Authors from around the world are sharing their funny, sad, and inspiring real-life stories in Clarity, the latest anthology from The Pathfinder’s Collective. Following two popular releases, Bold and Escape, this is the storytelling collective’s third and final publication—and they’re donating 100% of profits to Planned Parenthood.

Storytellers Erin Rodgers and Jeremy Kredlo first met at an online show during the COVID-19 lockdown. Inspired by the connections they were making with storytellers worldwide, they founded The Pathfinder’s Collective, with the mission of sharing the joy of personal narrative with a larger audience.

“I wanted to create a space for more people to have access to beautiful personal stories from people all over the world. I realized that self-publishing made that possible,” says Rodgers.

Since then, they’ve released three collections and featured 60 writers, ranging from beginners to storytelling superstars. Clarity, the new collection, features 32 writers each sharing a real-life story about experiencing a moment of clarity.

“There is no better way to learn about people than stories,” says Rodgers.  “You learn how similar people are. Everyone has faced a time where they need to make an important decision, where everything became clear, if only for a moment.”

For Rodgers, the key to a great story is the writer’s willingness to be emotionally vulnerable.

“The most important part of storytelling is being willing to share your authentic self with the audience,” she says. “When I hear a story about a real, flawed person learning and changing, it reminds me that I am also capable of change.” 

Rodgers is also thrilled to be supporting Planned Parenthood with the profits from Clarity. 

“Safe, accessible health care is so important. Access to safe abortions is essential,” she says. 

Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, she’s heard from American friends terrified about health and safety for women and non-binary people. For other friends, Planned Parenthood was the first healthcare they received that was trans-accepting. 

“Storytelling is a great tool to fight shame. And Planned Parenthood is an organization that goes against the shame that so many of us have been taught around sexuality. It seemed like the perfect match.”

In the three years of The Pathfinder’s Collective, Rodgers says she has grown as both a coach and a writer, learning from the contributors and evolving in her own work. The experience has opened her eyes to the importance of truly listening, and leaving assumptions at the door.

“Everyone is a constellation of life experiences.  If you go into a story with a perceived notion you are robbing yourself of the beautiful experience of truly connecting with the person telling the story. Every story is like a ticket to live someone else’s life for a little while and see the world through their eyes.” 

With a book like Clarity, every reader will find something they can connect deeply to, while engaging with incredible stories from every corner of the globe.

‘Clarity’ is available now.