Amy Richards – Jill Grinberg Literary Management

Amy Richards

Amy Richards is an author, speaker, producer and third-wave feminist leader. She is the author of Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future (co-authored with Jennifer Baumgarder), Grassroots: A Field Guide for Feminist Activism (co-authored with Jennifer Baumgardner) and Opting In: Having a Child Without Losing Yourself. An advisor for the media brand MAKERS, she is also the author of We Are Makers: Real Women and Girls Shaping Our World and its companion Make Your Mark: A Journal for Capturing Big Dreams for young readers. With Jennifer Baumgardner, she is co-founder of Soapbox Inc: Speakers Who Speak Out, a feminist speaker’s agency representing a diverse list of activists and thought leaders, including Gloria Steinem, Jill Soloway, and Kathy Najimy. Recently, she produced the Emmy-nominated series WOMAN for Viceland and curated a series of talks to accompany Annie Leibowitz’s traveling exhibit, WOMEN, as well as acted as consulting producer for HBO’s Gloria Steinem: In Her Own Words and PBS’s MAKERS: Women Making America. Her media appearances include The O’Reilly Factor, Oprah, Talk of the Nation, New York One, and CNN. She co-founded the Third Wave Foundation, and has run Ask Amy, Feminist.com’s online advice column since 1995. She lives in New York City.

Agent

Jill Grinberg

Manifesta (20th Anniversary Edition, Revised and Updated with a New Preface): Young Women, Feminism, and the Future

The twentieth anniversary release of a groundbreaking feminist text: a powerful indictment of the current state of feminism, and a passionate call to arms.

Today, people of all genders strive to uphold the goals of feminism and proudly embrace the term, but the movement itself is often beset with confusion and questions. Does personal empowerment happen at the expense of politics? Is feminism for the few—or does it speak to the many as they bump up against daily injustices? What does it mean to say “the future is female”?

In 2000, Jennifer Baumgardner and Amy Richards’s Manifesta set out to chronicle the feminism of their generation. They brilliantly revealed the snags in various hubs of the movement―from antipathy to the term itself to the hyped hatred of feminism’s imperfect spokespeople—and showed that these snags had not imperiled the feminist cause. The book went on to inspire a new generation of readers and has become a classic of contemporary feminist literature.

In the decades since Manifesta was published, the world has changed in ways both promising and terrifying. This twentieth anniversary edition of Manifesta features an updated bibliography, timeline, and resources, as well as a new introduction by the authors. Expertly unpacking both early women’s history and the Third Wave feminism that seeded the active righteous intersectionality we see today, Manifesta remains an urgent and necessary tool to make sense of our past, present, and future.

Praise for Manifesta

“[The authors] have sorted out the fruits of this wave of feminism—intended and unintended, media mess and truth—for a new generation. With wit and honesty, Manifesta shows us the building blocks of the future of this longest revolution.” ―Gloria Steinem

“Complete with appendixes to teach novices the nuts-and-bolts of community organizing, this book is a reasoned and passionate call to action and an exciting how-to guide for both burgeoning and seasoned Third Wave feminists. Recommended for all high school, college, and public libraries.” –Library Journal

Publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Publication Date

March 10, 2020

Age Category

Adult

Genre

Nonfiction/Feminism

Rights

JGLM

We Are Makers: Real Women and Girls Shaping Our World

MAKERS is the award-winning video collection of women’s stories. And we’re bringing these inspirational and amazing stories to young readers in a book!

Did you know that Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to complete the Boston marathon in 1967, was almost pulled off the course before she could finish the race? And that Mae Jemison, an astronaut, was inspired by a Star Trek character to pursue her passion in science?

Behind every successful woman is the fascinating story of how she got to the top. And throughout history, trailblazing women have opened doors for those who followed. Based on the rich collection of interviews and documentaries from MAKERS, this book introduces pioneering women from all walks of life. Readers will get to know these women’s hopes, dreams, challenges, and accomplishments in chapters filled with personal stories, historical information, inspiring quotes, and much more. They will learn about the women’s movement and its impact today, and about common experiences women have.

Most importantly, they’ll be inspired to follow their dreams and become MAKERS themselves!

Publisher

Viking Books for Young Readers

Publication Date

November 19, 2019

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Nonfiction

Rights

Penguin

Make Your Mark: A Journal for Capturing Big Dreams

MAKERS is the award-winning video collection of women’s stories. And we’re bringing these inspirational and amazing stories to young readers in a journal!

Do you dream about making a difference in the world? Maybe you want to help others, invent something, or create something. No matter what you do, you have the power to change things, whether it’s in your own neighborhood or somewhere else in the world. This inspiring journal is full of information about MAKERS—trailblazing, pioneering women and girls who are achieving amazing things and who will give you lots of great ideas on how to make your mark. You’ll also find quotes, and places for you to write, doodle, and draw. So get ready to spark your creativity and reach for the stars!

Publisher

Penguin Workshop

Publication Date

November 19, 2019

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Nonfiction/Workbook

Rights

Penguin

Opting In: Having a Child Without Losing Yourself

For contemporary women, motherhood has become as polarizing a proposition as it is a powerful calling. For some women this tension is manifest in a debate over whether or not to have children. For others it concerns whether to stay at home with their children or stay in the workforce. Still others feel abandoned altogether by the supposedly pro-family and pro-mother social justice movement that is feminism and are at a loss when it comes to reconciling their maternal instincts with their political beliefs.

With Opting In, Amy Richards addresses the anxiety over parenting that women face today in a book that mixes memoir, interviews, historical analysis, and feminist insight. In her refreshingly direct and thoughtful approach, Richards covers everything from the truth about our biological clocks and the trends toward extending fertility, to parenting with nature and nurturing in mind, to our relationship with our own mothers, to what feminism’s relationship to motherhood is and always has been. Speaking from the vantage point of someone who is both a parent and one of our leading feminist activists, Richards cuts through the cacophony of voices intent on telling women the “appropriate” way to be a mother and reveals instead how to confidently forge your own path while staying true to yourself and your ideals.

Praise for Opting In

“To a world that either obsesses over children or excludes them, Amy Richards brings the revolutionary possibilities of shared intergenerational lives—not easy, mind you, but possible. If her example and writing had been around earlier, even I might have had children.” ―Gloria Steinem

“Scrolling through solid feminist history, she cogently examines issues involving mothers such as to work or not to work; the mania over one’s biological clock; nonsexist child-rearing; balancing household work; and nurturing friendships with women and one’s own mother. Overall, Richards strongly urges women to educate themselves about the achievements of the first waves of feminists and to advocate actively in their community for self-worth and dignity for all.” –Publishers Weekly

Publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Publication Date

April 29, 2008

Age Category

Adult

Genre

Nonfiction/Feminism

Rights

FSG

Grassroots: A Field Guide for Feminist Activism

“What can I do to help?” A perennial concern to many, this question became the mantra repeated coast to coast in the wake of 9/11; and while it rang loud, it most often went unanswered. Grassroots is Manifesta co-authors Amy Richards and Jennifer Baumgardner’s reply. Passionate activists who’ve traveled the globe from Green Bay to Havana in their efforts to raise awareness, Jennifer and Amy know that whether you are concerned about the environment, human-rights violations in Tibet, the WTO, sweatshop labor, or the ongoing repercussions of the war in Iraq, we all possess tools to make a difference.

Based on the authors’ own experiences and those of the large number of everyday activists with whom they work on a regular basis, Grassroots shows us how to move beyond passive activism such as monetary donation and writing congresspeople to make a far-reaching impact from a personal vantage point.

Drawing heavily on individual stories as examples, Grassroots brims with clear guidelines and models for activism that illustrate how to set realistic goals and follow up by identifying and focusing on the resources most readily available to you—be it at the office copier of the family living room. Whether you are a student of a stay-at-home mom, an artist or a corporate professional, Grassroots illustrates how anyone, no matter how much or little they believe they can offer, can become involved, and shows that even small efforts have the potential to produce a sea change in our lives.

Praise for Grassroots

“To that nice young woman in Liberty, Missouri, who asked me how she could become a world-changing activist: Read Grassroots!” ―Barbara Ehrenreich

“A booster shot of inspiration, Grassroots reaches out to activists of all generations. Jennifer and Amy have not only shared the secrets of their and others’ success but just as importantly, they’ve recorded the mistakes they’ve all made. I related to so much of i—especially the mistakes—and by showing the fits and starts of real life activism, Grassroots will help readers to both sustain their enthusiasm for social justice work and be more effective as a result.” ―Rosalind Wiseman, author of Queen Bees and Wannabes

Publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Publication Date

January 12, 2005

Age Category

Adult

Genre

Nonfiction/Activism

Rights

FSG