Katy Willis

Writer, master herbalist, master gardener, and canine nutritionist

Who is Katy Willis?

Katy Willis is a writer, master herbalist, master gardener, and certified canine nutritionist. She’s also a digital publisher. Katy has been writing since 2002, and she founded her first website, RealSelfSufficiency.com, in 2015. She then founded her publishing company, Content By Design, Ltd, in 2019, and now has a portfolio of websites under the Content By Design umbrella. All the websites in Katy’s portfolio focus on one of Katy’s areas of expertise, all within the green living, self-sufficiency, and holistic lifestyle niches.

Katy’s Expertise

Master herbalist: Katy is a certified master herbalist, with a diploma from the Centre of Excellence and accreditation with the Complementary Medical Association. She has been making herbal remedies and products with the medicinal plants she grows and forages for around 20 years. She always learning and trying new recipes, too.
Master gardener: Katy Willis is a master gardener. She’s been growing organic food for the last 30 years. She’s always expanding her knowledge, trying out new companion planting combinations, adding new permaculture techniques, and working on building soil health and increasing crop yield naturally. Katy takes a holistic approach to her growing spaces.
Canine Nutritionist: Katy holds a canine nutritionist diploma from the Centre of Excellence, with accreditation from the Complementary Medical Association. Aside from her canine nutrition certification, she has over 10 years of experience in feeding her own dogs a balanced, species-appropriate raw diet, tweaked and adjusted to their specific dietary needs, and she makes all of her own delicious dog treats. Katy believes in a simple whole foods approach to feeding dogs and humans (and livestock and other pets).
Self-sufficiency: Katy is an expert at self-reliance and self-sufficiency, and aims to help others incorporate self-sufficiency into their lives however they can. For Katy, self-sufficiency includes food preservation, foraging, using green energy (or generating your own energy with solar, wind, or water), and being prepared for any eventuality. It means to make or use what you have and to live within your means without unnecessarily relying on outside resources.
Homesteader: Katy has been homesteading her entire life, having grown up on a rural homestead. She continues this way of life today, but as a modern homesteader, embracing both traditions and modern convenience. Her homesteading way of life also incorporates green living, a holistic lifestyle, sustainability, crafting, and natural living.
Raising livestock: Katy keeps chickens, ducks, quail, bees, and goats on her homestead, and also has experience with geese, sheep, and alpacas. She raises her livestock the same way she raises her pets and family – as naturally and holistically as possible. She aims to keep all of her animals as happy and healthy as possible. And she broadens her knowledge, taking extra livestock classes and seminars whenever she has the time.
Crafts: Katy is a craft-a-holic and can turn her hand to pretty much anything. However, her specialisms include yarn and fiber crafts like crochet, spinning, weaving, and macrame. She also makes cosplay and reenactment armor and accessories as well as chainmail jewelry and beadwork.

Katy’s Websites

Here are a few of Katy Willis’ websites, where she shares her knowledge and expertise.

Realselfsufficiency.com (Real Self-Sufficiency)
WithOurDogs.com (With Our Dogs)
SimpleFamilyPreparedness.com (Simple Family Preparedness)
ContentByDesign.co (Content By Design, Ltd)

Other Things Katy Willis Writes About

Yes, green living, sustainability, and self-sufficiency are Katy’s primary passions, but she’s a modern-day renaissance woman! Katy is a geek, too. Some might say she’s a techno-hippie. She loves Doctor Who, dragons, zombies, really good horror, dystopian futurism and medieval fantasy.

Katy Willis is a science fiction aficionado, game geek techno-hippie who loves scientific innovation, learning about technological advancement, and passionately debating who is the best Doctor Who companion ever with fellow Whovians (obviously, it’s Donna – you’ll never change my mind!).

She’s logged hundreds of hours playing sandbox survival and dystopian horror games, knows everything there is to know about Doctor Who, LotR, TWD, and GoT, is endlessly fascinated by dragons, magic, and fantasy, and thinks alternative reality, zombies, and cyberpunk culture are the epitome of cool.

Katy’s love for the futuristic and the fantastical drives her creativity both in her writing and her daily life. With a keyboard at her fingertips, she dives into unknown realms, exploring the complex relationships between technology and humanity, and imagining what the distant future (or past) might hold. She is equally at home discussing the philosophical underpinnings of a new indie game, debating the merits of various time travel theories with fellow Whovians, or geeking out over the latest advancements in VR technology.