Amanda Bybee

Biography

I am a special educator who has worked with the blind for nearly ten years, also having a visual impairment. Intent on writing stories with a message about very capable, other-abled people, who accomplish the unexpected, I feel the public can learn a lot about themselves and others by reading about the many obstacles that individuals with visual impairments overcome daily. My writing emphasis for the last year has been on young adult fiction.

I also have a B.A. in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and I am a native San Franciscan now residing in Oakland.

Smashwords Interview

How did you choose the setting for your book?
Being a native San Franciscan who grew up near the zoo, I just had to pick the SF Zoo for Zoofari. I used to wonder if wild animals would turn up in my back yard if they escaped. What's really interesting for me is to write about the places tourists wouldn't have time for, or couldn't even begin to know in a single snapshot. I like to re-view the meaningful places of my adolescence, where my history was made, like the sea cave below the skeleton of the old-time sutro baths, where one scene takes place. Who wouldn't want to read about anything that takes place at a zoo near the ocean in San Francisco's Sunset District?

And then - one of the main characters and a couple of other key members of the fictional SF Zoofari Co-Operative are from South Africa. Young adult readers can learn a little bit about South Africa and some of its tumultuous history; a timely subject.
What stands out about your writing?
Zoofari is a pretty unique novella because the protagonist is a teenager who is legally blind. She is a regular person who has had to overcome more obstacles than the average 16-year old, and has to fight harder to prove her independence than your average sophomore.

Through my writing, I aim to open the world up to the public to meet my characters who are blind or visually impaired, and to see they are just like everyone; they are very capable citizens who often are misunderstood because many people have never met or interacted with them. My characters speak for themselves and do things for themselves, making their own decisions in order to overcome their conflicts. Overcoming adversity and maintaining independence are important concepts I think about all the time
Read more of this interview.

Where to find Amanda Bybee online

Facebook: Facebook profile

Books

Grandma
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 23,820. Language: English. Published: April 20, 2014 . Categories: Fiction » Young adult or teen » Social Issues, Fiction » Inspirational
Amelia Newcastle is a 14-year-old with Albinism who suffers anxiety from her lifetime of packing up and leaving. Even in Canada, when they don’t call her ‘the Albino,’ they call her ‘Little Old Lady.’ Influenced from all the unrelenting comments, Amelia comes to believe the stray dog that appears in their backyard is actually her Grandma.
Finding a Way in the Dark -The Blind Bat Short Stories and Previews
Price: Free! Words: 8,760. Language: English. Published: January 7, 2014 . Categories: Fiction » Young adult or teen » Social Issues, Fiction » Themes & motifs » Psychological
The short story series: The Blind Bat, The Bat Sisters, and The Bat Colony are short anecdotes featuring teen bats. Bebe is a totally blind insect bat who first finds herself in the company of fruit bats. Batina is a fruit bat with low vision who gets adopted into an insect bat family. Despite their differences, these angsty bats eventually learn to live together. Also, two book Previews featured!
Zoofari
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 44,330. Language: English. Published: December 27, 2013 . Categories: Fiction » Young adult or teen » Social Issues, Fiction » Science fiction » General
(5.00 from 2 reviews)
Jaime Needham can't see anything at night, but she has a grand vision to protect the animals of the San Francisco Zoo from the people of her city. When 16-year-old, Jaime, gets her hands on the Master Zoo Key to rescue research study members at SF's Zoofari from an ill-fated venture into the Tigers' den, she develops the courage to find her way out, on her own terms.

Amanda Bybee's tag cloud

bat    blind    canada    dog    gemstones    giraffes    low vision    poetry    safari adventure    safari guide    san francisco    school and selfesteem    south africa    teen angst    theatre    zoo    zoo keeper