Eating Adverbs is a poetic and practical guide to embracing solo experiences as a source of joy, autonomy, and transformation whether you’re just beginning or returning with fresh eyes. Through personal stories, research, and reflective tools, the book invites readers to reimagine independence not as isolation, but as a vibrant rhythm of intentional living.

My name is Tommy Hensel and I am the author of Eating Adverbs. I wrote this book because I’ve seen how reframing solo experiences can transform lives.

I want to create a movement that celebrates autonomy, joy, and unapologetic presence.

Eating Adverbs isn’t just a book. It’s a movement that celebrates the power of doing things alone—not as a fallback, but as a bold, joyful, and intentional choice. Whether you’re just beginning to explore solo experiences or returning to them with a fresh perspective, this book invites you to reimagine independence as a source of creativity, clarity, and connection.

You don’t need permission to live fully on your own terms. You don’t need a partner, a packed calendar, or someone else’s validation to savor a meal, take a trip, or build a life that feels like yours.

Eating Adverbs is for people who are ready to stop waiting. It’s for those who’ve been told that doing things alone is selfish, strange, or sad. It’s for the ones who are too busy, too tired, or too unsure to prioritize themselves. And it’s for anyone who’s already thriving solo but wants to go deeper, bolder, and more unapologetically.

It’s about making solo experiences a core part of your life, not just something you fall back on when no one else is available.

Inside Eating Adverbs, you’ll find:

• Rituals that reclaim joy—from solo dining to morning routines
• Fresh perspectives that challenge cultural myths about independence and self-worth
• Tools for building intentional habits that support solo flourishing
• Language that empowers so you can name, claim, and celebrate your solo experiences
• Real stories from people who’ve transformed their lives by embracing solo living

This isn’t just inspiration. It’s instruction. You’ll walk away with tangible ways to shift your mindset, your habits, and your relationship with yourself.

You will love this book if you’ve ever wondered what it might feel like to take that first solo step—whether it’s dining alone, traveling independently, or simply spending time with yourself without apology. And if you have already embraced these experiences, Eating Adverbs offers a deeper lens: a way to reframe, expand, and celebrate the independence you have already claimed.

Eating Adverbs is a non-fiction book that speaks to:

• The creative professional craving space to recharge and reflect
• The parent rediscovering an identity beyond caregiving
• The high-achiever seeking balance and intentional joy
• The person navigating life transitions and reclaiming their voice
• The sensory seeker who finds magic in food, ritual, and metaphor

This book speaks to you. It offers stories, fresh perspectives, and practical tools to help you embrace doing things alone in ways that feel expansive, not limiting.

Eating Adverbs is written in five parts, each one exploring a different type of adverb as a lens for living more fully, independently, and intentionally.

Part 1: TIME (Introduction + Chapters on Later, Soon, Now)

This section reframes how we think about timing—not as delay or urgency, but as rhythm. Readers explore how solo experiences unfold across time: the hesitation before trying something new, the quiet craving for independence, and the eventual shift from “someday” to “now.”

Key Elements:

• Reframing delay as emotional pacing
• Exercises like the “Magic Wand/Want” to clarify desires
• Stories of solo rituals that begin with small, deliberate timing shifts

Part 2: DEGREE (Chapters on Simply, Entirely, and Wholeheartedly)

Here, readers examine the intensity and depth of their solo experiences. This section explores how we qualify our independence—how we minimize it with words like “just” or “only,” and how we reclaim it with language that reflects fullness and intention.

Key Elements:

• Language awareness exercises to shift internal narratives
• Stories of solo activities that move from incidental to intentional
• Reflections on how degree-based adverbs shape perception and self-worth

Part 3: MANNER (Chapters on Mindfully, Boldly, Gratefully)

This is the heart of the book’s philosophy: how we move through the world. Readers explore the emotional texture of solo living—how to show up with presence, courage, and gratitude.

Key Elements:

• Deep dive into solo dining as a practice of autonomy
• Travel stories that illustrate boldness and improvisation
• Reflections on gratitude as a rewiring tool for resilience

Part 4: PLACE (Chapters on Here, Elsewhere, Inwardly)

This section explores the geography of independence—how we inhabit space, stretch our comfort zones, and return to ourselves. Readers move from local rituals to global adventures, and finally to inward practices that anchor presence.

Key Elements:

• Flânerie and local exploration as solo rituals
• Frameworks for designing day trips, solo retreats, and themed adventures
• Reflections on meditation, attention, and digital untethering

Part 5: FREQUENCY (Chapters on Sometimes, Regularly, Always)

The final section transforms independence from event into essence. Readers explore how solo practices become habits, how repetition builds fluency, and how quiet resilience becomes second nature.

Key Elements:

• Archetypes like the Hesitant Explorer and Balanced Connector
• Exercises for mapping personal rhythms of independence
• Reflections on confidence, consistency, and the ripple effect of solo joy

Other Ways to Support Me

Not everyone can contribute financially and that’s absolutely okay. There are still powerful ways you can help bring this movement to life:

• Share the campaign on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn with your friends, family, and network. Use the hashtag #EatingAdverbs and tag me so we can amplify your voice and reach more people who need this message.
• Personally recommend the book to five people—friends, family members, co-workers—who you think would resonate with the themes of solo joy, intentional living, and reframing independence. A quick text or DM can make all the difference.

Your support, in any form, means the world to me. Thank you for helping Eating Adverbs find its way into the hands and hearts of those who need it most.

Thank you so much for all of your love and support!

Warmly,

Tommy

About the Author 

Tommy Hensel is a writer, performer, and creative coach whose life has been shaped by the stage and the solo journey. With a background as a professional singer, actor, and theatrical director, he brings a deep understanding of presence, rhythm, and storytelling to everything he creates.

Over the years, Tommy has worn many hats (floral designer, tarot reader, life coach, Feng Shui consultant, wine buyer, cabaret singer, arts presenter) and each role has deepened his belief that solo experiences aren’t just valid; they’re vital.

Tommy’s work is rooted in a simple but radical idea: that living alone doesn’t mean living less. His coaching practice and creative projects center on helping others reclaim solo moments as sacred, joyful, and transformative. Whether he’s setting a solo table with crystal and candlelight, exploring a new city with curiosity and courage, or guiding others to build intentional routines, Tommy invites people to live with intention and to find beauty in their own company. He’s not here to teach from a pedestal. He’s here to share what he’s lived: the quiet power of choosing yourself, again and again.

Tommy lives in Berwyn, Illinois, where he curates creative resources for his community, crafts rituals that spark delight, and believes that a table for one is never lonely—it’s liberating.

Follow Tommy on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.