Tamara Dragseth is an avid reader, lifelong learner, and what many would call a true Renaissance woman. From spinning wool, knitting, sewing, gardening, and cooking from scratch to managing investments, repairing homes, and painting, Tamara embodies a level of practical wisdom that seems increasingly rare in today's world.

A former claims adjuster for Safeco, she spent years honing her financial expertise while raising her son. Through discipline, determination, and a commitment to living below her means, she built a life of financial independence without sacrificing the things that mattered most.

Today, Tamara enjoys retirement alongside her husband, biking to local farmers' markets, traveling, embracing simple pleasures, and sharing her love of books through beta reading, book reviews, and content editing for Quill Hawk Publishing.

In this episode, we'll explore the lessons she's learned about money, motherhood, resilience, self-sufficiency, and finding joy in life's everyday moments.

Tamara discovered reading in second grade because of the Scholastic book program provided through school. She purchased the book "HEIDI," fell deeply in love with the book and reading, and she has never surfaced for air.

It should be admitted that Tamara MAY be a compulsive reader, as she has been known to read FISHING REGULATIONS if nothing else is at hand. She typically reads two to three books a week!

Not only is she an avid reader, but she is also a pioneer woman who is an expert gardener, cook, and knitter. She spins her own wool and makes everything from scratch in the kitchen. She rides horses, builds her own tack room, and bales hay. She is a woman of many talents, including financial management and investment. Miss Jane of all trades! Tamara loves to travel and makes a living being curious. Oh, and let's not forget to mention she bakes pies and sourdough bread!

https://tamaradragsethqhp.wixsite.com/bookreviews

https://www.facebook.com/tamara.dragseth

Welcome to Quixotic Heights, the podcast where dreamers become doers, setbacks become stepping stones, and extraordinary people remind us that the most meaningful journeys often begin with one courageous decision.

I'm your host, Amy M. Le—award-winning author, founder andCEO of Quill Hawk Publishing, and storyteller who believes every voice has the power to inspire, heal, and change the world.

Today's guest is someone whose story proves that determination is often louder than talent. In 1996, while many people were following a traditional career path, Charlotte Chiew opened the Yellow Pages and began calling everytheatre company in Singapore. She wasn't asking for fame or fortune—she simply wanted a chance to learn. She even offered to clean toilets for free if it meant she could be part of the theatre.

Born into a traditional Asian family where the expectation was clear—study hard, find a stable job, get married, buy a home, and live a predictable life—Charlotte chose a different script. Despite being told to pursue a "normal" career, she followed the calling of an artist. That courageous decision led her into theatre, storytelling, and eventually to a career as an accomplished audiobook narrator, where she brings stories to life through the power of her voice.

Today, we'll explore what it means to choose passion over expectation, how rejection can become your greatest teacher, the artistry behind audiobook narration, and why finding your authentic voice is one of life's greatest adventures.

To learn more, visit https://charlottechiew.com/

https://seevp.org/ (volunteer narration for those whohaven't landed a project)

https://learningally.org/ (resource for dyslexic children)

Charlotte Chiew is an audiobook narrator with a special interest in figuring out audiobook sales and distribution strategies with Indie authors.

An Asian-American & British-South-East-Asian voice, she’s bubbly, uplifting, spunky - your favourite summer mocktail, with an unexpected ginger shot!

Charlotte was born in Singapore, grew up all over the world, left her heart in Paris, and is finally finding her feet in London after almost 10 years. A professional film, TV & Stage actor with an IMDB page, her favourite stories to narrate are YA sweet romance with no spice! Close contenders are YA Fantasy, where characters grow while struggling through epic journeys, and Christian literature that fuels her heart for Jesus.

If you can’t find her in the recording booth, she’s probably pruning flowers somewhere in the garden, (artificially) bouldering (in a gym), or gone on a bike ride with her husband.

Sometimes, she can be found in a corner competing with her teenagers at snarky comments and eye-rolling. (She often wins, but they tend to gang up and deny her that superiority.)

Today's guest proves that our greatest challenges can become the very foundation of our greatest gifts.

Ava Wood grew up with a learning disability and often found herself escaping into worlds of her own imagination. What began as a way to quiet loneliness and make sense of life's challenges eventually became a lifelong passion for storytelling. Today, she describes herself as "an insomniacwho writes to calm the voices," reminding us that creativity often blooms from the places where we least expect it.

Originally from the wide-open landscapes of Texas and now calling Florida home, Ava has built a life filled with family, imagination, and artistry.

Alongside writing compelling stories, she designs book covers and logos, creates intricate 3-D prints, and isn't afraid to sing whenever inspiration strikes.

In today's conversation, we'll explore how growing up with a learning disability shaped her creative mind, why imagination became her refuge, how sleepless nights fuel her storytelling, and what she's learned about resilience, family, and finding purpose through writing.

Whether you're a writer, an entrepreneur, a creative, or someone who's ever wondered if your differences could become your greatest strength, this conversation is for you.

https://www.instagram.com/btfl7/

https://www.facebook.com/authoravawood

Welcome to Quixotic Heights—where stories transcend boundaries, ideas ignite transformation, and the human spiritdares to reach beyond the ordinary.

Today's Quixote is William Bernhardt—an award-winning author of more than sixty books, a master of legal thrillers, and a passionate advocate for writers around the world. From bestselling novels to shaping the next generation of storytellers through WriterCon, his impact on the literary landscape is both profound and far-reaching.

We’ll be diving into his latest work, The Superman Wars: A Battle for Truth, Justice, and an American Icon, and dissectinghis career.

William Bernhardt is the award-winning author of more than sixty books, including the bestselling Ben Kincaid novels and the Daniel Pike legal thriller series. His latest release, “The Superman Wars,” continues his tradition of captivating storytelling that blends sharp legal insight with deeply human stakes. Bernhardt’s body of work also includes historical fiction, poetry, young adult novels, and the Red Sneaker series for writers, which has inspired and instructed a new generation of authors.

A passionate advocate for writers, Bernhardt is the founder of WriterCon—a renowned writers conference—and leads writing retreats, a podcast, a digital magazine, and afree newsletter, all under the WriterCon brand. His influence is far-reaching: more than thirty of his students have gone on to publish with major houses. He is also the president of Bernhardt Books, further extending his commitment tonurturing literary talent.

Bernhardt’s accolades include the Southern Writers Guild’s Gold Medal Award, the Royden B. Davis DistinguishedAuthor Award, and the Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award. He has twice won the Oklahoma Book Award and has been nominated twenty times in three categories. Beyond writing, his adventurous spirit has led him to activities like paragliding, surfing, and even becoming a Jeopardy! Champion. Hailed by Oklahoma State University as “Oklahoma’s Renaissance Man,” Bernhardt’s creativity, intellect, and passion for storytelling continue to shape the literary landscape. Learn more at www.williambernhardt.com.

instagram.com/willbern11

facebook.com/WGBernhardt2

goodreads.com/author/show/85988.William_Bernhardt

x.com/wbernhardt

tiktok.com/@williambernhardt04

linkedin.com/in/william-bernhardt-95807a15

https://www.youtube.com/@willbern100

bookbub.com/profile/william-bernhardt

threads.com/@wbernhardtbooks

https://bsky.app/profile/wbernhardtwriter.bsky.social

Today’s guest is a man who has lived at the intersection of faith, service, and storytelling. Keith Madsen is a semi-retired minister, an AmeriCorps worker, a mentor to young minds through chess, and an author whose work dares to confront life’s hardest realities while still holding onto hope.

From building schools in Haiti to educating communities about the opioid epidemic, Keith has seen firsthand thebrokenness in the world—and yet, through his writing, he invites us to believe in something more. His stories don’t shy away from loss or suffering. Instead, they transform those moments into seeds of renewal, redemption, and resurrection.

With four published novels through Quill Hawk Publishing—The Sons and Daughters of Toussaint, Searching for Eden, The Bridles of Armageddon, and Fallen Angels—Keith challenges us to ask: What if the world can be better than it is? And what role do we play in that transformation?

This is a conversation about truth, faith, loss, and the quiet, powerful ways hope refuses to die.

https://www.keithmadsen.net/

Keith Madsen writes fiction that combines adventure and romance with stories that dare to think the world can be better than it is. In his writing, the characters are real, but at the same time, they dare to transcend their reality. Keith believes that fiction, to be truly inspirational, must first acknowledge the hard realities of life. The inspirational aspect comes not from such cold realities, but as they become seeds which lead to the renewal of life and resurrection. Keith writes fiction which combines some of the lyrical description of literary fiction with the plot-driven tensions of a thriller. While the central character in his novels is generally male, strong women also play important roles. You will find yourself really liking the people you meet on the journey!

Today’s guest has lived a story shaped by discipline, disruption, and ultimately, deep healing. Charlie Peters wasonce an Olympic hopeful, a young man driven by purpose and promise—until his path was abruptly altered by the Vietnam War. Like so many who served, he returned home carrying invisible wounds, navigating the long and often lonelyroad of healing from PTSD.

But Charlie’s story doesn’t end there—it evolves. Through poetry, he found a voice for the pain that words alone couldn’t capture. His book, Returning Vet’s Saga: The Healing Power of Poetry, stands as a testament to resilience and thetransformative power of creative expression.

And just when you think you understand the arc of his life, another chapter emerges—at age 50, Charlie discovered thatthe identity he had always known wasn’t the full truth. The name he carried, the family he believed was his own—none of it was what it seemed.

From a student who once struggled in school to a published author, from craftsman to creator, from searching toself-discovery—Charlie’s journey is a powerful reminder that it’s never too late to reclaim your story.

Charlie Peters has been married for 50 years and has four children, nine grandchildren, and thirteen great-grandchildren. He accidentally started writing poetry in 1990 and discovered that poetry proved to be an outlet to release the frustration of PTSD symptoms. He wrote poetry for about ten years. Two of his poems were runner-ups in national poetry contests: “A Man Less Than His Best” and “Stairway.”

Then he shifted his writing efforts to political commentary and satire, and two of his published books resulted from those commentaries: “The National Debt? The Sinking of America!” (2008) and “TEA Time Has Arrived ‘We the People’ Versus Washington Bureaucracy.” (2009).
“Returning Vet’s Saga: The Healing Power of Poetry” is a work that may appeal to those suffering from unexplained moments of anger, frustration, frightening nightmares, and unexplained moments of depression, which a downpouring of tears may accompany. The author experienced all of those symptoms after returning from the military, and the symptoms lasted for about fifteen years before those symptoms even had a name, which we now call “PTSD.” The author found that a sound, a smell, a spoken word, another person's voice inflection, or something as simple as a commercial on television can trigger an episode of PTSD.
There is no magic in poetry. However, the magic comes in putting feelings to paper, coming directly from the heart and completely bypassing the brain. We may not think of ourselves as poets, but if we just let the words flow, we may find that we are, in fact, poets of a special kind.
This book ends with the poem that got it all started.

https://quillhawkpublishing.com/pages/author/charles-peters