Amy Port

President & Co-Founder

Amy Port is the Co-Founder and President of Heroic Public Speaking; her work extends from the execution of corporate training packages, to development of CEO keynotes, private masterclasses and coaching.

After earning her MFA in Acting from The Yale School of Drama, Amy spent years acting professionally in theaters such as Seattle Repertory, Oregon Shakespeare and Yale Rep, and working consistently in commercials. She now applies the skills of performance that only well-trained actors know to the coaching of ‘non-actors’ looking to crush their sales presentations, to make their voices heard in TED Talk style presentations, and to take the big stage keynoting major conferences.

Geoffrey H. Garrett, a senior attorney at Byrd Garrett Wealth Preservation, said: “As a military pilot and B-747 captain over a forty-year career, I received every kind of skill-specific training and encountered every sort of teacher. I consider Amy to be, hands down, the best trainer-coach I have ever met. I cannot recommend her services highly enough."

AJ Harper

Head Writing Coach

AJ Harper is a developmental editor and publishing strategist. She has helped hundreds of authors—from newbies to New York Times bestselling authors with millions of books sold—write and publish game-changing books, develop significant and loyal followings, and build their brand.

For ten years, AJ wrote exclusively for personal and professional development authors. As executive editor for collaborative books, AJ worked with thought leaders and bestselling authors, among them Lisa Nichols, Les Brown, Barbara De Angelis, Mark Victor Hansen, Dr. George Fraser, DC Cordova, Barbara Marx Hubbard, T. Harv Eker, Brendan Burchard, Marcia Wieder, Lisa Sasevich, Hyrum W. Smith, Fabienne Fredrickson, Dr. Jean Shinoda Bolan, and Adam Markel.

AJ is the writing partner for business author, Mike Michalowicz, author of several books, including The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, The Pumpkin Plan, Profit First and Surge. For several years, AJ served as publishing strategist and managing editor for eWomen Publishing Network, a division of eWomen Network, the largest women’s business network in North America. In 2015, AJ retired from ghostwriting so that she could give her full attention to mentoring authors. She accepts a limited number of book development projects each year.

Zoë Bird

Writing Coach

Zoë Bird is a poet, editor, teaching artist, and performer based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her work has been published in numerous journals and anthologies, and featured in collaboration with artists in all media including ceramicists, harmonium players, and Butoh dancers. She has been a teaching artist with the Alzheimer’s Poetry Project (APP) since 2005 and the director of APP-Minnesota since 2012, and is a longtime mentor and consultant in the field of creative aging.

Zoë was Book Lab’s Lead Editor for nine years. Her editing credits include 15 nonfiction bestsellers, and winners of numerous honors and awards in fiction including an NYC Big Book Award, a Junior Library Guild Selection, and a Lambda Literary Award.

Damon Brown

Writing Coach

Damon Brown helps side hustlers, solopreneurs, and other non-traditional creatives bloom. As a best-selling author, two-time startup founder, and three-time TED Speaker, he co-founded the popular platonic connection app Cuddlr and led it to acquisition within a year, all while being the primary caretaker of his infant first son.

He now guides others through his one-on-one coaching, Inc. Magazine column, and public speaking on platforms like TED. Damon’s latest book is Bring Your Worth: Level Up Your Creative Power, Value & Service in the World, the follow-up to his best-seller The Ultimate Bite-Sized Entrepreneur: 76 Ways to Boost Time, Focus & Productivity on Your Big Idea.

Damon is a long-time writer for Playboy, New York Post, and more, and has two degrees in journalism, including a Masters in Magazine Publishing from Northwestern. Most recently, Damon was the Toledo Library’s first Entrepreneur-In-Residence. He is now based in Las Vegas.

Jen Singer

Writing Coach

Jen Singer is a Heroic Public Speaking writing faculty member and an award-winning writer, author, and editor. She helps speakers and authors access their inner wisdom to craft compelling stories for the stage and the page.

Her work has appeared in numerous media outlets, including Family Circle, Good Housekeeping, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal, and she has appeared on the CBS Evening News, Fox & Friends, and Today.

Brenda Barbosa

Writing Coach

Brenda Barbosa is an award-winning writer whose work has appeared in multiple media outlets, including USA Today, Inc.com, Forbes.com, and the Huffington Post. She uses the timeless art of storytelling to help authors, speakers, professionals and business owners craft unforgettable copy that captivate and inspire audiences around the world to think, feel and act differently.

Brenda has worked with New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling authors, CEOs, tech entrepreneurs, world-class scientists and scholars, as well TEDx speakers whose talks went on to be featured on the renowned TED.com. Brenda wrote and performed her own talk in front of hundreds at the prestigious Moth Miami where she was voted among the top three finalists.

As a journalist whose career has spanned more than two decades, Brenda will do almost anything for a good story. She's interviewed drug dealers in cemeteries and jumped out of an airplane to document an 80-year-old's lifelong dream of skydiving – all that despite a crippling fear of heights and dead people.

Kristin Pape

Writing Coach

Kristin Pape is a writer and editor based in New York. Before retiring from academia, she worked as a professor for nearly twenty years, teaching writing, literature, disability studies, queer studies and film theory, most recently at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

She earned a B.A. in Creative Writing from Carnegie Mellon University and an M.F.A. in poetry from Sarah Lawrence College, and she completed her Ph.D. studies in Comparative Literature at SUNY@Stony Brook. Thanks to her doctoral work and her upbringing as the child of an immigrant parent, Kristin learned to speak six languages (English, Greek, French, Spanish, Italian and Mandarin Chinese). Under her pen name Alysia Constantine, she is the author of three novels: Sweet (2016), Olympia Knife (2017) and Luckmonkey (forthcoming in February 2021).

Andrea J. Lee

Writing Coach

Andrea (she/her) is a writer, editing strategist, leadership coach and watercolorist. She’s helped thousands of entrepreneurs and non-profit leaders - people who are caring, daring and a little bit bonkers - create intellectual property that generates revenue while solidifying their thought leadership.

Her own writing includes Multiple Streams of Coaching Income which was heralded as “the Bible for coaches who want to make money” back when people used to say “what sport?” when you told them you were a coach. She also wrote We Need to Talk: Your Guide to Challenging Business Conversations and articles in Filter-Free Parents and the Washington Post. She is a loud and proud alumni of Heroic Public Speaking where she first met AJ Harper, her writing coach, and reconnected with Michael who she once co-hosted a workshop with in New York, back when he had hair. She has taught and presented on stages in Ecuador, India, Romania, the US, the UK and the smallest Chamber of Commerce in Canada.

Andrea is first-generation Canadian of Taiwanese parents, living near Bobcaygeon, Ontario.

RON TITE

Visitor Performance Faculty

Named one of the “Top 10 Creative Canadians” by Marketing Magazine, Ron has been an award winning advertising writer and Creative Director for some of the world’s most respected brands including Air France, Evian, Fidelity, Hershey, Johnson & Johnson, Kraft, Intel, Microsoft, Volvo, and many others.

His advertising work has been recognized by The London International Advertising Awards, The New York Festivals of Advertising, The Crystals, The Extras, The Canadian Marketing Association, The Advertising & Design Club of Canada, and The Marketing Awards, to name just a few.

He is founder and CEO of The Tite Group, Executive Producer & Host of the Canadian Comedy Award-winning show Monkey Toast, and Publisher of the award winning and best selling humour book, This is That Travel Guide to Canada with CBC Radio’s hit show, This is That.

He has written for a number of other television series, penned a children’s book, and wrote, performed, and produced the play, The Canadian Baby Bonus. In demand as a speaker on innovation, branding, content marketing, and his own take on modern business, The Expression Economy, Ron has spoken to leading organizations all over the world.

Ron’s own book, Everyone’s An Artist (Or At Least They Should Be), was published by HarperCollins in 2016.

TAMI EVANS

Visitor Faculty

With focus on a variety of topics around leadership, employee engagement, client connection and culture strategy with a direct link back to retention, productivity and profitability, Tami’s presentations are content-rich, interactive and filled with her relatable and relevant humor. She believes if they are laughing they are listening, and if they are listening they are learning.

Engaging, entertaining and energizing, Tami Evans creates an unforgettable experience for audiences. Her “use it now” content has helped ignite positive workplaces for exceptional organizations including Microsoft, Raytheon, Dun & Bradstreet, Dove Chocolate, The New York Times, Nissan, The Gap, Kellogg’s, Coldwell Banker and The American Heart Association.

Formerly the president of the National Speakers Association of NYC, Evans has also worked as a corporate manager, university professor, communications specialist, as well as such diverse career experience as a fashion designer and professional actress. She also holds a Masters of Fine Arts, and BAA degrees in Broadcasting Communications and Theatre.

Evans celebrates and motivates participants, engages and empowers employees, creates communication cohesion, boosts confidence, and busts stress. Her popular presentations enhance leadership skills, communication, empowerment, and how to have a lot more fun doing it all.

Neen James

Business of Speaking Visitor Faculty

Neen James is often described by event planners as the ‘energizer powerhouse’ for their events. She is a sales and leadership expert focused in the areas of performance and productivity. A little Aussie with a lot of sass; Neen is obsessed with helping people increase sales, strengthen leadership and deliver exceptional customer service.

Neen's fun, high energy, unique Aussie-ness makes her a sought after keynote speaker that meeting planners adore. Audiences love her practical strategies they can apply at work and home. Neen is a Certified Speaking Professional—a valuable accreditation earned by less than 10% of speakers worldwide.

With a strong corporate background in development and managing large teams throughout several industries, Neen is the perfect fit for organizations who want implementable strategies to increase profitability; increase productivity and accelerate team engagement. She also provides one-on-one leadership coaching and mentoring on a variety of business topics and her clients will tell you they love working with her 90-day accountability plans.

Clients including Comcast, Cisco, Virgin, Pfizer, FBI, Johnson & Johnson, and BMW describe Neen as fun, real, energetic and wicked smart. Neen often appears in the media sharing her expertise and is a published author of eight books, including Folding Time^TM and Secrets of Super-Productivity and her latest book Attention Pays was released in 2018.