Author Talk: ‘The Age of Magical Overthinking’
In this conversation, AMANDA MONTELL draws from her instant New York Times bestseller, The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality, to make sense of today’s senselessness. By combining razor-sharp, deeply funny stories with scientific research, critically acclaimed author, linguist, and podcast host Montell provides audiences with a window into our minds – delving into the cognitive biases that run rampant in our brains. Join Montell as she explores our cognitive biases and the power, disadvantages, and highlights of magical thinking.
Information on book buys and signings is available upon request.
Creating Inclusion Through Language
Acclaimed author AMANDA MONTELL is an expert in language and contemporary culture and shares incisive and eye-opening strategies for creating inclusion through linguistic choices. Moving effortlessly between history, science, and popular culture, Montell’s irresistible humor shines through – making linguistics approachable, hilarious, and profound for any audience.
How to Build a Cult(ish)
Through juicy storytelling and cutting original research, AMANDA MONTELL exposes the verbal elements that make a wide spectrum of communities “cultish,” and how cult language secretly shows up in unexpected places, especially social media, the workplace, and, of course, loyalty programs. Business leaders in any industry can benefit from Montell’s perspective on how words wield power and influence human behavior.
Amanda Montell explores cognitive biases, restoring agency amid chaos in her book ‘The Age of Magical Overthinking’
Critically acclaimed author, linguist, and podcast host AMANDA MONTELL explores our cognitive biases and the power of magical thinking in her instant New York Times bestseller The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality. Building on her earlier explorations of language and culture, Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism and Wordslut: a Feminist Guide to the English Language, Montell showcases the power of what we tell ourselves.
In The Age of Magical Overthinking, a personal and electrifying work, Montell turns her erudite eye to the inner workings of the human mind and its biases. As she illuminates these social and psychological concepts with her signature brilliance and wit, Montell’s empowering message is one of hope, empathy, and forgiveness for our anxiety-addled human selves.
Watch Amanda Montell’s keynote at Avid Presents >>
Watch Amanda Montell in conversation on Pretty Smart podcast >>
Linguist Amanda Montell tells the story of language as culture
Storyteller and linguist AMANDA MONTELL is an expert on the intersection of linguistics and culture. Montell speaks with accessibility and enthusiasm on timely topics shaping language, identity, and society.
As a thoughtful and creative cultural critic, Montell adeptly perceives and breaks down the hidden rules governing society. By openly interrogating the world we live in, she brings audiences on a journey of creative self-discovery backed by scientific thought and historical precedent answering why things are the way they are. Montell has delighted crowds across the world with this presentation, selling out tickets for book festivals and library series, universities and high schools, corporate events, and TEDx.
Watch Amanda Montell’s keynote at Avid Presents >>
Watch Amanda Montell in conversation on The Minimalists podcast >>
Amanda Montell is a critically acclaimed author, linguist, and podcast host living in Los Angeles, who has given keynotes all over the world for book festivals and library series, universities and high schools, corporate events and consulting, and TEDx.
Amanda is an expert in language and contemporary culture, able to speak with accessibility and enthusiasm on timely topics from how cult language secretly shows up on social media and in the workplace, to how to make your company language more gender inclusive, to cognitive biases in the modern age. She is the author of two bestselling nonfiction books, Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism (HarperWave, 2021) and Wordslut: A Feminist Guide to Taking Back the English Language (HarperWave, 2019). She is also the creator and co-host of the hit podcast, Sounds Like A Cult.
Amanda's books have earned praise from The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Kirkus Reviews, and more. Cultish was named a best book of 2021 by NPR, was shortlisted for several prizes including the getAbstract International Book Award and Goodreads Choice Awards top 5 finalist, has been translated into seven languages, and is currently in development for television. Sounds Like A Cult is one of the most popular podcasts in the country, won "Best Emerging Podcast" at the iHeart Radio Podcast Awards, and has been praised by The New York Times, Vulture, Wired, Esquire, Marie Claire, and more.
Amanda is currently at work on her third book The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality (to be published by OneSignal, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, in 2024). The book is an exploration of contemporary delusion—how cognitive biases show up in our personal lives, on social media, and in public policy. Amanda was born and raised in Baltimore, MD and holds a degree in linguistics from NYU. Find her on Instagram @amanda_montell.
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