Welcome!

Welcome to The Honeyed Quill, internet home of writing superstar Shawna Ayoub Ainslie. Shawna knows everything and nothing simultaneously. She wields words as weapons of peace. She collects metaphorical hats and wears too many at once. She believes in unicorns, aspires to be a mermaid, and she can’t stop won’t stop, so don’t even suggest it.

Photographed by Stephen Phillips

Shawna received an MFA from Indiana University in 2007. It was pretty rad. Some of her published work has appeared in Art Saves Lives International, The Manifest-Station, Role Reboot, Medium, [wherever],  and Open Thought Vortex Magazine where she also formerly served as Editor-in-Chief. Shawna’s work addresses themes of race, place, abuse, mental health, parenting, and faith. Her Writing through Trauma series is adapted from classes she developed as part of an ongoing writing program she hosts in her hometown of Bloomington, Indiana. She 100% believes you can survive your story.

In addition to writing and teaching, Shawna creates online safe spaces such as the Friday #LinkYourLife Twitter linkup and Facebook group, is an avid reader of paranormal detective romance, writes recipes while waiting for the Doctor to take her on an intergalactic adventure, writes bios that are always far funnier than her own, and often chooses to honor her children’s creative processes by not scraping glitter-glue off the table.

For information on upcoming writing classes and retreats or private writing coaching, refer to the Services and Events menu options. You know you want to.