Listening in the Dark: Women Reclaiming the Power of Intuition

Listening in the Dark breathes new life into an ancient wisdom by taking a fresh and powerful look at our relationship to intuition and how we can harness it to change our everyday lives and the world.

This remarkable anthology includes essays from Jessica Valenti, Lidia Yuknavitch, Jia Tolentino, Samantha Irby, Meredith Talusan, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, Amy Poehler, America Ferrera, Ada Limón , Huma Abedin and many others, who all share how intuition has helped to shape and alter their life choices.

Have you ever had a feeling about something that you just couldn't explain, but knew was right or wrong? Something that was telling you in your gut what decision to make, which direction to go in, or what to believe? For generations, women have been taught to ignore their intuitive intelligence, whether in their personal lives or professional ones, in favor of making logical, evidence-based decisions. But what if that small voice or deeper knowing was our greatest gift, an untapped power we could use to affect positive change?

Edited by award-winning author, activist, and actress Amber Tamblyn, Listening in the Dark is a compilation of some of today's most striking women visionaries across industries — in literature, science, art, education, medicine, and politics — who share their experiences engaging with their own inner wisdom in pivotal, crossroad moments.

Filled with deeply personal and revelatory essays, Listening in the Dark will empower readers to reconnect with their own unique intuitive process, to see it as the precious resource it is, and to be unafraid to listen to all that it has to say and all that it has to offer.

"Listening in the Dark is a new classic in the old tradition of women finding ways to remind ourselves, and each other, we have always been this powerful. That our bodies have always known to hear and see in the wind and sky what might be coming, or in some cases, what has already come to pass. These illuminating essays are as varied in subject as their authors are in background, but share a common goal in getting the reader to counteract generations of conditioning and ask themselves, 'But what if I'm right?' Brilliantly edited by Amber Tamblyn, this anthology isn't just worth reading, it's worth passing down to your own next generation, so they never forget what you learned inside." Ashley C. Ford, New York Times bestselling author of Somebody's Daughter

"We've been told to second-guess ourselves. To doubt what we know in our bodies, our bones. And here comes this book with its chorus of brilliant, badass writers and thinkers saying Enough. Listen to yourself. Trust yourself. There's enough brainpower in these pages to electrify whole cities and they're asking us to join them: Shhhhhh. Listen. You know what to do, to make; how to heal, to fight. The answers are right there, pumping your own perfect heart." Megan Stielstra, author of The Wrong Way to Save Your Life

"The stories in Listening in the Dark, ranging from lyrical to thought-provoking to laugh-out-loud funny, make a powerful case for trusting your gut. Intuition can save our lives — and even more than that, this brilliant collection argues, it can make our lives rich, fulfilling, and wholly, beautifully our own." Claire Comstock-Gay, author of Madame Clairevoyant's Guide to the Stars

"What it means to know yourself and listen to yourself feel like lifelong practices, illuminated by this thought-provoking collection. Listening in the Dark creates space for readers to ask and answer their own questions about what it means to trust yourself." Rainesford Stauffer, author of An Ordinary Age

"This is a luminous collection of compelling and important stories about what it means to trust yourself. In a world that is increasingly dangerous to women and non-binary people, Listening in the Dark is a powerful reminder that sometimes intuition is our only protection." Natalka Burian, author of A Woman's Drink and co-founder of The Freya Project

"This gift of a book is for any woman — such as myself — who needs to be reminded why their gut instinct is the most powerful resource they have. A brilliant anthology that features some of our most dazzling and subversive minds." Michele Filgate, author of What My Mother and I Don't Talk About

Amber Tamblyn is an author, actor, and director. She's been nominated for an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Independent Spirit Award for her work in television and film, including House M.D. and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Most recently, she wrote and directed the feature film Paint It Black. She is the author of three books of poetry, including the critically acclaimed bestseller Dark Sparkler, and a novel, Any Man, as well as a contributing writer for the New York Times. She lives in New York.