may writing prompts + upcoming workshops
plus, reflections on writing to heal
My mother raised a reader.
I can’t tell you how old I was when I started reading. I don’t remember her teaching me how to read or cozying up with me in bed to read stories.
But I do remember watching her read. Our trips to the library. Her praise when I finished a book and told her what I liked and didn’t like about the story. The feeling of connection when we sat next to each other with books in hand, lost in the pages.
She never had to force me to turn off the TV and get some reading time in. I welcomed every chance to read. I could escape into the pages and feel seen, inspired, awakened, curious, and free. Books brought my inner world to life.
I could dive into an alternate reality and come out invisibly different, emerging with new thoughts, questions, and insights that shaped my young mind. Books answered the questions I was too afraid to ask anyone else.
While I’ve always been a reader, the writer in me took longer to recognize.
I could write the hell out of a book report or research paper or creative writing assignment for school. I could fill my diary with stories and secrets—some true, some imagined. I could write four-page letters to my friends and pen pals.
But I didn’t think I could do what authors did. I didn’t think of myself as a real writer, and it wasn’t something I aspired to be.
When I was barely in my twenties, I confided in the mother of one of my close friends—let’s call her Della—about my mom’s mental illness and how lost and confused I felt.
She gave me a book called Lessons in Living by Susan L. Taylor with a note inside:
“Gina, God has a magnificent plan for each of us, because we are very special + there is no one else like us. You, too, are very special. To everything there is a purpose.
Please know that your mom loves you more than anything. I believe for some reason your mom has retreated to her safe place. It has nothing to do with you and one day all will be revealed to you.
I am sending this to you for inspiration. Read it, believe it, do it. It’s called empowerment, and it’s wonderful when we do it. Always remember, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’ You and your mom are in my prayers. Your other mom, Della."
At a time when I so desperately wanted to feel mothered and seen, Della saw me. She changed my life when she gave me that book.
Lessons in Living is a book of inspirational essays about Taylor’s journey from being a struggling single mom to becoming the editor-in-chief of Essence magazine.
Up until that point, unless it was for school or church, I had almost exclusively read fiction. In Lessons in Living, Taylor told me her true story and introduced me to the vulnerability of personal narrative.
Taylor doesn’t just talk about her accomplishments; she goes beyond the highlight reel of her career to lay bare her struggles and lessons learned.
She starts with a story about being on a glamorous shoot in Jamaica with supermodel Iman and the Essence team, all while being in the middle of a personal breakdown.
“There in Jamaica, on an afternoon when the blinding midday sun had chased our shadows underfoot and the team indoors for lunch, I found my moment. I walked alone to the end of a wooden pier that reached into the cleansing blue waters. There, with only the splash of waves before me, it came.
With my arms flung wide and my head thrown back, it came again and again—a scream that unfurled from the core of my being, carrying my fears, my tears, and my frustrations into the wind. I asked God for mercy. Then, to order and direct my life. The moment I surrendered, peace embraced me. My healing had begun.”
I was immediately enraptured; vicariously liberated. A light came on inside of me.
You mean, we can talk about these things out loud?! We can admit when we are falling apart and put it into words and share it with the world? What kind of rebellion, what kind of sorcery is this?!
She goes on to talk about the ups and downs of her journey and the wisdom gained along the way. Lessons in Living sparked a slow burn in me that grew into a flame by my early thirties when I finally let out my own scream, writing my truths and confessions online in the early days of my healing journey.
That is when writing became a source of self-discovery, and that is when I realized that I am a writer. I write because I have to, because I need to, not because it’s easy, or because I think I’m good at it.
I never set out to be a writer, coach, or entrepreneur, but I discovered that for my mental health, I needed to find work that is meaningful to me. To overcome my fears and limiting beliefs, I needed a purpose that calls to me.
Our creative urges and impulses come from stories inside that need to emerge, but inevitably, we face resistance in allowing them to surface and transform.
The page gave me the courage to write the things I was afraid to say out loud, and in time, it taught me how to facilitate this process for others.
Writing took me from living a defeated story to finding a creative vision for my life.
My mission now is to help others improve the quality of their lives through the power of the written word.
You don’t have to write for a living to be a writer.
If you find it easier to express yourself through writing over any other form of communication…you are a writer.
If you discover the most important, enlightening things about yourself through writing…you are a writer.
If you feel cranky and out of sorts with yourself and the world around you when you go too long without writing…you are a writer.
If you are always writing in your head and scribbling down your thoughts and ideas…you are a writer.
If you feel an undeniable pull or call to write that won’t go away, no matter how much you try to ignore it…you are a writer.
When we have the urge to write and we avoid it, we also avoid the healing that it offers.
If this speaks to you:
My new book Story Work comes out in November and it’s all about understanding the stories we tell ourselves and the actions needed to reclaim our narratives. I pen the raw material of my life, and I invite you, the reader, to breathe new life into the stories you carry. I’m so excited to share it with you. It’s not just for writers, it is for anyone who wants to use writing as a tool for healing and self-discovery.
This month, I am offering a sneak peek into the book by way of a new healing intensive. Read on to learn more about it, as well as other upcoming workshops and sessions.
♥
may writing prompts
Sometimes the blank page is inviting and sometimes we need a spark to get the words flowing. I share a list of prompts every month as offerings to nurture your creative practice. They are meant to open a gateway to the things that are already on your mind, like a little invitation.
You can use them however you like. Write a sentence, a paragraph, a story. You can use one each day to trigger a moment of reflection, tempting you to pick up your pen and write a poem or recall a memory or describe a scene.
If you’d like to write in community with us, this Friday, May 2 from 7 - 8 pm et we have our free monthly writing workshop where we will write to these prompts together.
This monthly event is open to all subscribers. New faces are always welcome, and sharing is optional. You can RSVP here.
upcoming workshops and sessions
Memoir and Motherhood Workshop | Sunday, May 4 from 12 - 3 pm et
No matter your situation, motherhood is a challenging subject to wrangle with words.
In this three-hour workshop, participants will learn an idea generation exercise that identifies memories and themes that capture your experience with motherhood—whether that’s being a mother, being mothered, or whatever your relationship is with the topic.
We will discuss different storytelling formats to explore our perspectives on motherhood, and we will read excerpts from existing works for each one. Participants will do two writing exercises, share their work if they choose, and come away with ideas and tools for future writing.
Memoir & Motherhood Offers:
A space to explore our perspectives on motherhood through different narrative styles
Discussion about the emotional and ethical complexities of writing about family
Insights on how to process emotions, reframe your narrative, and find courage and clarity through vulnerable storytelling
The opportunity to generate new writing about motherhood fueled by the exercises, examples, and discussion
Registration includes the three-hour virtual session, plus the session recording and writing guide provided the next day. Paid subscribers get 15% off using the code in the header, $50 for drop-ins. You can sign up here.
Introducing: The Story Work Healing Intensive | Wednesdays, May 21 - June 25 from 6 - 8 pm et
Starting on May 21, this six-week group experience is an introductory version of a new healing intensive that I am offering in connection with the launch of my book, Story Work: Field Notes on Self-Discovery and Reclaiming Your Narrative which is forthcoming from Broadleaf Books in November. This series will give participants the opportunity to receive coaching and community support as they are guided through a six-step creative process of turning limiting beliefs and wounds from the past into healing narratives that empower them to live more fully expressed lives.
This project fills a gap I've felt in my offerings: an intensive dedicated specifically to writing as a tool for healing, which is truly where my heart lies. I'm thrilled to open the doors to this new experience, which I know will be transformative not only for those who join but for me as a facilitator.
Enrollment is open. You can learn more here.
