Heather E. Schwartz Studio
Licensed children’s IP: nonfiction, fiction, and educational content
WORKSHOPS & SPEAKING
Tame Your Stage Fright!
Finding Confidence Outside Your Comfort Zone
and other customized presentations
Whether you're stepping onto a stage, leading a meeting, giving a presentation, promoting your work, or simply trying something new, showing up can feel uncomfortable. The good news? Confidence isn't something you're born with—it's something you build through self-support.
My own journey with stage fright stretches back to childhood. Over the years, I've learned how to move from anxiety and avoidance to confidently presenting as an author, speaker, and performer. Today, I combine lived experience, research, and practical strategies to help others navigate nerves, visibility, and performance pressure in ways that feel authentic and sustainable.
Sessions can be tailored for authors, creatives, students, professionals, athletes, educators, and other groups. Depending on the audience, topics may include:
• Managing the physical symptoms of anxiety
• Mindset shifts that reduce fear and increase resilience
• Practical preparation techniques that build confidence
• Personalized self-support strategies
• Finding confidence outside your comfort zone
• Navigating visibility, public speaking, and performance pressure
• Showing up more fully as yourself
Available as a webinar, conference session, keynote, or in-person workshop.
There's no single right way to build confidence—but there are countless ways to support yourself through challenges, take meaningful risks, and show up for the opportunities that matter most.
Credit: Courtney Bernado
BIO
Heather E. Schwartz is a children’s author, performer, and professional development facilitator specializing in confidence-building and presentation skills for creatives. She has over a decade of experience studying and performing improv, which has been instrumental in her journey overcoming stage fright.
Heather’s publishing credits include Jenna Ortega: A Little Golden Book Biography (Penguin Random House, 2026), The Muppet Movie: An Official Picture Book (Hachette Book Group, 2026), and numerous collaborations with major brands such as Disney, Sesame Street, Scholastic, Mack Trucks, and the Mayo Clinic. She has presented workshops for organizations including SCBWI and Hollins University’s Graduate Program in Children’s Literature, focusing on helping writers and illustrators navigate the business side of their creative careers.
Her unique blend of lived experience, research-based strategies, and practical tools informs her approach to helping creatives manage anxiety and confidently engage audiences during school visits, media appearances, and conferences.
"Heather’s presentation on work-for-hire writing was a unique offering at our conference. It was both educational and entertaining, providing professional insights, specific examples, and practical tips to help writers land work-for-hire assignments for themselves."—Lin Oliver, Executive Director, SCBWI