steil

His unique approach…

Without Tom Bird my book simply would not be. His unique approach helped me dig deep and push myself beyond what I could have even imagined. Through his writing retreats and publishing programs I was guided in a very logical way from writer to author, complete with a platform and an understanding of how to navigate today’s complex social [networks]… [It] is clear from his vast experience that he provides the method; we provide the magic.

Laurin Bellg, MD
Physician, speaker and author of the four-time award-winning book “Near Death In The ICU”

I have written…

In the one month since I attended Tom Bird’s Retreat, remotely, I wrote and revised a book, [wrote] 3/4 of my second book, produced, and hosted Episode 1 of a Documentary series that I dreamed of doing 5 years ago, reprinted an out-of-print documentary that I’ve been meaning to do for two years, won an audience award for my live solo show in a fringe festival, started waking up an hour earlier, [and] lost a few unwelcome pounds. I have written almost every single day and maintained my daily yoga and exercise routine… And this week, my editor for one of the books contacted me to reaffirm her interest from over a year ago.

Lisa Loving Dalton
Author, Murder of Talent; Falling for the Stars: A Stunt Gal’s Tattle Tales... and others

Take a chance on myself…

There were times in the days before [the retreat] that I almost cancelled because I could feel my fear wanting to keep me in a place that was familiar. With Tom’s expert guidance and amazing support team, I was able to show up and stay the course. I finished my book, a first step toward a new way of living. Fully participating in this retreat has given me confidence to know that I can, despite my fears and limiting self beliefs, take a chance on myself and leap into a new life experience.

Holly Messick

This retreat moved me…

This retreat moved me through much that blocked the writing flow. It pushed me to a greater degree of connection with my inner author and showed me I can connect with the Theta state while writing, which really brings flow and fun to my writing. Plus, book one is almost ready to move into review by Tom and the final editors. Book 2 is cleaning up to soon be another ready for the final steps towards publishing. And book 3 is asking for release and expression so I’ll start it in one week. I’m also ready to blog weekly. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. You’re a life-changing agent!

Lynne Cockrum-Murphy

I knew coming in…

I knew, coming in, that I would exit this retreat as a different kind of writer and a very different editor. I even knew that I would be different emotionally. I did not realize that I would have or develop such a different relationship with chaos (that it’s necessary to just give into the whole tornado as it’s coming at you) with destruction (tearing it all to the ground and building it back up again), or leaving behind what I have always considered my greatest strengths. I have become something very unfamiliar to myself at this retreat. I look forward to meeting this woman and author in the days to come. Thank you.

Brenda Man Fletcher

Delivered seamlessly

Together, through the processes developed by Tom Bird and delivered seamlessly through his Write Your Bestseller In A Weekend workshop I awoke to my inner genius. This weekend my genius came out to sing, dance, and play; and to write! And what a writer! He wrote and wrote and wrote — longer and faster than I had dreamed possible. Writing is not the chore I had thought it to be. It doesn’t need hours of preparation, or pages of notes, outlines, and a ‘special pen.’ It’s none of those things and what a relief!

Tom’s method has opened up my career, my options, and a lifestyle that I have yearned for, but could never quite access before.

Bryce Winter

Life changing.

Tom’s Write Your Best Seller in a Weekend workshop is more than about becoming an author. It is about finding your place in the world. It is about having a spiritual awakening and moving forward on your life’s purpose. I feel blessed that I was guided to attend this very important event.

Luna Star Van Atta

Thank you.

I couldn’t have written my book without the three-day weekend I spent with Tom Bird.

Catherine Carrigan, Medical Intuitive Healer, Unlimited Energy
#1 Amazon Best-selling author of "What Is Healing? Awaken Your Intuitive Power for Health and Happiness"

I wrote my best-selling book…

I wrote my best-selling book in three days, at a Weekend Retreat with Tom

Maxine Taylor
#1 Amazon best-selling author of "Move Into The Magic"

Thank you…

Thank you for allowing me to be part of this new amazing journey in my life…the writing for me was easier than the sitting…

Michele Jazwinski, Las Vegas, NV

Thank you isn’t enough…

Thank you isn’t enough… Tom Bird’s method healed my heart and soul…

Lori Howell, Monterery, CA

Someone once asked…

Someone once asked me why I have to pay someone to teach me how to count words…I said I pay him to get me to show up, shut up, and write…something I find hard to do on my own…

Tui Conner, Scottsdale, AZ

I loved writing…

I loved writing as a kid and wrote stories all the time…I was glad to be able to get back to that feeling…

Nikki Ballin, Phoenix, AZ

I needed help…

I needed help focusing and getting a full first draft completed from front to back… After that the process becomes easier for me…

Carolyn Jourdan, Strawberry Plains, TN

A profound experience…

This has been a profound experience, it’s changed me in ways I can’t fully articulate in words…There’s a catharsis that I’ve experienced here…

Allaina OConnor, Ann Arbor, MI

A gift…

Thank you for this amazing opportunity… It truly has been a gift to my life…”

Joy Niemann, Phoenix, AZ

A unique and fabulous experience…

This has been a unique and fabulous experience… I didn’t believe the book would tell me when it was done, but it DID…

Lucy Linder, Mesa, AZ

I’ve never had the motivation…

I’ve always loved writing, taken classes even, but before this weekend I’ve never had the motivation or drive to write the way I am now…

Bryan Perry Tempe, AZ

Even Stephen King…

Even Stephen King could learn something about writing from Tom.

Jean Marie Stine
Author and former Editor-in-Chief of Tarcher Books

I was a washed-up attorney…

I was a washed-up attorney until I met Tom Bird, but now I am delighted to tell you that Fractal Murders has been honored on the Fall Book Scene Mystery Top Ten List.

Mark Cohen
Author of The Fractal Murders (Mysterious Press)

Holder of the vision…

Tom is definitely one of the holders of the vision.

Carol Adrienne
Author of "The Purpose of Your Life and Tenth Insight: Holding the Vision" (with James Redfield)

This was such a gift…

Tom’s Method made me think of the way I blog, but went beyond in that I had to apply that to the structure of a book. This was such a gift as I had lost the joy of writing and had gone on a writer’s strike because of it. Traditionally published multiple times, I felt like my work was no longer my own, and I certainly didn’t ever feel the freedom to listen to the bigger story that wanted (that needed) to be told. Tom’s Method created a container for that, for me to listen with the ears behind the ears and co-create with Spirit a book that will transform those who read it. What a unique experience, and one I am profoundly grateful for, Tom. A million thanks.

Jamie Weil

It is life-altering

“Thank you for providing these opportunities to prioritize time for writing. I really appreciate knowing you are there rooting for me and my book. The idea of going into a meditative state and staying there for an extended period of time is effective and life-altering. It is a different way to approach writing, because I understand now that part of why my voice has been so blocked for most of my life has to do with having an idea, but then feeling like I can’t organize it. This is more than a technique, but I call it that for lack of better words (ha ha for a “writer”). It is life-altering for me to let me open my voice and let myself be heard by others.”

Gabriella Armstrong

A powerful healing process

This experience was life-changing for me. This was my second time going through the process and from the preparation work through the revisions I continually had ah-ha moments and much healing through facing my limited beliefs and moving beyond them. This is not just a writing retreat where you end with a book completed, but a powerful healing process that Tom has orchestrated beautifully with precision and one does not walk away without being profoundly changed by the experience. Thanks Tom & Janelle for the safe container you provide for the participants. I will be back to do it again next year for sure! Aloha.

Shelley Boling

A sacred experience

The retreat was a sacred experience. I greatly appreciated the guidance, support and time to focus on my writing. Because of the connection with God/Spiritual approach, I felt like my words were Divinely offered. The writing prompts were powerful and really got me go deep. I am filled with gratitude for it all!

Victoria Lahr

Leap! Trust! Listen within! Witness!

This is the third book-writing retreat I’ve taken with Tom and each time my journey and creativity deepen further beyond what I ever expected!

From that very first time when the first book blew through and healed and uncorked my heart and led to such a fountain of joy and gratitude, inspiration, and calling, to this most recent weekend, when an entire procession of marvelous and soulful characters came to co-create such a surprising story: my experience in Tom’s sacred alchemical vessel of transformation has been so incredibly delightful, profound, and deeply moving!

I wholeheartedly recommend to you to courageously step out of any smallness and self-doubt you may feel and go through Tom’s mighty heart-doors into this collective sanctuary! I assure you, the Divine Author Within will be joyfully waiting there, along with so many smiling, blessing, encouraging others from the invisible realms, offering you the most exquisite of holy gifts: your book, your calling, and your future filled with Love and Creativity!

Leap! Trust! Listen within! Witness! Transform! Receive Blessings! And be the Divinely-Authorized Author you are being called to be in service to the world, these times, and those who need your unique story and message!

George Viney

His material is phenomenal

Every workshop I have done with Tom Bird has far exceeded my expectations. His material is phenomenal and the delivery perfect. I am so grateful and so thrilled that I found Tom and his work. It has really impacted the writing of my book which I am so excited to finish and get published with his company.

Kathleen Mcintire

So empowering and so productive

This retreat has been heavenly. I was able to enter into a zone that dismissed the normal interior and exterior distractions. Each day I just allowed the words and stories to flow out of me. Tom Bird and his assistant held a sacred space of trust for me that was so empowering and so productive. I am in awe and so grateful for this experience. It was worth every penny! I highly recommend to anyone who wants to write their book and is ready to surrender. I completed about 75% of my book.

Deborah Globe

Inspires me to trust in my writing

Participating in Tom’s writing retreats inspires me to trust in my writing and to give it a life.

The safe space provided along with writing from the heart has been healing, allowing me to recognise an old fear and make peace with it, giving me a new outlook and freedom. Thank you.

Maree Stuart

Extremely well organized

I was inspired to attend Tom’s ‘Write Your Book In A Weekend’ after meeting him at church and attending a sampling of the Tom Bird Method. The weekend course was extremely well organized from the pre-course communication all the way through the completion of the course. I was not only able to finish the draft of my first book but I was able to start my second. I have signed up for the Author Revision workshop and look forward to continuing the process!

Jennifer Rue

Opened my eyes to another world

I’m very grateful for this Weekend retreat and surprised that I got through and wrote about 14,000 words. I did it with time differences because I live in Sydney, Australia. This is the first time I did a writing retreat and never thought I was a writer. This certainly opened my eyes to another world and inspires me to keep writing. Thank you Tom and Janelle for leading us through the process with so much grace

Ellen Zhu

Media Appearances

Past Interviews Featuring Tom Bird

Blog Talk Radio

Tom Bird joins host Less Jensen from NewHumanLiving.com

Blog Talk Radio

Book Whisperer Tom Bird joins host Kathleen O’Keefe-Kanavos, TV/Radio Host/Producer Wicked Housewives On Cape Cod™
Click here to listen to the Interview…

Blog Talk Radio – Write-Right From God

Welcome to the Healthy Baby Boomers Network Blog Talk Radio Show. I am your host, Dr. Erica Goodstone, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Spiritual Relationship Healer, and Somatic Body Psychotherapist, Helping Men and Women Heal Their Bodies and Their Relationships Through Love, author of the book: "Love Me, Touch Me, Heal Me" and the romantic novel, "Love in the Blizzard of Life". I am also the creator of the life-changing 30 Day Love Challenge.
Click here to listen to the Interview…

Richard Dugan – Tell Me Your Story

Richard Dugan is the host of Tell Me Your Story: New Paradigms for a New World.
Click here to listen to the Interview…

A Matter of Mind – with Mark Perry

Mark is joined for an inspiring conversation with Tom Bird, New York Times best-selling author and “Book Whisperer,” literary shaman, and powerful writing instructor, as they explore Tom’s new book, "Write/Right from God" and Tom’s unique process for accessing the creative “downloading” that speeds your intuitive words and messages onto paper as a full book pours out from you in just one weekend!
Click here to listen to the Interview…

Let’s Get NakedTM

Let’s Get NakedTM Revealing Our Authentic Selves with Rev. Heidi Alfrey

Write a Book in a Weekend... Are You Kidding? Monday, October 19,2015
Click here to listen to the Interview…

Empower On-Demand | Dr Julie Show

Aligning with Divine Inspiration: Write/Right from God with Tom Bird
Click here to listen to the Interview…

Call of Spirit Radio with Rev. Evelyn

Join Rev. Evelyn as she speaks with Tom Bird, best-selling author and book whisperer, who helps authors midwife books of the Spirit and of the heart. Showing us how to allow Source to guide us through the birthing of our books, Tom talks about the process of writing from a heartfelt space with step-by-step instructions of what we need to do to get clear, to shut off the left brain and write through, and as Spirit.
Click here to listen to the Interview…

Tom and/or his work has been featured on or in the following:

  • The David Letterman Show
  • Houston Chronicle
  • The Tonight Show
  • Portland Oregonian
  • The Today Show
  • Toronto Star
  • CBS Morning News
  • Philadelphia Inquirer
  • Pittsburgh Today
  • Pittsburgh Gazette
  • Cleveland Today
  • USA Today’s Baseball
  • The Charlie Rose Show
  • Cleveland Plain Dealer
  • CBC
  • Memphis Commercial Appeal
  • WGN-Chicago
  • Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
  • KDKA-Pittsburgh
  • Sarasota Herald Tribune
  • WPIX -New York
  • USA Today
  • Buffalo News
  • WHDH-Boston
  • New York Post
  • KMOX-St. Louis
  • San Diego Union Tribune
  • KRON-San Francisco
  • San Francisco Chronicle
  • WJMK-Chicago
  • San Francisco Examiner
  • KGO-San Francisco
  • Hartford Advocate
  • KNBR-San Francisco
  • Washington Post
  • WHYY-Philadelphia
  • New York Daily News
  • WAXY-Miami
  • Chicago Sun Times
  • KEX-Portland, OR
  • Boston Globe
  • WAVY-Norfolk
  • Boston Herald
  • WEWS-Cleveland
  • Publishers Weekly
  • KTVV-Oakland
  • Kirkus Reviews
  • WTAE-Pittsburgh
  • Library Journal
  • WOR-New York
  • Detroit Free Press
  • KOST-Los Angeles
  • The Sporting News
  • WBCN-Boston
  • Omaha World Herald
  • New York Times
  • Newark Star Ledger
  • Cincinnati Enquirer/Post
  • Dallas Morning News
  • Columbus Dispatch
  • Toronto Sun
  • Charlotte Observer
  • Atlanta Journal
  • Sun Sentinel
  • Philadelphia Daily News
  • St. Petersburg Times
  • Pittsburgh Tribune
  • Oakland Tribune

Schools

Working with Students

Over nearly the last three decades, Tom, in an effort to share his innovative and successful approach to writing and publishing with as many aspiring authors as possible, has made more than 4,000 lecture appearances at more than 100 different colleges and universities including the following:

  • Duke University
  • The College of William and Mary
  • Penn State University
  • Temple University
  • The Ohio State University
  • Nebraska University
  • The University of Texas
  • Emory University
  • The University of North Carolina
  • The University of Arizona
  • Old Dominion University
  • The University of Pittsburgh
  • The University of Tennessee
  • The University of New Mexico
  • The University of Nevada at Las Vegas
  • San Diego State University
  • Edinboro State University
  • Buffalo State University
  • Niagara University
  • The University of Central Florida
  • The University of North Florida
  • Florida International University
  • Florida Atlantic University
  • The University of Cincinnati

Publications

Publications Featuring Tom's Work

A prolific writer, as well as a teacher of writing, Tom's own work has appeared in dozens of notable publications, including:

  • USA Today
  • Popular Mechanics
  • New Writers' Magazine
  • Vegetarian Times
  • Cleveland Magazine
  • Nautilus Magazine
  • Austin Magazine
  • Baseball American
  • Sail Steeler Weekly
  • New York Times
  • The American Banker
  • Racquetball Illustrated
  • Racquetball Everyone
  • Racquetball Strength and Health Magazine
  • The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
  • Pittsburgh Magazine
  • Erie Magazine
  • Erie Times News

Books

Books Authored by Tom Bird

  • Write to Heal for Authors (2019)
  • Write/Right From God (Sojourn 2018)
  • You Can ... Write Your Book in a Weekend (2013)
  • Write to Heal (2011)
  • Write to Publish (2011)
  • The Call of the Writer’s Craft: Writing and Selling the Book Within (Adams Media, 2008)
  • You Were Born to Be Published: Eleven Laws for Getting Your Writing Into Print Now (Sojourn, 2006)
  • You Were Born to Write: Complete Your Book in 30 Days or Less by Mastering the Inner Game of Writing (Sojourn, 2006)
  • Your Artist Within (Sojourn, 2004)
  • The Spirit of Publishing (Sojourn, 2003)
  • Get Published Now (Sojourn, 2001)
  • Hawk: The Children’s Version (Zondervan, 1995)
  • Hawk, co-authored with Andre Dawson (Zondervan, 1994)
  • The Author’s Den: An Interactive Computer Program (Sojourn, 1993)
  • Fifty-Two Weeks or Less to the Completion of Your First Book (Sojourn, 1990)
  • POWs Of WWII: Forgotten Men Tell Their Stories (Praeger, 1990)
  • Beyond Words (Sojourn, 1987)
  • Literary Law (Sojourn, 1986)
  • Knuckleballs, co-authored with Phil Niekro (Freundlich Books, 1986)
  • How to Get Published (Sojourn, 1986)
  • Tom Bird’s Selective Guide to Literary Agents (Sojourn, 1985)
  • Willie Stargell: An Autobiography, co-authored with Willie Stargell (Harper &
    Row, 1984)