Life Writing Workbook

I stumbled upon life writing at age¿twenty-nine. I was¿at¿that moment in¿a divorce¿when you know it's over¿and it's time to move on. I¿realized how little¿I¿understood my life and that¿I had no real sense of¿how to make a life.¿I wanted a life.¿I wanted¿a certain kind of¿satisfaction¿from life¿that I knew existed; yet here I was, very clear that¿this¿marriage¿wasn't going to work out¿and faced with raising¿älovely¿child¿alone¿as I¿made¿my way¿toward this certain something I couldn't even name.

I moved in with my best friend's parents, who were very kind to me. To¿try to get a handle on things, I¿secluded¿myself¿in their¿basement for many evenings to dissect¿my¿life story.¿It was just instinct.¿Starting with¿my¿earliest memory, I¿started the¿walk¿forward, sifting carefully through each¿experience I could¿recall. I would approach¿certain memories¿in the writing, and my body would tighten.¿At first I just kept going, but those particular memories called me back. So I went back, slowed down, and¿sifted more carefully-looking at the¿scene, the¿circumstances, the¿people involved, and¿at¿myself, my emotions, my perceptions, and my¿fears.

At the end¿of this¿rather intense¿process,¿there was no doubt that something¿in me¿had shifted. I¿felt¿a new¿sense of self-possession. I felt aware of myself in a way I wasn't before.¿I can see this same new presence and power arise in the faces of¿others as they complete the life-writing process. The Life Writing Workbook guides you step-by-step through eight sessions of deeply engaging, private, and transformative writing through your life story.¿