Ellis Amdur balances two careers, that as a crisis intervention specialist, through his company, Edgework and as a 50+ year practitioner of traditional Japanese martial arts. His writing meets right in the middle. Through his company, Edgework Books, he has self-published thirteen profession-specific books on the verbal de-escalation of aggression and calming of agitated mentally ill people, some co-written with a subject matter expert. In addition, he has published two volumes of Shapeshifting: Effective Scenario Training for Hostage Negotiation Teams, co-written with Fmr. Sgt. Lis Eddy, one for police and one for correctional officers. And with co-author Robert Hubal, he has also written two books: The Coordinator: Managing High-Risk High-Consequence Social Interactions in an Unfamiliar Environment & The Accord Agent: Managing Highly Problematic Situations Within the Business Environment
Amdur has also published Body and Soul: Toward a Radical Intersubjectivity in Psychotherapy, a combination of a lyrical description of how phenomenology and dialogal philosophy can be applied to psychotherapy, followed by two heart-wrenching accounts showing how these abstract principles are embodied in the real world.
He has written and published three books on martial arts, the iconoclastic Dueling with Osensei: Old School, a work on classical martial traditions and most recently, Hidden in Plain Sight, on esoteric knowledge within various Japanese martial traditions. All three of these books, in revised, expanded editions have been released by by Freelance Academy Press. His essays on various subjects concerning combatives and martial arts can be found at his kogenbudo.org page.
Along with authors Neal Stephenson, Charles Mann & Mark Teppo and artists Robert Sammelin and Dean Kotz, Ellis has released the Jet City Comics graphic novel, the Cimmaronin.
He has also edited & reworked the book, Final Chapters: A Hospice Social Worker’s Stories of Courage, Heart and Power, written by Evelyn & Shelley Amdur, his mother and sister.
His first novel, The Girl with the Face of the Moon is published through Amazon. He is currently working on his second novel, entitled Lost Boy.
His books are considered unique in that he uses his own experiences, often hair-raising or outrageous, as illustrations of the principles about which he writes, but it is also backed by solid research, and boots-on-the-ground experience.
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Communication, control, and de-escalation of mentally Ill and aggressive Inmates for correctional officers in prison settings
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This book outlines why people become aggressive, and explains how we can effective respond to people’s behavior that can escalate from anger, to rage, and – at the extreme – to violence.
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