For Immediate Release
DAUGHTER OF INTERRACIAL COUPLE WHO DEFIED THE CATHOLIC CHURCH DESCRIBES SPIRITUAL AWAKENING IN NEW MEMOIR
Author & TV Host Elizabeth Ann Atkins Teaches How Anyone Can Connect with Spiritual Power
DETROIT — When Elizabeth Ann Atkins was born just 12 days before the 1967 Detroit rebellion set the city aflame with deadly gunfire and racial conflict, her father baptized her in the hospital room and asked God to make her a “Princess of Peace.”
Former Roman Catholic Priest Thomas Lee Atkins knew that his daughter embodied the racial harmony and colorblind love symbolized by his new, interracial marriage to a black woman who was 25 years younger than himself.
She — the future Chief Judge Marylin E. Atkins — had followed her heart into a scandalous marriage that triggered a Bishop to condemn them to hell, because priests were not supposed to break their vows to Mother Church.
Mr. and Mrs. Atkins cultivated a loving home for Elizabeth and sister Catherine, but Elizabeth never knew her father’s baptismal prayer until she read his journals, well after his death.
“I was already living the answer to his prayer, by writing articles and books about racial unity,” says Elizabeth, author of 20+ books and co-founder of Two Sisters Writing and Publishing. “Then during my spiritual awakening, Jesus appeared in my meditation, and told me to serve as a Princess of Peace by teaching people how to discover the spiritual power within themselves, to heal, prosper, love, find peace, and be a positive influence in the world.”
God’s Answer Is Know: Lessons From a Spiritual Life by Elizabeth Ann Atkins chronicles Elizabeth’s life story and fantastical spiritual discoveries and includes easy-to-follow instructions on how to create a spirit-centered life. Autographed copies are available by clicking here.
The book was released in May 2019, in hardcover, paperback, and eBook by Two Sisters Writing & Publishing®, and is available wherever books are sold online.
Elizabeth will be teaching these lessons online and at in-person events, using two workbooks that she created to accompany the book: PowerJournal for Spiritual Awakening, which is for anyone who’s “spiritual, but not religious,” and wants to learn how to connect with Divine energies to live a better life; and PowerJournal to Know God’s Will for Your Life, which helps people in religious communities discover their life purpose and how to achieve it.
“I’m sharing my story to serve as an example that anyone can access and use this immense spiritual power that’s already inside us,” says Elizabeth, who has a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree from The Journalism School at Columbia University.
“Just like when you charge your cell phone and enter a wi-fi password, you get the strongest connection to an invisible network that connects you with people and information everywhere,” she says, “you can do things every day that raise the energy frequency of your mind, body, and spirit — so you can access the spiritual realm and have two-way communications with God, angels, your loved ones who have passed on, and other supernatural beings such as Jesus, Mother Mary, and Buddha.”
Elizabeth also shares how a simple meditation technique can heal physical and emotional pain and illness.
“My lessons are like Spirituality 101, because when I first wanted to learn about these things, I encountered some teachings that I couldn’t understand. So I’m making it super simple to understand and use these techniques and apply the power to live better.”
Dr. Rama S. Dwivedi, founder of The International Society for Spiritual Advancement, wrote the book’s Foreword. A Hindu leader from India, he first taught Elizabeth to meditate and remains a beloved teacher. Elizabeth also celebrates influential teacher Lori Lipten, founder of Sacred Balance Academy & Healing Center in Bloomfield Hills, MI.
“My parents are my greatest teachers,” says Elizabeth. “You can read their amazing love story in my mother’s memoir, The Triumph of Rosemary: A Memoir by Judge Marylin E. Atkins, the longest-serving Chief Judge in the history of Detroit’s 36th District Court.”
Her book was published by Two Sisters Writing & Publishing, the company that Elizabeth co-founded with her sister, Catherine M. Greenspan, author of The Veronica Series of young adult novels about a biracial girl.
Elizabeth Ann Atkins is available for media interviews, speaking engagements, trainings, and book signings. For review copies and more information, please contact Cat at twosisterswritingassistant@gmail.com.
Hardcover ISBN 978-1-945875-44-1 * Paperback ISBN 978-1-945875-19-9 * eBook ISBN 978-1-945875-20-5
About Elizabeth Ann Atkins
Elizabeth Ann Atkins is a best-selling author, award-winning TV host, actress, and journalist who teaches how to unlock one’s infinite potential to live and love in peace and purpose.
This mission inspired her new “how-to” memoir — God’s Answer Is Know: Lessons From a Spiritual Life, scheduled for release in May 2019. In it, Elizabeth chronicles her life story and shares her spiritual awakening, along with tools anyone can use to deepen their connection to the Divine to live a more joyous, healthy, peaceful, prosperous, and influential life.
Elizabeth’s life mission to share these empowering messages inspired her and sister Catherine M. Greenspan to co-create two companies: Atkins & Greenspan Writing, which provides ghostwriting, publishing, and book coaching services; and Two Sisters Writing & Publishing, which publishes their books, hosts monthly writing contests and the Two Sisters Writing Club, and showcases their blog, A Tale of Two Sisters.
They also teach people how to unleash their power through meditation and a writing technique Elizabeth invented and trademarked called PowerJournal that they created and share in workbooks and an online community called PowerJournal.Life.
Elizabeth and Catherine have written and published dozens of books, and were proud to publish their mother’s book, The Triumph of Rosemary: A Memoir, by Judge Marylin E. Atkins. Their mother wrote the book herself, chronicling her controversial, interracial marriage to former Roman Catholic Priest Thomas Lee Atkins, a native of West Branch, Michigan. The book also showcases the family’s summer experiences at their cottage in historic Idlewild, Michigan.
Elizabeth has a master’s degree in Journalism from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of Michigan. She studied French at Collège de Rivière-du-Loupe in Québec, Canada.
A health and fitness enthusiast whose 100-pound weight loss was featured on Oprah, Elizabeth co-hosts the award-winning MI Healthy Mind, a weekly TV show that aims to shatter stigmas around mental illness and addiction.
Elizabeth is an inspiring speaker who recites her autobiographical poem, White Chocolate, and has spoken at Columbia University, the University of Michigan, GM’s World Diversity Day, Gannett, DaimlerChrysler, 100 Black Men of America, the NAACP, Beaumont Hospital, PowerNetworking, Comerica Bank, the National Association of Black Journalists, and the American Library Association.
She has taught writing at Wayne State University, Oakland University, Wayne County Community College District, and at national conferences.
As an actress, Elizabeth plays a major role in the feature-length film Anything Is Possible, nominated for “Best Foreign Film” by the Nollywood and African Film Critics Association. She composed an original screenplay, Redemption, a gritty drama about a Detroit gangster and a writer. And Elizabeth plays a 1950s journalist in the international shipwreck drama, The Andrea Doria: Are The Passengers Saved?
A former Fox 2 Detroit News writer, she has been a guest on Montel, NPR, Good Morning America Sunday, The CBS Evening News, Tyra, several programs on BET, and other national TV shows. After writing her master’s thesis about mixed-race Americans, her work appeared in The New York Times.
Her articles have also been published in The San Diego Tribune, Essence, Ebony, HOUR Detroit, HOUR Home, HOUR Bride, BET.com, Ms., BLAC Detroit, and The Detroit News, where her articles on race were nominated for The Pulitzer Prize. She also wrote a biography for the Presidential Medal of Freedom tribute for Rosa Parks and a celebration of Congressman John Conyers, Jr.
Elizabeth has ghostwritten many memoirs, including: Let the Future Begin by Dennis W. Archer, former Detroit Mayor, Michigan Supreme Court Justice, and American Bar Association President; and My American Success Story: Always the First, Never the Last by Roy S. Roberts, once a globally prominent automotive executive.
Most recently, Atkins & Greenspan Writing wrote and published the Amazon Hot New Release: #1 bestselling The Making Point: How to Use Your Breaking Point for Success by U.S. Army Master Sergeant Cedric King, who lost his legs after a bomb blast in Afghanistan and is now a motivational speaker and triathlete. Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz wrote the Foreword and features Cedric in his own #1 bestselling book, From the Ground Up.
Elizabeth runs, cycles, lifts weights, does yoga, journals, and meditates to cultivate a joyous and peaceful mind, body, and spirit.
Learn more about Elizabeth’s work at AtkinsGreenspan.com and TwoSistersWriting.com.
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In an interview, ELIZABETH can discuss:
How a spirit-centered lifestyle can create personal and professional success;
How she and Catherine started a business that aligns with their personal mission to amplify inspiring messages from diverse people through books;
How anyone can access spiritual power that’s available 24/7;
How everyone has the power to talk with God, angels, departed loved ones, and other Divine beings;
What is meditation?
How meditation can heal physical and emotional pain and illness for yourself and others;
How Jesus came to her in meditation and continues to do so;
What you can eat and avoid to boost your intuition;
How writing is a powerful tool for self-discovery and spiritual connection;
How journaling and meditation can help weight loss, prosperity, and romance; and
Three things you can do today to accelerate your spiritual awakening.
BOOK SUMMARY
God’s Answer Is Know: Lessons From a Spiritual Life
Elizabeth Ann Atkins
Anxiety. Angst. Illness. Pain. Lack. Loneliness.
Many of us seek answers to these universal ailments from external sources. We're peering into electronic devices, seeking solace and solutions from mesmerizing images and messages about who and what we should be. At the same time, we allow fear and other people's opinions to dictate our beliefs and behavior.
My spiritual evolution has revealed through many poignant and powerful experiences throughout my life that the answers are within us. My struggles with food and fat, love and loneliness, race and religion, led me to meditation, yoga, and PowerJournaling that healed me and freed my spirit to soar into new levels of peace, creativity, love, and influence.
Now I am sharing with you my lessons on how God has endowed each of us with access to supernatural power that enables us to enjoy better health, love, prosperity, harmonious relationships, and career success.
My message takes faith and belief to another level: knowing.
Knowing that God is guiding our every step, and that when we follow a spiritual path, miraculous ways are made from seemingly impossible circumstances. This, as the devil wages spiritual warfare every day on our minds, bodies, and souls with anger, anxiety, disease, discord, and lack with his favorite weapon: paralyzing fear. When it comes to fulfilling your heart’s desires, the devil’s answer is “No.”
Thankfully, God’s Answer Is “Know.”
Know that God has blessed you with access to supernatural power to heal your mental, physical, and spiritual pain — and create a life of peace, prosperity, love, joy, harmony, and good health. This golden treasure trove of God power is already within you, right now.
This book provides tools, along with my story of spiritual discovery, that will inspire you to tap into the life-changing God power inside you. You’ll learn how to diffuse fear with faith, and how to manifest your best life through meditation, prayer, and writing.
Photo: Clarence Tabb, Jr.
BOOKS BY ELIZABETH ANN ATKINS
Written & Published by Two Sisters Writing & Publishing
God’s Answer Is Know: Lessons From a Spiritual Life by Elizabeth Ann Atkins. (May 2019). This “how-to” memoir chronicles Elizabeth’s life story and fantastical spiritual discoveries, and includes easy-to-follow instructions on how to create a spirit-centered life.
The Enemy Within by Michael Wood, MD and Elizabeth Ann Atkins. (February 2019). This gripping novel written with a bariatric surgeon takes a chilling look at a terrorist plot to use the obesity epidemic as a weapon of mass destruction to kill Americans.
The Making Point: How to Succeed When You’re at Your Breaking Point by US Army Master Sgt. Cedric King with forewords by former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and Actor Gary Sinise. (January 2019). Army Ranger who lost his legs in a bomb blast in Afghanistan becomes motivational speaker and triathlete, sharing inspiring messages that if he can do the impossible, then you can do anything.
PowerJournal Workbook #2: A 28-Day Challenge for Weight Loss. (January 2019) Workbook teaches method Elizabeth created combining meditation and journaling to embark on a journey of self-discovering with the goal of seeking one’s truth and creating one’s most desirable life.
PowerJournal Workbook #1: A 28-Day Challenge. (November 2018) Workbook teaches method Elizabeth and Catherine created combining meditation and journaling that enabled Elizabeth to lose 100 pounds and maintain a super healthy lifestyle after addressing the mental component of why we use food to soothe our emotions, and how to stop self-sabotaging behaviors.
My Name is Steve Delano Bullock: How I Changed My World and the World Around Me through Leadership, Caring, and Perseverance by Steve D. Bullock. (February 2018). The son of a North Carolina sharecropper uses faith, family, education, and hard work to become global humanitarian as first black interim president of the American Red Cross.
Let the Future Begin by Dennis W. Archer and Elizabeth Ann Atkins. (December 2017) Former Detroit Mayor and former Michigan Supreme Court Justice shares life story of growing up in meager circumstances and using education and hard work to become a two-term mayor who transformed Detroit into the come-back city of the millennium and became the first person of color elected president of the American Bar Association, which has 400,000 lawyers and once banned black lawyers from joining.
“CLEAR!” Living the Life You Didn’t Dream Of by Herman Williams, MD. (September 2017) He dropped dead of cardiac arrest 28 years ago and lived to tell about it. His dream of becoming an orthopedic surgeon died, but his revival inspired a blueprint for others to survive and thrive after a catastrophic illness and other life challenges.
My American Success Story by Roy S. Roberts. (2015) This memoir describes how he rose from poverty through education and hard work to become the highest-ranking African American in global automotive industry.
Husbands, Incorporated. (2014) Wrote trilogy about a revolutionary business that provides marriages and adventure for women around the world. Re-released in 2018 under pen name Sasha Maxwell by Two Sisters Writing & Publishing.
Jesus, This is Jimmy by Reverend Jim Holley, Ph.D. (October 2012). Revised and expanded inspiring memoir for prominent Detroit minister.
Fat Family, Fit Family: How We’re Beating Obesity and You Can, Too by the Morelli Family. (Plume/Penguin Books, March 2011). Wrote memoir for contestants on NBC’s prime time show The Biggest Loser.
My Blue Suede Shoes: Four Novellas. (Atria/Simon & Schuster, March 2011). Wrote novella called “The Wrong Side of Mr. Right,” about women becoming empowered to escape abuse.
The Death Bond Conspiracy by P.A. Corky Gillis. (2009). Ghostwrote suspense novel about a national financial scandal.
Click! 10 Truths to Building Extraordinary Relationships by George Fraser. (McGraw Hill, Jan. 2008) Writer for networking guru George Fraser.
Other People's Skin: Four Novellas (Sister-To-Sister Empowerment Series). (Atria/Simon & Schuster, October 2007). Wrote novella called “Take It Off!” about women becoming empowered about racial identity.
Going Full Circle: From Life to Death to Life by Kenneth Tyson. (January 2007). Ghostwrote memoir for quadriplegic CEO of a record company.
Sean "Puffy" Combs for Black Americans of Achievement Book Series. (April 2003). Wrote biography of the Grammy Award winning rap artist and producer.
Twilight by Elizabeth Atkins Bowman and Billy Dee Williams. (Forge/St. Martin’s Press, 2002). Romantic thriller about a scandalous affair between a judge and a movie star, set in Brazil and Los Angeles, with provocative themes of race and identity.
Dark Secret by Elizabeth Atkins Bowman. (Forge/St. Martin’s Press, 2000). Romantic thriller about biracial woman “passing” for white in Detroit, New York and Virginia, sparking a national race and sex scandal with a Congressman. Second edition published under Elizabeth Ann Atkins in 2008 and third edition published in 2017 by Two Sisters Writing & Publishing.
White Chocolate by Elizabeth Atkins Bowman. (Forge/St. Martin’s Press, 1998). Romantic thriller about a mixed-race TV reporter’s love defeating hate in Detroit and Los Angeles, featuring a provocative love triangle.
UPCOMING BOOKS BY ELIZABETH ANN ATKINS
Goddess: Be One by Elizabeth Ann Atkins. (July 2019). This guidebook shares Elizabeth’s secrets to looking and feeling her best — in mind, body, and spirit — while weathering the storms of life that include fear, an eating disorder, post-divorce abuse, depression, failure, fear, never fitting in, and feelings of worthlessness. This how-to guide is Elizabeth’s gift to women as she wraps her traumas-into-triumphs in engaging stories to empower people to find their power and use it to thrive no matter what life brings.
The Gift of Eli: Find Your Power Within by Elizabeth Ann Atkins. (Release Date TBD). This follow-up to God’s Answer Is Know provides more stories about Elizabeth’s supernatural experiences and lessons, as well as eight solid steps anyone can take to access and unleash their spiritual power within. Elizabeth’s father called her “Eli,” Hebrew for God. His gift to her was a baptismal prayer that established her spiritual path; her gift to readers is the empowering lessons she is sharing from her spiritual journey.
BOOKS EDITED & PUBLISHED BY TWO SISTERS WRITING & PUBLISHING
The Triumph of Rosemary: A Memoir by Judge Marylin E. Atkins. (October 2017) Elizabeth and Catherine’s mother chronicles her controversial, interracial marriage to their father, former Roman Catholic Priest Thomas Lee Atkins, a native of West Branch, Michigan. She began life in foster care after her Italian grandmother rejected her for being half black; her adoptive mother was verbally and emotionally abusive. Against the odds that included damnation by the Bishop and family disapproval, she enjoyed a joyous family life raising two daughters and embarking on her career as a lawyer, then the longest-serving Chief Judge in the history of Detroit’s 36th District Court.
The Veronica Series (August 2017) by Catherine M. Greenspan. Young adult series about a 14-year-old girl who looks white but is mixed: her mom is black and her dad is white. Suddenly, everybody wants Veronica to choose whether she’s black or white. Where does she fit in? Why does have to choose?
We’re Standing By Al Allen. (August 2018) Beloved TV reporter shares unique insights on 50 years in broadcast journalism and as a pioneer and beloved reporter.
Remembering and Forgetting: A Spiritual Journey by Lin Day with Foreword by Kim Manning, PhD. (July 2018) Lin credits hypnotherapist Dr. Manning with saving her life threatened by cancer, depression, obesity, the pain of childhood sexual abuse, and fibromyalgia, after a stint in a convent ends abruptly.
First Annual Anthology Featuring International Writers, edited by Catherine M. Greenspan and Elizabeth Ann Atkins. (July 2018) This book showcases 21 authors from around the world who won the monthly Two Sisters Writing & Publishing short story contests.
Legacy of a Lawmaker: Inspired by Family & Faith By Alma G. Stallworth, PhD. (December 2018). The retired state Representative shares her quintessential American success story, showcasing the power of faith, family, and determination to make a positive impact on the world.
Broken Hearts: Like Mother, Like Daughter: A Spiritual Call to Action for Equality in Health Care By Alma G. Stallworth, PhD. (December 2018) This book chronicles two generations of a family coping with and caring for the health crises caused by congestive heart failure.
UPCOMING BOOKS FROM TWO SISTERS WRITING & PUBLISHING
PowerJournal Workbook #3: A 28-Day Challenge for Making Big Decisions. (March 2019) Workbook teaches method Elizabeth created combining meditation and journaling to embark on a journey of self-discovering with the goal of seeking one’s truth and creating one’s most desirable life.
The Energy Within Us: An Illuminating Perspective From Five Trailblazers, by Joyce Hayes Giles, Hilda Pinnix-Ragland, Rose McKinney-James, Carolyn Green, and Telisa Toliver. (May 2019). This collection of powerful women’s stories showcases how they blazed new trails for women and African Americans to shatter both the glass and black ceilings by becoming top executives in America’s energy industry. Each woman wrote her story, which was edited by Atkins & Greenspan Writing.
Confessions of a Plastic Surgeon: Shocking Secrets about Enhancing Butts, Boobs, and Beauty by Thomas T. Jeneby, MD. (Release Date TBD) This Ivy League-trained, board-certified plastic surgeon who performs procedures live on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat shares humorous stories and an inside look at the world of plastic surgery. Elizabeth and Catherine wrote and are publishing this book.
The Dr. Sanchez Books on Raising Healthy Children — Baby’s First Year: A Survival Guide For New & Experienced Parents by Dr. Eduardo Sanchez. (Release Date TBD) This pediatrician provides a pocket guide to everything parents need to know about baby’s first year. Elizabeth and Catherine wrote and are publishing this book.
The Life Story of Julius V. Combs MD by Julius V. Combs MD. (Release Date TBD) This memoir describes how Dr. Combs made history as co-founder of the first African American-owned health care company to become publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Elizabeth and Catherine wrote and are publishing this book.
Second Annual Anthology Featuring International Writers, edited by Catherine M. Greenspan and Elizabeth Ann Atkins. (Release Date TBD) This book showcases 30-plus authors from around the world who won the monthly Two Sisters Writing & Publishing short story contests in 2018.
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Elizabeth Ann Atkins is available for media interviews, speaking engagements, trainings, and book signings.
For review copies and more information, please contact Catherine Greenspan at 775-200-6523 or atkinsgreenspan@gmail.com.