Writing Trauma

A practical and inspiring guide to transformational personal storytelling, The Story You Need to Tell is the product of Sandra Marinella’s pioneering work with veterans and cancer patients, her years of teaching writing, and her research into its profound healing properties. Riveting true stories illustrate Marinella’s methods for understanding, telling, and editing personal stories in ways that foster resilience and renewal. She also shares her own experience of using journaling and expressive writing to navigate challenges including breast cancer and postpartum depression.

In "Beyond Survivor" Frayne offers his own history, hoping to help other victims of abuse find the courage and strength to seek help to triumph over it, and to increase awareness and education among the general public. Author Patricia A. McKnight, in her review of the book, says, “This expertly written book shows the path of standing strong and achieving what all mankind desires; retrieving the happiness once destroyed by the wicked. This collection of outstanding poetry and prose is a must read for all as inspiration to prevail against the challenges put forth in the battle to obtain our...

Unlock the Power Within: Transform Your Life and Reclaim Your Voice with Coercive Relationships: Find the Answers You Seek. Discover the truth behind abusive relationships and break free from the cycle of pain and control. Through personal anecdotes and expert advice, this book will guide you towards healing and empowerment. Gain clarity and understanding as you learn to recognize the signs of abuse Find solace in knowing that you are not alone in your struggle Take back control of your life and break free from the chains of manipulation Release feelings of guilt and shame as you connect ...

This “witty, humorous, and heartfelt“ (Cinelle Barnes) memoir navigates the tangled branches of Annabelle Tometich’s life, from growing up in Florida as the child of and a Filipino mother and a deceased white father to her adult life as a med-school-reject-turned-food-critic. When...

Drawing on the mind-body techniques of somatic therapy, The Healing Sexual Trauma Guided Journal offers insightful writing prompts to help you explore your emotions, overcome internalized shame, and heal your traumatized nervous system.

Most people can remember what happened to them. Few can explain what those events formed inside them. The Shape of a Life is a bridge and field guide for anyone who wants to write their life story with truth, care, and meaning. It is for the reader who is tired of performance. It is for the person who has lived through hard seasons, carries scattered memories, and wants to turn those pieces into a readable pattern. This book does not ask you to expose everything. It teaches you the difference between private truth, family truth, and public truth, so you can tell the truth without harming ...

“In the fairy tales about father–daughter incest—‘The Girl Without Hands,’ ‘Thousand Furs,’ the original ‘Cinderella,’ ‘Donkey Skin,’ and the stories of Saint Dymphna, patron saint of incest survivors—the daughters are all as you would expect them to be: horrified by...

A delightful compendium of musings from the master of life writing, the much-loved Blake Morrison, for those who practise the art of memoir, and those who read it. 'Hallelujah! — now is the perfect time for Morrison’s book On Memoir' THE TIMES ON MEMOIR is a gloriously freewheeling...

One in six women is the victim of sexual assault. Using her own hard-won wisdom, author Jen Cross shows how to heal through journaling and personal writing. Writing Ourselves Whole is a collection of essays and creative writing encouragements for sexual trauma survivors who want to risk writing a different story. Each short chapter offers encouragement, experience, and exercises.

Life Story Blueprint is a practical guide for writing your life story with truth, clarity, and dignity. Many people carry powerful memories but do not know how to shape them into a readable narrative. Others begin writing and get stuck because the story feels too big, too painful, or too complicated. This book gives you a clean method to move from memory to manuscript, without turning your life into gossip, performance, or a public wound. Inside, you will learn how to: Choose a clear purpose and a central thread for your story Use timelines, life seasons, and turning points to create order ...

Jack’s Diary A novella by Damian Jay Clay “If I don’t write it, if I don’t say it, then it isn’t true.” Hidden behind an air vent, wrapped in plastic and shame, lies a notebook no one was ever meant to read. But Jack writes anyway. About his body, his silence, the bruises he’s told are love, and the God he’s told will never love him back. In the language of scripture, whispered desire, and unbearable confession, this raw, radiant diary traces one boy’s journey through religious guilt, abuse, awakening, and the impossible hope of being known. As Jack falls deeper into self-...

Sharonda Moore aka Shay has spent her whole life fighting. From foster homes, to heartbreak, multiple deaths around her and the streets that helped shaped her. Just when she finally starts rebuilding her future, everything shatters: a child she loves is in danger, a boy she once cared for is lost to his own darkness with no way to come out of it, and a new love that pulls her into a world far more violent than she ever imagined. As secrets surface and enemies close in, Shay must decide how far she’s willing to go and who she’s willing to become to protect the people she loves. Raw ...

Trauma and its effects can feel like a never-ending storm, and there's no safe harbor in sight from the thoughts and emotions that toss and turn so violently and unpredictably in your head. But healing is possible. Your brain can actually rewire these thoughts and emotions. And you can direct that powerful healing process through journaling.

Walking with Wodan is the unflinching autobiographical testament of Freya Aswynn, one of the most influential and controversial figures in modern Northern Tradition and runic spirituality. Part life-history, part initiatory record, this book traces a journey forged through extreme adversity, institutional neglect, occult awakening, and lifelong devotion to Wodan/Odin as living spiritual force. From a brutal childhood in post-war Europe and years spent in state care, through early encounters with magic, witchcraft, and esoteric orders, to her central role in the revival of Germanic paganism ...

Poetry is not a puzzle for experts. It is a human skill. If you can breathe, you already have the first instrument. Poems That Breathe is a practical field guide for readers and writers who want poems that feel alive on the tongue and honest on the page. It treats poetry as presence, not performance. You will learn how breath shapes line breaks, how silence gives meaning, and how to build poems that stay clear without becoming flat. This book trains you to write with grounded images, clean sound, and purpose that holds up even when no one is watching. It also helps you avoid the common ...

A neuroscientist explores how trauma impacts the brain, especially for women—and how we can learn to heal ourselves Everyone experiences trauma. Whether a specific harrowing event or a series of stressful moments that culminate over time, trauma can echo and etch itself into our brain as we...

Twelve powerful, deeply human stories capturing the heart, struggle, and resilience of Black life. Afro Bougie Blues invites readers into intimate, unfiltered moments where ordinary men and women confront heartbreak, trauma, identity, generational wounds, and the decisions that shape their destinies. Meet Alexis, who longs for motherhood but must wrestle with a painful past before embracing her future. Walk with Rodney, a Gulf War veteran trying to silence memories that refuse to release him. Witness BeBe transform her life and her sense of worth, one courageous step at a time. Listen as ...

Journaling for Trauma Recovery is your guide to using expressive writing as a tool for emotional healing and mental health improvement. This transformative book offers a compassionate roadmap to help you process trauma, foster self-reflection, and build resilience through the power of journaling. Journaling is more than a creative outlet—it is a proven method for trauma recovery and personal growth. By engaging in self-reflective writing, you can confront and process difficult emotions, unlocking the potential for healing from trauma.

Have you suffered a traumatic event that triggered what seems to be an endless period of grieving? Do have difficulty reaching the final stages of acceptance and closure? Do you wonder when will the emotional pain and suffering finally dissipate and go away? Although author Andy Stankowski managed to overcome most of the challenges that he encountered in his life, he endured two episodes of emotional trauma that he was unable to get over and leave behind. The initial feelings of heartache, failure, and guilt resulted in a lingering depression that never let up. For years Stankowski’s mind...

Metamorphosis is the true tale of how a bitter, traumatized woman transformed herself and her life to fulfill all her wildest dreams. No matter how you slice it, everyone has had adverse experiences in life, experiences they wish they could take back and do differently or even banish altogether. After a duo of traumatic events at age twenty-nine, combined with a chip on my shoulder from growing up as a black child in a small, very white town, I found myself years later living in the past and unable to move forward. Miserable and hating how my life was playing out at age thirty-four, I made ...