Robert O'Brien

Audiobook live on Audible and Kobo.

Audiobook live on Audible and Kobo.

The audiobook version of 'Just One More Drive: The true story of a stuttering homosexual and his race car is now' is now live on Audible and Kobo for purchase and review!

It was a wonderful experience recording this version of my book and one I would recommend to any author who is thinking about narrating their own work.

Audible link:

https://www.audible.co.uk/search?keywords=Just+One+More+Drive&ref-override=a_hp_t1_header_search&k=Just+One+More+Drive&crid=TEHWXE4AZCUC&sprefix=just+one+more+drive%2Ceu-audible-uk%2C126&i=eu-audible-uk&url=search-alias%3Deu-audible-uk&ref=nb_sb_noss

Kobo link:

https://www.kobo.com/ww/en/search?query=just+one+more+drive%3A+the+true+story+of+a+stuttering+homosexual+and+his+race+car

 

 

 

 

Posted by Robert O'Brien in News
VoiceStory – ‘The Pitfalls of Perseverance’ speech now live

VoiceStory – ‘The Pitfalls of Perseverance’ speech now live

My speech titled ‘The Pitfalls of Perseverance’ is now live on the VoiceStory YouTube channel. A huge thank you to Winston Yeung and all of the VoiceStory team for this opportunity to speak and share my perspective.

This speech was a challenge to write because I have struggled with the idea of perseverance over the years. My father taught me the importance of working hard and persevering when things got difficult from an early age. I tried to follow his example, but struggled to fit in and find my niche as I navigated having a stutter and being gay. I chased fluency and later tried my hand at acting and writing, consistently working harder and harder waiting for ‘something’ to happen. But I never knew what that ‘something’ was. As a result, I have fallen into various pitfalls that I felt needed to be highlighted to give a balanced account of what perseverance truly is, and to allow all of us to succeed and achieve our goals.

 

Posted by Robert O'Brien in Media, News
Top 100 Stuttering Influencers 2023 – World Stuttering Community

Top 100 Stuttering Influencers 2023 – World Stuttering Community

It is a huge surprise and honour to be included among the top 100 stuttering influencers of 2023. We are all in this journey together, and the more voices we have, the more awareness we can bring to all issues surrounding stuttering.

Thank you to Tom Scharstein, Tricia Hedinger and everyone involved in the World Stuttering Network.

Here is to expanding this list for 2024.

Posted by Robert O'Brien in News
VoiceStory Speaking Event: May 18th 2023

VoiceStory Speaking Event: May 18th 2023

This coming Thursday on May 18th at 6:30pm, I will be one of six guest speakers talking about 'Perseverance'. My speech is titled  'The Pitfalls of Perseverance' and below is the promotion write up.

"Robert’s father passed and he returned to Ireland as it fell upon him to give his eulogy, but this trip triggered introspection as he reflected on the last 20 years of his life.
His father said “Life is hard Robert!” and he was right… growing up with the bullying for having a stutter and being gay. Life was a struggle, but he didn’t give up trying to survive in this world.
But as his father’s words echoed in his mind, he wondered if all the hard work he put in was worth it?
Join us on May 18 and experience Robert’s story, as he shares his insight that action and hard work alone is not enough, and it can become a pitfall. “If you keep chasing a goal out of desperation, you wind up exhausted and cynical. We need to know when to stop, take a breath and reassess our goals."
Voicestory Live at the Evergreen Cultural Center in Coquitlam.
Get your tickets now at https://www.voicestory.ca
**All tickets sales are now considered a donation and a tax receipt will be issued to you!
Posted by Robert O'Brien in News
StutterFEST 2023 – Audiobook Adventure Presentation.

StutterFEST 2023 – Audiobook Adventure Presentation.

I am very excited to be taking part in the World Stuttering Network's StutterFEST 2023 event on Saturday, May 6th. This is an online 24-hour event and all times are in Eastern Standard Time. It is a great opportunity to connect, listen and interact with people who stutter from all over the world.

This year, I will be taking about embracing our fear of stuttering when reading out loud and seeing how it can actually be fun. As a self-described 'unsuccessful covert stutterer', I could hide my stutter to varying degrees of success, but reading out loud in class or in a public setting put the fear of God into me. I can still remember the panic and shame I felt in those situations when the words just would not come out of my mouth fluently.

As an author, I had been slow to take on recording an audiobook recording of my memoir; Just One More Drive: The true story of a stuttering homosexual and his race car. The process took twenty hours and over that time, I learnt a lot about myself and my feelings around my stutter. I was able to move from fear and begin to embrace fun. It is that process that I will be talking about from 11:40-12pm EST (8:40 - 9:00am PST) May 6th 2023. 

For more information about StutterFEST and how to register, you can check out their website at: http://www.worldstutteringnetwork.net/stutterfest-program-of-events

 

 

Posted by Robert O'Brien in News
The Road to the Audiobook: Part 3 – It’s a Wrap!

The Road to the Audiobook: Part 3 – It’s a Wrap!

After 20 hours and 4 studio sessions, the audiobook of Just One More Drive: The true story of a stuttering homosexual and his race car is in the can.

In this final video, I summarize each session and share my takeaways from this experience.

Should someone who has a stutter record their own audiobook? For me, the answer is definitely yes!

Posted by Robert O'Brien in Media
UnBlockables – Returns for spring 2023 with funding from Vancity!

UnBlockables – Returns for spring 2023 with funding from Vancity!

As a co-instructor with the UnBlockables (in association with Tightrope Theatre and Columbia Speech and Language Services Inc.), I am thrilled to announce that Dan, Wendy and myself are back for spring 2023. We are ecstatic to announce that thanks to Vancity funding, we are now offering 36 fully funded spots available over the span of the 3 workshops!
We will continue to focus on presence, saying yes, cultivating laughter and celebrating mistakes over three workshops on the first Saturday of each month starting on April 1st. Participants can apply to take 1 or all 3 workshops. Spots are limited so don’t wait to apply! For more information and information on registration:
Posted by Robert O'Brien in News
Stuttering and Dating with Some Stutter Luh!

Stuttering and Dating with Some Stutter Luh!

To celebrate this year's Valentine's Day, I was invited to take part in a group discussion around dating and stuttering with Greg O'Grady and 'Some Stutter Luh!' along with other people who stutter.

As a person who stutters, I have often found my speech to be a barrier to dating and opening up to strangers, especially in a romantic context. That being said, our conversation, guided by Greg and his thought provoking questions really got to the core of the issue and ultimate positive conclusion, which is that we ALL deserve love and have every right to go out there and get it!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone.

Audio file: https://somestutterluh.ca/2023/02/14/Vday.html

YouTube: below:

 

Posted by Robert O'Brien in Media, News
The Road to the Audiobook: Part 2 (First Day Recording).

The Road to the Audiobook: Part 2 (First Day Recording).

Today was my first day recording the audiobook version of Just One More Drive: The true story of a stuttering homosexual and his race car.

As a person who stutters, I wanted to record this experience. It is something I was nervous to take on as it is difficult to know how it will turn out. Reading out loud in the past was a huge challenge to me.

I have to give a huge thanks to Tom and Aaron of Monarch Studios here in Vancouver for making this a wonderful and relaxing first day!

Posted by Robert O'Brien in Media
The Adventures of Rob and Dorrit (the Toyota Echo): End of the Road

The Adventures of Rob and Dorrit (the Toyota Echo): End of the Road

I sit here writing this blog in Dublin as an unexpected family situation summoned me home. As a result, Dorrit has had a quiet few weeks. Despite that, I had already made the decision to wrap up ‘The Adventures of Rob and Dorrit (The Toyota Echo)" a few months ago for a variety of reasons.

Firstly, I began blogging about owning a rather unassuming Toyota Echo in Vancouver as a personal challenge. I wanted to see if I could keep writing about the car for twelve months and I have achieved that goal. Generating content regularly is much harder than people assume and I wanted to know that I could do it. The second reason I have decided to retire this blog series is related to the content. I quickly realized that by focusing only on the car was slightly limiting and there are various other topics I would like to write about and explore. I have a few rough ideas that I plan to cement over the next few weeks. Finally, I want to reach a wider audience and I have been advised to look at Substack (https://substack.com/).

So this is not an ending, rather a new beginning. I will be creating an account and begin uploading as 2023 progresses and I have no doubt that Dorrit may well feature in my new content in some shape or form.

But to conclude this blog series, I would like to reflect on what I am taking away from the last year with Dorrit.

Having lived in Vancouver for over a decade, I survived quiet well without a vehicle. Yes, I moan at the drop of a hat about the buses and Skytrains, but in all honesty, the services are very good. Given the cost of car ownership in metro Vancouver too, a car is not a necessity like it would be in say Dublin. However, I can reaffirm with 100% certainty that cars are my first love and the simple act of driving brings me a sense of both peace and excitement that nothing else does. It is a man-machine connection that is gradually being eroded as cars become mobile computer platforms. Dorrit, for example, needs time to warm up and I have learnt that the car makes a regular clicking sound when it is fully up to temperature. I think it is the fan micro switch, but I could be wrong. Being unfamiliar with older automatic gearboxes, I have also learnt that Dorrit is rather quick off the mark, far quicker than I would have imagined. At higher speeds though, the gearbox needs more coaxing to change down that goes against my habit of trying to be mechanically sympathetic with the car. Learning these quirks has been a joy over the last year and is what I love most about driving!

More importantly, I have enjoyed the sense of freedom that Dorrit has given me. The time saving alone has had a huge impact on my daily life. I used to be a bit of a car snob and I would judge a person’s wealth and status by looking at the car they drive. I myself would often dream of having an exotic motor like an BMW or Porsche to show the world and social media that I had finally ‘arrived’ but owning Dorrit has taught me that it really doesn’t matter what the car is as long as it goes. This is only reinforced by the unpainted hood/bonnet that reminds me of this lesson every time I clap eyes on the car.

The last take away for me is the biggest. Dorrit taught me to face my fears in big and small ways. If I was in Vancouver right now, I know I would be outside brushing the snow and ice off the car. I used to worry about what the neighbours would think of me doing this. It is a waste of time at this time of year as it will no doubt snow again. Yet, it gave me a lot of pleasure to do this and see the results of my effort by having Dorrit clean and ice-free (even if only for a few hours). Additionally, I had to overcome my fear of finding car parking in the city and adopting a generally more assertive driving style. Ultimately, my fondest memories over the last year were when I was driving the car when I didn’t have to. When I could have gotten a bus or train instead. This has been the biggest lesson as I had to choose to drive and remember why I love it so much. It made me feel like a man and gave me a huge sense of satisfaction because it is so important to me.

With all that being said, Dorrit is not going anywhere and although I will not be blogging about her regularly, a new year brings a whole new set of driving adventures that I am eager to embrace.

To wrap up, I would like to say huge thank you to everyone who has read these blogs over the last year and I wish you all a happy 2023.

Posted by Robert O'Brien in Blog