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From $20 to Two Hundred Documentary Film Adventures, the Journey of a Creative Person
What happens when curiosity becomes a compass—and creativity becomes a way through uncertainty?
A Storyboard Life begins on a freezing winter night when a young woman, broke and uncertain, chooses generosity over fear. The $20 she donates to a good cause soon blossoms unexpectedly into a 30-year adventure across more than 200 documentary films.
From rejection, divorce and loss to unexpected triumphs and second chances, these behind-the-scenes stories reveal how the films she works with soon become both lifeline and compass. Frame by frame, each one offers a lesson, a plot twist, or a push to keep going.
Part memoir, part backstage pass, "A Storyboard Life" invites readers to discover how a most unlikely career was built on determination, imagination, creativity—and the power of story.
About Kristin Fellows…
You must check out “A Storyboard Life”—exceptional writing. Each (frame) makes me want to read the next … It's like I'm being led.
Her writing has this beautiful never-ending quality.
Not surprising from a documentary filmmaker who knows storytelling and how to keep us watching.
Sarah Fay, PhD
USA Today bestselling author of Pathological: The True Story of Six Misdiagnoses
Kristin Fellows is an award-winning travel writer, illustrator, and documentary film consultant, having worked on over 200 films aired on PBS. Educated in England and the U.S., she has lived and worked in London, Paris, Portugal, and the U.S.
In addition to a BA in Psychology, Kristin holds a Smithsonian Associates World Art History Certificate and a diploma from Álfaskólinn, the Icelandic Elf School. Her colorful illustrations reflecting her curiosity, creativity, and love of storytelling, are held in private collections in Europe and the U.S.
Kristin received an International Solas Award in 2023 in the category of Adventure Travel Writing for her story, “Getting Naked with a Dragon in Finland.” In 2019, she was a semi-finalist in Atlas Obscura's "First Journey" competition ($15,000 prize). And in 2015, her photograph, “Skywalker,” was chosen as a National Geographic Photo of the Day.
“You have a wonderful voice.”
Noah Michelson, Head of HuffPost Personal
“You are the storyteller and the story ... you write like a portrait painter ... You are the perfect example of Mary Oliver’s ‘Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.’ ”
“A fabulous life from a beautifully grounded person. Her writing begs the reader to read it out loud.”
“I can’t tell you how much your stories draw me in and resonate with some of my own experiences. Your soulful radiance has given me such wonderful and sometimes challenging sustenance. ”
“You write well, the pacing is good, and the material is priceless. You have certainly led an unusual life.”
“I enjoy going along with you to these places and events. That’s what it feels like. Like I am there with you.”
“You continually awe me with your ability to sculpt words ... into a poignant mixture of life’s joys and fears.”
More reviews…
I love a good memoir, and “A Storyboard Life” by Kristin Fellows did not disappoint. I laughed, teared up, and I came away with a new appreciation of documentary filmmaking. I felt like I was tagging along on some amazing adventures along the way. Kristin is a natural storyteller - warm, honest, deeply engaging.
Katie Jackson
An engaging story of the heroic journey of a not-so-ordinary woman creating an extraordinary life. This is an inspiring, insightful, and uplifting journey written in flowing prose. A perfect gift for anyone who is struggling after hitting one of life’s potholes. And it’s just plain fun to see someone making lemonade out of life’s sour fruit.
Dante Langston
A single mom living near the edge, Kristin Fellows faces impending failures that would have most of us staying in bed with the covers pulled over our head.
But…a chance opportunity at a tiny public television station becomes larger in her hands, becoming another opportunity. (From there), she finds what she can offer leading to documentary films. Over years of work she earns a reputation for finding the values in filmmakers’ projects that shape them into programs that will be noticed, picked up by networks and stations, placed on air to be seen by millions. All the while coping with the endless issues and events of adulthood: families, aging parents, marriage and divorce, relationships, and the ongoing adventure of raising children from infancy to adulthood.
Looking back, we experience her moving along improvised paths that seem almost foreordained, as she becomes herself not in relation to others but by what she achieves with her many talents indomitable spirit, relentless perseverance.
Stephen Ames