“I want to write my memoir, but I don’t know what to write about.”

When a new memoirist is overwhelmed, it’s easy to ignore the blank page and turn on the TV. But there’s something you want to say and you have a hunch the best way to do it is by writing a book. Now let’s discover what you want to write about.

"I don't believe you,"  said my new student. "There's no way writing a memoir can change your life."

I've encountered many skeptics at the start of my writing classes. They don't believe writing will change their lives, but here's the truth -- it does. Writing changes every student's life and it will change yours. For the better. Here's how....

Cheryl Strayed’s book, ‘Wild,’ is about bearing the unbearable while hiking the Pacific Coast Trail. But the five females I met tonight at Clearhart Place, the local battered women’s shelter, have Cheryl’s thousand-mile journey beat. I can’t tell you about their struggles, but we met up tonight for a 15-minute timed writing.