About Asha Dornfest
Here’s my backstory:
I started out as a writer of computer books.
It was the mid-90s and the web was just catching on. I’d always dreamt of being a writer, so I parlayed my basic HTML knowledge into a proposal which ultimately led to my first how-to book: Do-It-Yourself Web Publishing With Word (Sybex, 1996).
More books followed including FrontPage For Dummies (Wiley, 1997), a bestseller that went into several editions.
By 2006, I was a mom of two trying to keep my head above water.
My experience barely resembled what I’d oh so carefully read in the parenting books. I was lonely and out of my depth.
I started a blog called Parent Hacks as a way to reach out to other parents and swap the tips we’d stumbled upon ourselves, mostly through trial and error.
Discovering the blogosphere was like stepping through a magical portal. I found the community of parents I’d longed for but hadn’t been able to find in person.
Blogs — that is to say, the readers and writers of blogs — changed my life and career.
Parent Hacks grew into an award-winning resource with a huge readership and a smart, generous community in the comments.
Over the next ten years I published over 4000 posts, read more than 30,000 comments, spoke at companies, conferences and press events, and met readers and writers from around the country. A few of them became my closest friends.
Two more books followed, then five years of podcasting and three years of writing a subscription newsletter.
Now I’m back on the independent web where I keep a notebook about my life beyond the empty nest, among other things.
Returning to my personal website is a homecoming of sorts, but I’m not trying to recreate the past.
There’s no going back to the mid-2000s Internet, but that doesn’t mean we’re stuck with the din and distortion of today’s social media.
This website is an outpost of reality. It’s just you and me here with no ads, algorithms, or AI to get in the way.
This is a companionable place to drop in for a chat or quietly keep each other company, where the whole point is just to be our kind, weird, human selves.
Welcome to my little online home. I’m so glad you found me.
Continue reading in my notebook. Leave a comment on anything that piques your interest — I’d love to know you dropped by.
If you’d like an occasional heads-up about new posts, sign up for my free monthly letter.
Keep scrolling if you’d like to learn more about my past work.
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Asha Dornfest is a Portland, Oregon writer and the parent of two young adults. She’s the author of Parent Hacks: 134 Genius Shortcuts for Life with Kids (Workman, 2016) and co-author, with Christine Koh, of Minimalist Parenting: Enjoy Modern Family Life More By Doing Less (Routledge, 2013).
In 2016, Asha and Christine launched Edit Your Life, a weekly podcast about decluttering your physical and mental space to make room for what you truly value. Edit Your Life won the 2017 Iris Award for Best Podcast, an honor awarded by industry peers. Asha retired from the show in 2021, but Christine continues to host weekly episodes.
In 2022, Asha launched a Substack newsletter called Parent of Adults as a place for community and conversation about life beyond the empty nest. She has since returned to writing on her personal website where she keeps a notebook and sends a monthly letter. Visit her at ashadornfest.com.
Selected Books
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Parent Hacks: 134 Genius Shortcuts for Life With Kids (Workman Publishing, 2016)
The Parent Hacks blog community inspired this illustrated collection of parents’ clever shortcuts & road-tested wisdom. A fun, practical gift for new- and expectant parents that still holds up!
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Minimalist Parenting: Enjoy Modern Family Life More By Doing Less (Routledge, 2013)
Keep it simple and trust yourself. This sums up Christine Koh’s and my approach to parenting and life. A calming, encouraging read for parents of toddlers, preschoolers, and school-age kids.
Podcast
Three years after Minimalist Parenting was published, my friend & co-author Christine Koh and I launched Edit Your Life, a weekly podcast about decluttering your physical and mental space to make room for what you truly care about.
We shared our lessons learned on everything from parenting and partnership to eldercare and activism. In 2017, Edit Your Life won the Iris Award for Best Podcast, an honor awarded by our industry peers.
After 250+ episodes, I retired from co-hosting role in 2021. Christine continues to solo-host new episodes each week. Search for Edit Your Life wherever you get your podcasts or explore the catalog at edityourlifeshow.com.
🎧 A few favorite episodes:
Contact
The best way to contact me is to leave a comment in my notebook or reply to one of my monthly letters. Otherwise, you’re welcome to use this form.
This is a one-way channel. I hope you’ll understand my need to limit the time I spend online. I truly appreciate your reaching out.
Please: no PR pitches, guest posts, link requests or unsolicited offers.
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Thanks for dropping by. 🌻
© Asha Dornfest, 2026. All Rights Reserved. Home page photo: Amy McMullen Photography