If you’re new here, Story Work is the name of my current book-in-progress. It describes a process of reflection, reclaiming, and reimagining the stories of our lives. It involves looking at your life experiences as creative material that you have the power to shape.
The weekly Story Work topics cover universal life themes with references from literature, philosophy, science, and spirituality; offering perspectives that spark ideas for personal growth and creative expression.
Paid subscribers receive Story Work exercises every Sunday night at 8 pm et. Read on for a few updates and a preview of the weekly exercise.
Book Giveaway
On Wednesday, March 20 at 5 pm et, I’ll be joined by Lyvonne Briggs, award-winning body- and sex-positive womanist preacher, speaker, coach, and author of Sensual Faith: The Art of Coming Home to Your Body to join me in discussion with the Inner Story Writing Circle. Lyvonne has a revolutionary message for black women/femmes and those who support them to discover a healthier approach to spirituality and sexuality that centers pleasure rather than shame. We’ll be discussing the book, as well as Lyvonne’s creative process and publishing journey.
How to attend this Author Visit:
Join the Inner Story Writing Circle. If you’d like to attend this session and join our all-access writing group to support your story work & creative development, you can learn more about the Inner Story Writing Circle here.
Purchase a Copy. You can also attend the session by purchasing a copy of Sensual Faith and sending me proof of purchase. Proof of purchase can be a photo of you with the book, a picture of your receipt, etc.
Enter the Giveaway. Everyone who comments on this or any post that goes up between today and Monday, March 18 will be entered to win a copy of Sensual Faith and access to our visit with Lyvonne on March 20 at 5 pm et.
A Delight a Day
Over the next few weeks, we’ll use the five senses to practice mindful writing, a creative practice that nurtures attention and well-being. When it comes to storytelling, by focusing on the five senses, we also bring our words to life in vivid ways for ourselves and our readers.
This week let’s partner the concept of gratitude journaling with the art of using sensory language to capture scenes and moments that move us and that we’re grateful for. One of my favorite examples of this is a collection of short essays by Ross Gay called The Book of Delights.
You can read a chapter from the book, “Loitering is Delightful”, here in The Paris Review.
The book came from an idea that came to him to write a delight a day for a year. Here’s what he discovered: