This is the name of the course (also a book I wrote) that I’m teaching in The Writers’ Program  at UCLA Extension starting in two weeks. I’ve taught a course called Writing the Healing Story for years and it suddenly dawned on me that it sounded awfully pretentious. Both courses are actually the same – but writing out the storm sounds a little more down to earth. It’s about writing through difficult times, whether it’s the big stuff like divorce or death or cancer, or the little stuff that feels very, very big when you’re going through it: boyfriend/girlfriend breakups, moving, kids leaving for college, family dramas, job problems, etc. We’ll do writing exercises to help dig into your own particular storm and read some great memoirs and essays to find mentors on the page. Two spaces in the class are left if you’d like to come join us.

Think about your own storms. Are you writing about them? No one wants to read how happy and perfect your life is. We all want to know what other people are going through and how they’ve endured their storms. And isn’t this why we read? To know we’re not alone.