Anna Blake has an eclectic background and a penchant for horses. Twenty-two years ago, Blake bought a farm in Falcon, when it was really country and she had to drive 20 minutes for groceries. While observing the changes taking place in the area, she also experienced her own transitions, from an artist to a goldsmith to a horse trainer to a writer.As a professional artist, Blake showed her work in New York City galleries and across the country. ìI did well enough at it to own two horses,î she said.She also worked as a goldsmith in Denver. ìIt was a noisy, dirty occupation that served me well,î Blake said.Her art business slumped after 9/11. ìFor me, my art business just hit the ground,î Blake said. ìI had horses; and, as far as my horses are concerned, I just have this one job, which is to buy hay, so I did whatever I could do.îBlake took a job training 11 weanlings (horses newly weaned from their mothers) for dressage. ìIt was a dream come true,î she said. ìFrom there, I just started training full time.îAs a trainer for the last 10 years, Blake decided to write a blog about her experiences in Falcon, her farm and horse training. ìI was teaching myself to write,î Blake said. ìGiving myself assignments, itís an endless practice.îThe blog eventually garnered a following that pushed Blake to write a book, published in 2015. ìStable Relationî is a memoir about Blakeís journey moving out to Falcon with her animals and starting anew.ìI was really lucky,î she said. ìMy blog readers all bought it and everyone liked it, and reviewed it, and so that gave me a foothold in writing and publishing.îSince her first book, Blake has written two poetry books as well as three books on horse training. Along with a friend, Blake started a publishing company for writers who want to self-publish.ìA lot of people think they have a book in them, and I believe they do,î Blake said. ìThe path to publishing in the U.S. is pretty narrow, and one of the things I love about technology is self-publishing.îWith Blakeís blog gaining international readership along with her success as a published author, she spent the last few years, before the pandemic, traveling and putting on horse training clinics.ìWhen my books came out, I started to get invited to do clinics and travel; and that changed everything for me.î The clinics took her around the world, from New Zealand to Scotland.The pandemic changed her course. When lockdown became part of the American way of life, Blake had to cancel three international trips and all of her clinics. Like many in her situation, she adapted by starting online horse training classes.ìHorse training was now something I was doing at a desk,î Blake said. Training over Zoom was the new normal. Blake was giving out assignments each week and had her clients post videos of their progress. ìThe thing I would say about horse people in general is that they donít like technology,î Blake said. ìSo it was a struggle for people to want to try it because itís a new thing.îHowever, people adjusted, and the horses were happy about the change. Blake said horses often show up to clinics challenged by the new location so being able to train and work with an animal in the place where they are most comfortable is a big help.Blake also found that she could work with her clients longer, while also being able to connect and relax with them over video chats.ìFor us, Zoom meetings were a pretty wonderful thing,î Blake said. ìWe would get in those Zoom meetings Ö and weíre all sitting there with dogs on our laps talking about our horses and new methods we could use.îThe internet also helped her reach remote clients unable to attend clinics in person, and Zoom brought in international clients as well, she said.ìThe opportunity of being accessible to people who will tolerate the challenges of technology is great,î Blake said.From self-publishing to horse training to traveling, Blake is not slowing down anytime soon. Being self-employed has suited her well. ìI have been self-employed since I was 18 years old,î she said. ìMy family says the first thing I ever said was ëIíll do it myself.í That certainly has not changed a lick.î
