David Kessler and Andrea Cagan
With Special Guests
Writing Through Loss and Trauma
A Creative Journey Toward Peace and Hope
Your Voice Matters and Your Story Is Important
Tap into the transformational power of writing to discover and create meaning, help others, and own the power of your story
Starting Soon!
January 23 - February 20
Live Workshops take place on Tuesdays at 12 pm PT/ 3 pm ET (90 minutes)
All sessions will be recorded
There's a Reason You're Here...
Maybe something inside of you has been whispering that it's time to write your story.
Perhaps you've been journaling or jotting down ideas or some part of you knows that your experience can inspire and help others. Or maybe you have a friend or loved one who is encouraging you to share your unique story. Or maybe you've been avoiding it, hesitating to take pen to paper, worried that the trauma will all come rushing back. But still, something is telling you that it's important.
Maybe you want to witness and honor your own loss through writing. Or perhaps you have been thinking of sharing the legacy of your loved one. You might be feeling a natural mix of creative possibility and trepidation.
That inner voice is right. Your story is important!
Research shows that writing about loss and trauma can be healing for the spirit and body. We've all experienced that deep connection and gratitude when someone bravely reveals their truth in an essay, book, article, blog post or a poem.
We have all experienced that familiar conflict first hand, each time we begin a new project. Those first steps are scary but the writing journey becomes deeply meaningful and healing as it reveals love, strength, and glimmers of beauty and hope in our most desolate moments.
Your story is important, and we want to encourage you to write it. Join us in this 5-week online workshop: Writing Through Loss and Trauma, where you will learn step-by-step how to write the story your inner voice is telling you to share.
What's Included in the Workshop?
Every element of the 5-Week workshop is designed to support and guide you through the writing process and give you the tools to bring your story to life.
- Each module is broken down into brief, actionable videos so you can immediately implement each lesson.
- Designed for any level of writer whether you're just starting or you've always written.
- Grief support blended with writing coaching gives you the tools to tell even the most difficult story with more peace and less pain.
- Each week you'll get access to short, actionable teaching videos as well as a LIVE Workshop session with David and Andrea.
- Powerful writing exercises to spark ideas and get you started.
- 24/7 Access from your smartphone, tablet, or computer on the private and easy-to-access site.
- Built-in support. Share your work, explore your voice, ask questions, and connect with other writers in the private community.
- Live Q&A, support, and teaching. Each week, David & Andrea will be there for encouragement and clarity.
- Tools and tips to share your work and find the right audience to reach your goals.
- Lifetime access to the teaching and the Writer's Community so you can revisit any time.
- BONUS Session with literary agent Margaret Riley King to help navigate the publishing world.
- BONUS session with author Jayson Greene to discuss navigating grief and writing about loss and trauma.
- Finally! An online workshop specifically and carefully designed for writing about trauma and loss.
5-Week Online Writing Workshop
Write Your Story and Remember With More Love Than Pain
Trust that there is a reason you feel drawn to explore this challenging topic and that something meaningful will come out of your bravery. In the first week of our journey, we will support you as we consider choices in writing, create nurturing rituals, and combat the inner critic that keeps you stuck on the surface of your writing or worse, keeps you from picking up the pen at all!
We'll talk about ways to balance grief and the writing to get to the heart of your story.
You'll be invited to introduce yourself and to begin to get to know the other writers.
In this week's lessons, we'll talk about the tricks that memory can play as you find ways to own and share your truth. We'll discuss the starting point of your work as well as how to create your own writing flow. You will learn self-care strategies to handle the challenges of grief.
If you would like to, you can always share your work in the writer's community. Or just pop in to ask a question, offer some support, or run an idea by the other writers.
When writing about loss and trauma, you may find a moment when everything changed forever. This week, we’ll go into that difficult place using the support we have built in the prior modules.
You will learn gentle ways to bring yourself back to the present moment after each writing session. We'll also talk about the importance of including meaningful details as well as which to omit that bring your story to life.
Look for some wonderful and often healing revelations this week as you'll learn ways to remember elements of your story that you may have forgotten and weave them into your narrative to create balance and add a bit of light.
Writing from loss often reveals surprises. In this week's lessons, we will talk about making peace with the positive as well as painful memories and insights that may reveal themselves and how to use them to serve your story.
Now that you have some drafts and writing to look back on, we'll discuss clarity and choices in writing. And we'll get into the power of editing to sculpt your story in order to reveal its beauty.
This week, we’ll talk about the next steps for your story, including where to go next, how to keep writing, and how and when to share your work.
You may be writing for personal reasons, to share your story with friends and families. You may want to publish a book – or anything in between.
You're always welcome to share your drafts in the Writer's Community. We are all here to support each other.
We want to be there to support you every step of the way. We'll be getting together on Tuesdays from January 23 through February 20 at 12 pm PT/ 3 pm ET. Our meetings will be 90 minutes.
We'll start with David and Andrea sharing thoughts and reflections on this week's teachings and then will go into some writing tips and exercises. You'll get a chance to share your work and connect with other writers in smaller breakout rooms.
This will be an extremely supportive environment. Share as much or as little as you wish.
There will also be time for a Q&A with Andrea and David.
All sessions will be recorded - we would love to have you join us live and we will be uploading a recording of the workshop if it doesn't align with your schedule.
Margaret Riley King is a renowned literary agent and expert on the workings of the publishing world. In this interview, Margaret will share tips for the next steps in bringing your work out into the world.
There will also be time for questions and answers. This session will be recorded so if you can't join us live, you will be able to watch the replay.
Margaret Riley King will be joining us on Thursday, February 15th, 12 pm ET / 3 pm ET
Author, Jayson Greene will be joining us to share his experience writing, publishing, and promoting a book about grief, loss, and trauma.
His memoir, Once More We Saw Stars, deals with the death of his 2-year-old daughter.
Jayson will discuss his tips for writing and publishing his memoir and the intersection of grief and the work and craft of writing.
There will also be a questions and answers period. This bonus session will be recorded so if you can't join us live, you can watch the replay in your training platform.
Jayson Greene will be joining us on Thursday, February 8th, 12 pm ET/ 3 pm ET
We're All in This Together
We will be going through the lessons together so we can connect and support each other along the way.
You will also be invited to share your goals, ideas, challenges, triumphs, and work in the private writer's community.
This is going to be an amazing and supportive group and we would love to have you join us.
Starting Soon!
January 23 - February 20
Live Workshops are on Tuesdays at 12 pm PT/ 3 pm ET (90 minutes).
All sessions will be recorded and available as replays if you can't join us live.
Get all the Details
Is the Workshop Right for Me?
Bring Your Story to Life
If you have an inkling that you may have a story to tell or if you think it might be healing to write about the losses, traumas, and challenges that you have faced, now is the time to begin.
You don't have to be an experienced writer. You don't need to have aced your English classes or have perfect grammar. But you do need to be open and willing to come as you are now as we gently and gradually encourage you to write what is in your heart.
We each have a powerful and unique story to tell. We would like to encourage you to write yours now.
"I live in a country where for most people grief is a private thing and they believe they should suffer alone. So I appreciate the lessons you share. Through them I am also able to help others. "
Thelma
"I knew I had a story to tell, but without the support of Andrea and David I never would have had the courage. Thank you for giving me the tools that I needed to cope with the challenges and write through them. The result is life-changing. "
Lynne
"David helped me understand I didn't need to get stuck and encouraged me and taught me how to be with my grief and embrace it."
Celia
"For me, the biggest benefit of this group has been the connections with others who have experienced a similar loss, feeling heard/understood, knowing it is a safe haven to express yourself."
Paulette
"David is an amazing guide through all of this. he speaks with such compassion and so many times it felt like he was speaking directly to me. I would definitely recommend this program to anyone that has suffered a loss."
Christine
"Being able to listen and re-listen, at any hour of the day or night is a wonderful wonderful tool. Grief can overwhelm you at any time. And having them to watch over and over help so very much."
Gretchen
Meet Your Teachers
David Kessler & Andrea Cagan
David Kessler, a renowned grief expert, has helped people all around the world navigate the difficult terrain of grief and remember with more love than pain. He is the author of five best-selling books (with another on the way).
Andrea Cagan is a sought-after writing coach, editor, ghostwriter, and author. She has helped her celebrity clients and devoted students craft and has published dozens of books (including many best-sellers). Andrea shares her own story in her memoir.
Join the Workshop
Bonus Guest Speaker
Jayson Greene
Jayson Greene is the author of the memoir Once More We Saw Stars, about the death of his two-year-old daughter, which was a New York Times Editor’s Pick and chosen as a Best Book of the Year by Time Magazine, Glamour, Library Journal, Amazon Books, Good Housekeeping, and Apple Books. His debut novel, UnWorld, comes out on Knopf in 2025. He was formerly senior editor of the online magazine Pitchfork.
Bonus Guest Speaker
Margaret Riley King
Margaret Riley King is a partner and literary agent in William Morris Entertainment’s global book division representing a roster of bestselling and award-winning authors in all areas of fiction and nonfiction. Her clients include Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, Sue Monk Kidd, Austin Channing Brown, Chloe Benjamin, Dani Shapiro, Jeannette Walls, Sarah Pekkanen and Greer Hendricks, Jen Hatmaker, David Kessler, Ann Leary, Meg Waite Clayton, Jenna Kutcher, Nadia Bolz Weber, and Valarie Kaur, among others. She works across all areas of the company to secure publishing opportunities for WME clients in sports, talent, and lifestyle, including deals for LeBron James, Halle Berry, Miranda Lambert, Lizzo, Kristin Cavallari, Michael Symon, Jessie James Decker, and others. She splits her time between her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee, and New York City.
100% Risk- Free Guarantee
We believe strongly in this program and the power of writing through loss and trauma. If you give this a try and you're not satisfied, simply let us know within 14-days and we'll issue you a full refund.
