About Penforhire

Meet Matthew Harms

Matthew Harms is a New York born and based Ghostwriter and Author Coach who founded Penforhire in 2019. It has been said that everyone has a story to tell, but unfortunately most go through life thinking theirs will never be read since they lack the ability to construct cohesive and compelling written content into the finished form of a book. 

As a lifelong writer, Matthew has learned from and adapted his various experiences in fields such as Finance, Project Management, and Real Estate to help those with the desire to use their words to make the world a better place. In the ghostwriting space he prides himself on providing a voice for the voiceless, working with clients who have a message of growth or inspiration. As an author coach, Matthew partners with aspiring and experienced writers who do not want to have someone else write their story by helping to identify gaps and enhance strengths so they can take their projects to the next level.

Matthew is the author of Grow Up: No, Really and Employed: A Career Readiness Manual, books designed to help people enrich their lives through basic life skills and career readiness training. When he is not focused on helping others, Matthew’s other passions are writing works of fiction, both novels and screenplays, and spending time with his children.

Check Out Our Latest Work

Here is a small sampling of the projects we have helped bring to life.

Matthew Harms

Employed!

Have you ever struggled with finding your purpose in life? Are there numerous people in your circle who are giving you conflicting career advice? Is there something you absolutely know you were destined to but can’t seem to figure out how to get your foot in the door? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then “Employed: A Career Readiness Manual” is the answer you have been looking for! “Employed” takes a three-pronged approach to helping young people or transitioning career professionals achieve their employment goals.

Matthew Harms

Should Have Known

Jason Carpenter and Richard Colt are childhood friends estranged by events that set them on two very different paths. While one climbed the ranks of a Fortune 500 company this is more than meets the eye, the other fell in with a mercurial crime boss intent on growing his empire at all costs. Years go by before the hand of fate thrusts them back into each other’s lives, and puts them to the ultimate test.

Jason, once the rock of their relationship, suffers a terrible tragedy at the hands of a fanatical serial killer and Richard must rise up from his self-made prison to keep his friend from slipping further into madness. They must find a way to face the combined adversity of their own situations while enduring scrutiny from both the police and a career newsman with his own version of events to tell. It will be the hardest test of their friendship to not give into the demons that plague them from within and without.

When all the cards are on the table each one will feel like they should have known.

Matthew Harms

Grow Up

HAVE YOU EVER FELT LIKE THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF DECISIONS TO MAKE AND NO ONE TO TURN TO? Growing up means making daily decisions on your own and living with the consequences. Whether you are deciding between renting an apartment or buying a house, leasing or buying a car, or figuring out which credit score is the right one, there doesn’t seem to be a simple way to figure out the answer. You can go the hard road and learn from your mistakes, or make your life easier and read this book!

“GROW UP” WILL PROVIDE GUIDANCE IN MANY AREAS, SUCH AS:

  • Buying a car without being taken for a ride
  • Managing money to provide peace of mind and never being broke
  • Handling college and student loans so you don’t risk ending up in debt for the rest of your life
  • Getting your own place without fear of leases and mortgages
  • Understanding credit scores to increase your chances of getting money when you need it
  • Feeling fulfilled by creating the successful career and lifestyle you want
  • And much more…

“GROW UP” IS A MUST HAVE FOR EVERY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT, YOUNG ADULT OR ANYONE STRIVING TO KNOW MORE ABOUT HOW THE WORLD WORKS WITHOUT FEELING LOST, OVERWHELMED OR CONFUSED.

Published Books & Authors

Lainie Liberti

Lainie is an author, speaker, community leader, teen coach and alternative education advocate who helped to spearhead the thriving worldschooling movement.

Lainie co-foundered Project World School with her son in 2012. Liberti designs and co-facilitates the Project World School teen retreats as month-long immersive learning communities to support self directed teens from around the world.

She is also the founder and creator of Transformative Mentoring for Teens that launched in early 2020 offering virtual 1:1 coaching for teens as well as a 12-week course designed to transform lives. Lainie is an adolescent behavioral specialist, certified life coach, specializing in transformational & confidence coaching.

Seen, Heard & Understood: Parenting & Partnering with Teens for Greater Mental Health

In normal times, adolescence is not easy. Changes in the external world can amplify internal changes and make it more difficult for teens to cope, let alone thrive. During adolescence, parents often struggle to remain connected with their teens. Lainie Liberti helps parents understand their teen’s developmental stages and behaviors in an easy to follow format through stories, research, applied psychology and science-backed tools. Prepared with the right tools, parents can support their teens on a journey towards greater mental health.

Throughout this inspirational book, you’ll explore a new conceptual framework for parenting which will transform your relationships. Be prepared to do the uncomfortable work required in order to support your teen through some of the biggest mental health challenges our generation has ever experienced.

In addition to providing a set of powerful tools, this book will offer a roadmap to learning:

  • Common teen myths
  • Healing traumas
  • Partnership parenting
  • Mentorship benefits
  • Teen brain basics

Mac McGregor

Mac is the Founder and Executive Director of “Positive Masculinity”, a nonprofit that works to dismantle toxic masculinity and helps masculine people work to create a healthier model of masculinity for all people.

He is also known as the “Gender Sensei” – is a speaker who works to educate and train various corporations, colleges, and groups on topics concerning diversity, gender, healthy masculinity and being true to themselves. He is a dedicated, heartfelt activist and educator who focuses every part of his existence on creating a world where people can feel free to be their authentic selves.

He has been a keynote speaker at many events including Mayo Clinic, and many colleges, organizations, and conferences. This includes the University of Washington where he is a guest instructor each semester who discusses the complexities of gender, transgender, and gender non-conforming. Mac has also made appearances on Ripley’s Believe it or Not, The Learning Channel, The Discovery Channel, Univision, People Magazine, and many more. He also writes for the Huffington Post, The Good Men Project, Seattle Gay News, Unite Magazine and other publications.

Mac’s experience prior to transition was that of a successful female athlete, champion competitor, and business owner. This experience shaped him to become a guiding figure for women’s rights, specifically closing the pay gap and providing equal opportunity for those that are gender variant. He was a former US karate team member, inducted into the Martial Arts Hall of Fame as a competitor and as Master Teacher. He has extensive training in conflict resolution and arbitration through being a certified coach and referee through the AAU and U.S. Olympic committee.

The mayor appointed Mac as a Seattle City Commissioner in 2011 and he served until 2016. Mac is co-president of the Washington state council for PFLAG and on the Seattle Police Department LGBT advisory board. Here, he developed policy and training around dealing with the transgender community, which has been used by the US Border Patrol. He continuously speaks on panels and solo at numerous colleges, non-profit groups, and state and city governments on gender & sexuality. Mac teaches community Self- Defense to empower all people on a donation basis so that all have access. He is also a multimedia talk show host of “The You Can Make a Difference Show” on Rainier Avenue Radio. In 2017 Mac ran for Seattle City Council and was the first transgender person ever to be on a ballot in Washington State.

Positive Masculinity Now: A Heart-Led Guide For Growth Toward a Conscious, Emotionally Intelligent & Inclusive Masculinity

Positive Masculinity Now takes a deep dive into gender expectations, socialization, and messaging. Through this guide, you will discover different ways to create deep meaningful connections, free from masks and restrictive thinking. You will also learn the importance of breaking free from traditional gender models to create healthy relationships, careers, friendships, and self-images. Once practiced, these strategies will reinforce a fulfilling life full of growth, curiosity, and expansion in all of your interactions.

Understanding how the narrow molds of gender socialization have limited everyone is critical for people to be true to themselves and live responsibly in the world. Through conscious exploration, all can learn to make empowering decisions that create a more inclusive model of masculinity that supports communication, intimacy, and authenticity within.

CJ Amato

C.J. Amato grew up a typical New Yorker, flipping pizzas and learning in many restaurants across the city, becoming a chef. Which then led to a successful career in food sales. In 2017 C.J took a chance and opened a restaurant in Queens, New York. It was successful until the world changed in 2019. Suddenly C.J found a lot of time to kill. Re-finding his love for music, games, movies, and the passion for books. And the burning idea to write my own story. “But I’m no author!” The doubting voice said. “I never took a class or anything on writhing.” But there was a story that had to be told.

C.J was very lucky that one of his favorite authors is Brandon Sanderson. And Brandon teaches writing classes. “Too bad I can’t attend his class.” Good thing he posts all of his lessons on YouTube. I studied and started to write. 2 years of dreaming and surrounding my creativity with the right people, C.J’s book was in his hands. I am proud to be an indie author, and I hope you will join me on my writing journey.

Dig My Grave (Hymns From The Lighthouse. A dark fantasy tale. Book 1)

After The Great Divide left them isolated by monstrous water mountains.

After The Maker’s Massacre left them in darkness-leaving them in a world divided between Blue and Black.

Buried deep down in their home-holes, the families of The Five have been waiting for a long time for the catalyst that will spark The Maker’s Third Atrocity.

Time can yield countless possibilities.

Time finds a young Gracie No-Name sold to the Broken King Magnus Windbound. Her simple crime was being born to an unloving mother.

A generation earlier, time finds Summer. A girl with curly blue hair and gray-blue eyes born to a world of black hair and black eyes, named after the season of her abandonment.

Another generation later, Skye Wallace predictably found himself in his office lost in time-investigating God’s Cruelties. But Skye often finds himself reading about The Daughters of Light. Astonishing women, able to yield nature to their will, with just the snap of a finger.

Then stands the Gravedigger. A specter shrouded in black, burying this world one soul at a time, with every dig of its diamond shovel.

Paula Moore

Founder and creator Paula Moore was the first female A&R research executive in the music industry. During her time as an executive at two major label groups, she built the industry’s first A&R research platform, connecting A&R executive staff, scouts, artists, and data. Today, she is still the only female senior level A&R research executive with IP assets. Paula continues to innovate the music industry and is the founder and CEO of GREATERTHAN, a platform for creative professionals exploring opportunities for success through content, community, and curated research.

With her first book, Glitter & Grit, Paula Moore sets out to innovate the music industry. Moore’s story inspires creatives everywhere while showing them what it takes to be a creative success at any career stage. It’s more than a book of advice and quotes – it’s the untold stories, the real-life events no one wants to share, about the costs of trying to make it as both a creative person and an executive in a cutthroat industry.

Glitter & Grit: Be Greater as a Creative

Glitter & Grit® IS THE BOOK EVERY CREATIVE PERSON NEEDS AND CAN RELATE TO.

Glitter & Grit is the gritty, raw story of a creative person who won’t give up or give into the constant challenges, setbacks, and betrayals that come with trying to build a career out of her creativity. It’s the terrifying and thrilling ride of her career path, successes and failures, stories, and advice to help you reach your true potential.

Startup founder, investor, and music industry executive, Paula Moore, set out to innovate the music industry. Moore’s story inspires creatives everywhere while showing them what it takes to be a creative success at any career stage. It’s more than a book of advice and quotes – it’s the untold stories, the real-life events no one wants to share, about the costs of trying to make it as both a creative person and an executive in a cutthroat industry.

Trust your instincts and follow your gut. Play to your strengths, learn from your mistakes, and know when to break a few of the traditional rules. This witty account gives honest advice on how to treat your career like a creative house and build it from the ground up. It might look great decked out in glitter, but it needs grit to be greater.