The Story You Need to Tell: Writing to Heal from Trauma, Illness, or Loss

by Sandra Marinella, Christina Baldwin (Foreword)

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. Each of the techniques, prompts, and exercises she presents helps us “to unravel the knot inside and to make sense of loss.”

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Self Help, Mental Health, Psychology, Personal Development, Memoir

328 pages, Paperback

First published April 14, 2017

About the author

I am the author of The Story You Need to Tell. I am committed to helping others write and live their best possible story.

Reviews

[Lynne Hartke · Rating 5 out of 5]

After I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I experienced the loss of words to my personal story, so I was intrigued to pick up the book "The Story You Need to Tell: Writing to Heal from Trauma, Illness, or Loss" by Sandra Marinella. Using detailed research from interviews with cancer patients and veterans, along with personal stories of her own, Sandra shows again and again the healing power that can be found in gathering the scrambled sentences of a life and putting them down on paper as a step toward healing from trauma, loss or a difficult diagnosis.

Sandra found that “81% of us believe we have a book inside us. A story to tell.” With insightful writing prompts at the end of each chapter, Marinella gives helpful tips for every reader to become a writer of their own powerful story and to begin the healing process.

As a person who is still taking back the words to my story, I highly recommend this book.

[Marybeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

The compelling stories from many suffering from loss, illness, and trauma are woven beautifully together with such comprehensive research and Marinella's own story of healing that you can't help but be inspired to tell your own story. Whether it's coping with cancer, postpartum depression, post traumatic stress disorder, the loss of a loved one, or the pain everyone feels at some point in life, the detailed prompts at the end of each chapter will get you started writing the story you need to tell to begin your journey of discovery, insight, and healing. So much to learn from this read!

[Mary Kenyon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was wonderful. You can read a full review at https://maryandmebook.wordpress.com/2...

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually had to read this book twice before commenting. This is a well written story about Sandra's journey through healing from an illness, and a book about how story can heal, no matter what the trauma. The exercises and questions posed at the end of each chapter are thought provoking and powerful, as are the questions posed throughout the narrative. Though the book is very deep and moving it is an easy read and not one to be afraid of, as I've felt that way about other self help books in the past.
Sandra is a wonderful story teller, unfolding her own story with mystery, suspense and grace. She draws out the folks she interviews for the book, and helps them tell their own story in their words, holding space for them to do so.
If you feel that sometimes the words just won't come out of your throat, you don't know what your voice sounds like, or you think that no one will care about your story anyways, this book is for you. Go ahead, uncover your voice, sing your story loud and clear. Sandra will help you find your way.

[Aihtnyc · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Story You Need To Tell has significantly changed my approach to my past. It’s changed the way I process grief and loss. It’s helped me understand my trauma.
I picked up this book after hearing an interview with Sandra Marinella. She stated her case for using writing to heal. Little did I know that I would be motivated to put pen to paper for months on end. Here I am, having used my journal to wrestle with the past, to tame it. I feel tremendously empowered to control the narrative of my life.
The book gives detailed descriptions of ways to exercise you ability to tell your story. I’ve read through the book twice and underlined passages. I’m sure I’ll come back to it time after time. Can’t recommend this book highly enough.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful gift this book is. I’ve always loved to write, up until the past 7 or so years. The thought of even trying to put into words the things I was going through in life was overwhelming. Sandra artfully and skillfully takes you on a journey of her own, as well as many others, experiences. The grit, courage, and perseverance displayed in the stories were touching and inspiring. The writing prompts at the end of each chapter encourage you, in a well guided way, to dig in and begin redefining your own story. I am truly amazed at how easily the words started appearing in my own journal. I feel empowered to take control of what I want my story to be. Excellent book!

[Lori Johnstone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really well written, and researched, and wonderful prompts to help write that story! I also appreciated the author’s story. Thank you for this treasure!

[Tristy at New World Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Endorsements:
“Sandra Marinella uses her own story as the inspiration for others who face insurmountable odds to rise up to their challenges, assess them, and conquer them. Thoughtfully written, deeply encouraging, and profoundly personal.”
— Laurie Notaro, New York Times–bestselling author of The Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club: True Tales from a Magnificent and Clumsy Life and Autobiography of a Fat Bride: True Tales of a Pretend Adulthood

“Sandra Marinella’s passion and enthusiasm for writing shine throughout this poignant and insightful book. With the skills and experience of a seasoned writing teacher, she shares with us the tools to tell the stories we need to tell and reminds us of the healing power of writing.”
— Michael Ferguson, postdoctoral fellow, cognitive neuroscience, Cornell University

“Both Sandra Marinella’s writing and her workshops are filled with inspiration and love. Her words truly touch her audience.”
— Dale Yavitt, RRT, MPH, the Body, Mind, and Spirit Program Coordinator, Piper Cancer Center, Scottsdale, Arizona

“In The Story You Need to Tell, Sandra Marinella inspires the vulnerable in all of us to be the strength in each of us. She has a unique form, transforming a sentiment of safety and empowerment through writing into healing. Her own story highlights the power of the written word and provides a guide to healing through writing. Her book and her work are transformational.”
— Courtney Klein, cofounder and CEO of SEED SPOT

“Sandra Marinella’s The Story You Need to Tell is a collection of illuminating stories that shows us the power of writing to transform our lives.”
— Ellen Bass, poet and bestselling author of The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, Beginning to Heal, Like a Beggar, Mules of Love, The Human Line, and Free Your Mind

“Marinella’s practical direction and inspiring narrative invite readers to become writers. ‘Our stories create us,’ she writes. ‘And our writing can recreate us.’ The Story You Need to Tell is an important and beautiful book that I cannot wait to share with my students and others whose stories are aching to be told.”
— Judy Reeves, author of A Writer's Book of Days: A Spirited Companion and Lively Muse for the Writing Life and Wild Women, Wild Voices: Writing from Your Authentic Wildness

“In The Story You Need to Tell, Sandra Marinella does just that — recounting her own personal and professional experiences with skill, wit, and bravery. She reaches out and tells the stories of others, too, weaving a strong safety net for any of us who need a nudge toward paper and pen. This book is a testament to the author’s courage, strength, and heart and a love letter to the power of words.”
— Amy Silverman, author of My Heart Can't Even Believe It: A Story of Science, Love, and Down Syndrome

“Using her work with cancer patients and veterans, as well as her own experience, Sandra Marinella guides you through the dark and lonely times of illness, trauma, and loss to the healing power of writing. With writing prompts designed to lead you deeper into self-reflection, she shows how you can discover your own strength through writing the story you need to tell. And — most important of all — she offers the empowering realization that you can choose how you tell the story and what it means.”
— Barbara Abercrombie, author of A Year of Writing Dangerously: 365 Days of Inspiration and Encouragement and Courage and Craft: Writing Your Life into Story

“Sandra Marinella brings keen research skills, a brilliant storytelling voice, and a distinguished teaching career to this cohesive guide for writing the unspeakable. Her vivid prose twines her own powerful cancer story with dozens of other courageous voices, each writing the road from devastation to reclamation. User-friendly writing prompts and affecting case studies offer accessible portals for the safe expression of stories of woundedness and ultimate triumph.”
— Kathleen Adams, LPC, director of the Center for Journal Therapy, author of Journal to the Self: Twenty-Two Paths to Personal Growth - Open the Door to Self-Understanding by Writing, Reading, and Creating a Journal of Your Life, and coauthor (with Deborah Ross) of Your Brain on Ink: A Workbook on Neuroplasticity and the Journal Ladder

“The Story You Need to Tell inspires, uplifts, and teaches people who need to address the power of their memories and their stories how to stand in their truth and how to find words to express what is often inexpressible. Words heal, and Sandra Marinella will help you find yours.”
— Linda Joy Myers, president of the National Association of Memoir Writers and author of The Power of Memoir: How to Write Your Healing Story and Don't Call Me Mother: A Daughter's Journey from Abandonment to Forgiveness

“Sandra Marinella has empowered us to take charge of our life story and to turn challenges into meaning and purpose. Telling our stories not only helps us heal from trauma but allows us to craft a beautiful life out of the ashes.”
— Dr. Norma Bowe, professor at Kean University, author of Perspectives on Community Mental Health, and subject of The Death Class: A True Story about Life

[Story Circle Book Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sandra Marinella's warmth and understanding come through on every page of her book, The Story You Need to Tell. She has taught in high schools, and presented workshops to veterans, educators, and cancer patients and shares the stories that many needed to tell.

I was interested to see in Marinella's acknowledgments that writing group members insisted she integrate her personal stories into the book. She says she struggled with the challenge but is thankful to them "for seeing that I had to walk through these pages too." Marinella's personal story, woven throughout the book, is a very important aspect of it.

Christina Baldwin has been inspiration and support to Marinella who found that One to One, Baldwin's first book on journaling, "carried the magic of personal writing into my life and into the lives of my students." Baldwin wrote the foreword to the book and says: "The power is in you to shape how you will live with whatever happens. The power is in the stories you tell to encourage you to take the next risk, to make the next move, to help saying yes to life."

When diagnosed with breast cancer, Marinella decided to "rewrite" her life and left full-time work to "remake" her life. She did lots of meditating, talking to friends, praying, and writing in her bright red I HAVE CANCER journal.

In a chapter entitled, "Facing Trauma: When There Are No Words," she acknowledges that trauma and grief can silence us. In one of her high school classes, the students upon hearing of the violent death of a classmate embraced silence. When the time feels right, people can begin to "unravel the knot inside and to make sense of our loss, not bury it within," Marinella says.

She refers to the groundbreaking work of James W. Pennebaker who tested the power of "expressive" writing. For those in his studies who were writing about difficult experiences, there were many physical and psychological benefits.

In "Breaking the Silence," Marinella says: "Students taught me the power of writing, but working with veterans at the VA hospital helped me see the patterns in how we used writing to heal." The steps in the pattern that usually surface, she says, are: "Experience your pain and grief; break your silence and find your voice; accept and piece together a difficult or broken story; find meaning or make sense of this event or story; rewrite your story and find ways to reconnect with your well-being."

After her cancer and after having a boss who suffered from mental illness, Marinella "felt called to help underserved populations to write and sort through their pain and losses. Working with veterans suffering from PTSD, I was uncovering the same needs in them that I had discovered in my students, stories similar to our stories," she says.

Each chapter is an invitation to know more about Marinella and the people she has worked with. The stories are heart wrenching and heartwarming especially as people find a way forward through writing. At the end of every chapter are writing prompts and suggestions for readers to write their own stories from life.

In the final chapter, "The Burst of Creativity," Marinella says she "realized that when the people I interviewed used writing to help them make sense of a difficult story, be it sexual abuse, war trauma, cancer, or grief, they often rediscovered themselves—and their creativity."

Out of Marinella's own pain came this book and her drive to work with others. We can be grateful for the way she has listened, what she's learned, and how she shares it in her book. May readers realize their own creativity and live more fully through the power of writing their personal story.

by Mary Ann Moore
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

[L.S. Wagen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sandra Marinella, a professional English educator, has written a book that is half English writing manual, and half narrative writing therapy, which culminates in a how-to book on “Writing to Heal from Trauma, Illness, or Loss.”

A retired high school/college writing, and college preparatory reading instructor, she found herself facing a cancer diagnosis. As she chronicled her own spiritual journey in her private journal, she realized that an inner healing had taken place. She began to wonder if this might be true for others, as she had watched some of her troubled students over the years, also experience emotional, and spiritual healing from the personal English essays that she had assigned for her classes. Mrs. Marinella even noticed healing happening in her parent’s use of his own personal journal during his own personal illness.

She decided to research the subject, and discovered that narrative counseling, reframing your own personal narrative with the help of a counselor, was an established and accepted method of psychological counseling. In The Story You Need to Tell she cites research psychologist, James W Pennebaker, a pioneer of writing therapy, on the importance of breaking the silence through narrative.

She also wondered if this might be true of the literary side as well. Her educational background which enabled her to study the literary classics confirmed this, as most of the best written classical literary works were born out of the authors’ own personal struggles. And writing for publication not only capitulated the author into success, but also acted as a catharsis for the writer…“The Story You Need to Tell”

This was true of Elie Weisel, who in 1960, published his autobiographical memoir "Night", about the time that he spent in WWII concentration camps, which is still required reading in high school to this day. According to Mrs. Marinella, this was the story that he needed to tell, and we all needed to hear.

But not all the participants in her writing workshops for veterans and cancer patients need or want to write for publication, so in her book The Story You Need to Tell, Sandra Marinella concentrates on private journaling. The six parts of her book combine elements highlighting this blend of private journaling, combining psychological healing, and narrative (story) elements. These six parts include Writing: Not Drowning, Writing Down the Self, Finding Meaning through Story, Rewriting our Shattered Stories, Writing to Heal, and Writing to Transform.

She dedicates her book in part to “writers and students who inspire me.” I hope, now a published author, and writer myself, that I am one of those inspirational students of whom she speaks. A student, in her classroom, Room 221, who was inspired by both an exceptional teacher, who loves stories and literature, and by a moving and wonderful writer, who wants to bring healing, and hope through her personal gifts of research, teaching, and writing.

[Sean Layton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was interested to read The Story You Need to Tell because my family has had its fair share of tragic incidents, and for awhile I was trapped in that deep valley known as depression that has high sides and no visible way out. I discovered that writing helped me and wish this book had been available.

We all experience tragedy at some point in our lives and many of us get stuck, letting the pain of these events reverberate until we hear nothing else. Too often, we can’t escape our traumatic past and let it short-circuit the present and impinge on the future. This book came about because Sandra Marinella was confronted with her own crisis when diagnosed with breast cancer, a diagnosis that threatened to drown her in panic and despair. She fell back on the journal writing that has sustained her since her youth as a means of not only quieting the demons of her crisis but helping her reach a new understanding of her struggle with cancer. Using her writing as a tool to heal herself emotionally and mentally, she began seeing the possible wider benefits for others who were hurting.

This book is a gift to anyone who faces trying times and needs to learn a constructive method to deal with the thoughts that assail them, to let them reframe their lives. Reading this book, you’ll discover the healing power of words through the journeys of wounded vets, rape survivors, cancer patients, and those who’ve lost loved ones. Marinella deftly makes a compelling argument for the therapeutic efficacy of writing and gives those who are willing to try it the tools to explore their pain in a constructive manner. Even if writing isn't your forte, you’ll find copious writing prompts scattered throughout to help spur your writing efforts on your road to healing.

I highly recommend this book.

[Rel Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read, empowering message of self-knowledge “critical if we want greater understanding in our search for well-being.”

I was eager to read this book, but I found even more healing than I anticipated. My copy is full of highlights, notes and moments of inspiration—a mini-journal of my healing experience throughout the course of this book—because this is one of the most honest “self-help” books I’ve ever read. I’ve already recommended it to several friends and organizations.

The only downside: I felt like a good portion of the book focused on convincing us of the benefits of writing, but for readers who may not fully understand the importance of writing, the information in this book is crucial!

We are all composed of stories. We all experience trauma in one form or another. This book is a balanced toolbox of emotion and logic, science and experience—all the tools (and specific writing prompts) necessary to explore the power of writing to heal, to find our way through the challenges of life, to solve problems, and ultimately, to change.

[Blue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pick up A Pen....

Or whatever other tool YOU want to use & put yourself on the page, "real" or "virtual." It's gonna hurt. Life does. Do it anyway, with this book at your side & the quality of your life WILL improve. Which means the whole world will, too.
We need that now. More than ever.

[Sofia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really interesting. When I was training to become a tutor at the writing center, me and my project partner wrote a paper about the power of gratitude writing, and some of the research we'd found for that project was cited here! Aside from that, Marinella's writing style is really engaging and I learned a lot about the power not only of gratitude writing, but of being aware of the way our minds create cohesive narratives of our lives and actively working to change the narratives to find and create meaning for ourselves, and to move on from events that hold us hostage. 5/5, highly recommend.

[Darcy Schock · Rating 4 out of 5]

We all have stories to tell. In fact our life is a story and each day we share with others bits of that story. But there are some stories that are just hard. We shove them away in a dark closet and hide them or try to hide from them. But that doesn’t erase the pain.

No we need to tell our stories and revise them so we can be free from the baggage the pain holds.

The Story You Need to Tell not only is informative, it is easy to read and enjoyable. You don’t have to be an author to write the story you need to tell to heal. You simply need to be willing to explore it in words on paper or with other humans.

This book is your starting point. We can’t fully heal from hurt if we aren’t willing to bring it to light and speak about it.

Telling our story in written form or verbally holds so much power. Read this book to figure out where to start.

[Pam Daghlian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had this thought over and over as I read The Story You Need to Tell: how lucky Sandra's students are to have had her in their lives, drawing out their stories. Her warmth as a writing teacher comes through every page. She makes the case, through her own story, and those of her students for how transformative writing our stories can be. While the title of this book may give you the impression that it'll be heavy and dark -- it's just the opposite. Bright and light and hopeful. Each chapter ends with a few writing prompts. I was inspired as both a coach and a writer to bring her suggestions into my work.

[Archie · Rating 5 out of 5]

From start to finish this book has given the inspiration and motivation to write. If a reader made it through the first two chapters and didn't pick up a pen I'd be shocked. The writing prompts themselves were very lovely in their suggestion and placement. This is a book I will keep with me forever. I can see needing it for the highs in life and especially the lows; to remind myself I can push on through with my writing and to live beyond just surviving with writing. This will be a book that I will always recommend to others whether or not they know they need it.

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was hoping this would be a bit more meaty for its title, but since I’m already an expressive writer and have been my whole life, there wasn’t anything new for me here. Probably great for new writers or those who have somehow avoided it their whole lives, but not so much for pros.

[David Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are dozens upon dozens of books on available on Amazon and in book stores regarding expressive writing, journaling, writing for wellness, mindfulness, and so on. Many say virtually the same things. They contain lists of why journaling or expressive writing is cathartic or therapeutic. Some even provide lists of subjects about which to write, while others provide a “structured” approach. However, finding one in which the author established the concepts based on hundreds of legitimate research studies addressing healing and promoting a healthy brain activity is another matter.

As a writer, writing about chronic pain (which affects all biopsychosocial domains of life), I found this book a wealth of life-changing ideas and concepts, all of which are straightforward yet inspirational. Marinella shares real-life stories and examples that precisely illustrate the concepts she presents. Her style of writing is very readable and digestible. These two characteristic are essential considering the subject.

The subtitle reads, “Writing to Heal From Trauma, Illness or Loss.” However, if anyone desires to share their story or create a legacy work to share for future generations, they too will realize great benefit. You need not be in the throes of life challenges to enjoy this work.

Last, if any military leaders or government officials in state or federal leadership positions read this, please heed my next remarks. We lose 20 American soldiers per day to their own hand after being discharged from their service to our nation. Providing this work and encouragement to them would likely reduce that number to near zero. “The Story You Need To Tell” should be required reading for anyone who serves in a forward area at war or law enforcement, and definitely readily available in every VA hospital.

If I had to describe “The Story You Need to Tell” in one word, that word would be TRANSFORMATIVE.

[Ilze · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of the research Sandra Marinella talks about in this book, I've read before: From James Pennebaker to Julia Cameron and others. That doesn't detract from the importance this book offers in terms of the act of writing. It adds to it in a meaningful way because she relates it to so many things that make sense.
I feel guilty that I've taken so long to complete it ... simultaneously I'm aware of the reasons for it. Avoidance.
It's easy to read how other people write about their trauma and find healing there. It's hard applying it to yourself. I'd happily write about the things that trouble me if I didn't fear that someone close to me might read it and be hurt by it (whatever I end up writing - you don't ever know what kind of effect your writing will have).
Working through something that perplexes you takes more than just writing about it. If I were to tell you the blow-by-blow account of my divorce, I could bore you to tears because I need to repeat it so many times to actually believe it myself; believe that these things actually happened. Other than writing, you still have to live your (new) reality and all that comes with it. You need to be able to show yourself that you're coping.
Many a day I don't think I am.
Yet I've gotten through it.
I've also completed this book, though I thought I never would because there are so many things to get to as a single mother.

This book has encouraged me to write more and her writing prompts are thought-provoking and useful.

[John Woodcox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very beautifully written I will recommend this book to anyone who wants to write a memoir.

[Hazel Rainfall · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really enlightening and a fun easy read. The part that took the longest was doing the writing prompts thoughtfully. I enjoyed the learning prompts and the opportunity to delve deeper into my self and gain more insight into my thought processes.

[Zhelana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I'm not really sure what I thought of this book. Pieces of it were alright, but I don't think I actually processed any trauma with it. Instead it dragged stuff up and I wrote about it, but I don't think I healed any of it. She kept asking me to find meaning in various traumatic experiences and honestly, I think there are just things with no meaning at all. Why did my husband die at 42? Because the universe is cruel and random. Because medical professionals wouldn't listen to him. Because he was stubborn. But there is no big "meaning" behind this. No real lessons to be learned. And trying to redefine his story so that there is a good reason for him to be gone doesn't make any sense to me. Maybe people who can make up a reason for bad things to happen to them are happier than those who don't, but even the examples she gave are ridiculous (someone has breast cancer because she got hit in the chest with a frisbee as a kid!) and basically... I am not impressed with this book.

[Amber M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Through poems, meaningful well-chosen quotes, writing exercises, and narrative, Sandra Marinella not only gave me a place to start writing, but more importantly she gave me permission to start my healing process.

“The Story You Need to Tell”, was the acknowledgement and validation I have longed for since early childhood. After being forced into a career change with the birth of my first child, I was feeling lost and unfulfilled. I had survived trauma after trauma, as well as, having experienced unbelievable adventures, but the stories were trapped deep within my fear.

My copy of “The Story You Need to Tell” is dog-eared, passages are highlighted, exercises are starred, and it is full of bookmarks.

This is a must read for anyone who has experienced trauma, illness, or is grieving.

[Serena · Rating 5 out of 5]

“When we are caught up in our painful memories and our trauma we expend energy on those painful emotions, making it hard to experience love, meaning, and creativity."

This is a wonderful quote from the author as she explains why it is so healing to write about your trauma. It's a way to heal from our past, make sense of our experiences, organize our thoughts and give meaning to circumstances.

The author gives multiple examples of people and she knows firsthand either from points in her life or from her own writing class who have healed in various ways simply by writing about their trauma.

I found her technique especially interesting where she talks about writing about a traumatic experience but from a different point of view. She gives the example of somebody who lost a mentally ill sister in a car crash. Rather than mourning the loss of the sister, the brother writes an alternate reality about what his sister became, what she wanted from life and how he was able to help her. I found this especially refreshing and a very unique way to heal from a traumatic loss.

Many people, myself included, are often accused of being narcissistic in writing about ourselves and our lives, or accused of not healing enough because we feel the need to write about our stories. Well guess what, it is healing to write about your experiences and stories. Of course not everyone sees it this way, but for those who do, writing is a wonderful outlet to express your emotions, make sense of your experiences and gives you the ability to see things from other people's point of view.

Highly recommend this book for anyone wanting more information on writing about traumatic events in their own life.

[K Sheffield · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book came into my life at just the right time, but honestly I think that whenever it comes into anyone's life would be just the right time. Anyone's life, that is, that contains in its past trauma, illness, grief, sadness or guilt. Anyone's life that feels stuck, incomplete, or less than they hoped it would be. Anyone's life that holds in its center the possibility of a better future, more fully alive. In short, anyone's life.

How does Sandra Marinella's book The Story You Need to Tell manage to be just what anyone needs? By being the product of an exceptionally honest and perceptive author's life, career and research.

This book impressed me in many ways. First, it is an honest and detailed memoir of Sandra Marinella's own journey through her diagnosis, treatment and recovery from breast cancer. This in itself is inspiring. Her warmly intimate approach to sharing her experiences, and the crucial part her writing played in her healing moved me to want to pick up the journal I'd been neglecting.

But this book is not just Marinella's personal testimony. Throughout the book, she masterfully weaves the stories of the many people her writing classes and workshops have helped, as well as results of solid research she has done on why and how writing can help us create meaning out of our experiences. And at the end of each section she presents a series of writing prompts that never failed to get me writing and discovering new aspects of myself.

Yes, this book came into my life at just the right time. But I really think it came into my life and made its arrival the right time. I think it's the kind of book that does that for whomever picks it up.

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be totally honest, every single book I have read from New World Library this year has been the perfect book at the perfect time. The Story You Need to Tell: Writing to Heal from Trauma, Illness, or Loss by Sandra Marinella, MA, MEd was no exception.

Long before attaining my certifications as a yoga and meditation teacher, I have used writing as an outlet for most all of my life.

Passionate about creative writing (and creative nonfiction in particular—telling true and sometimes quite vulnerable tales), I began my studies in meditation and yoga to better learn to deal with the difficult emotions rehashing old stories can stir up.

Reading this book was genuinely a joy as someone who primarily associates as a writer interested in healing mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

I know from personal experience how powerful the process of writing is—how incredibly healing it can be to transform challenging circumstances and find resiliency by embracing our stories.

This book is raw, honest, and provides great prompts to spark the writer within all of us.

For anybody remotely interested in telling their stories, writing, and healing, I absolutely recommend this uplifting book.

[Katherine Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone has a story to tell and in this instance I want to encourage readers everywhere to listen to the story that Sandra Marinella tells here with candor and intelligence. This is brave writing, informed by questions, research, curiosity, and courage.

Marinella navigates her own traumatic experience with breast cancer in a way that demonstrates how powerful it is to write about the losses in our lives. Thus, the twenty-one chapters in this accessible book provide personal testimony from the author, the hundreds of women and men with whom she has worked with over the years, and the fascinating world of neuroscience - specifically the relationship between expressive writing and healing.

Whether you are new to keeping a journal or have been writing for decades, this book will show you how to drill down until you hit the bedrock of your own story. And then what? The writing prompts and suggestions at the end of each chapter will become your guides to personal discovery, creativity, and transformation.

If you feel as though you carry a burden that you cannot name, or are afraid to examine the weight of whatever you carry, then read this book, pick up your pen, and play with the exercises. You are in good hands with Marinella.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Writing is therapeutic. That’s the message of this important book that demonstrates the ways in which writing can be transformative, helping individuals bear witness to and come to terms with painful experiences. Filled with practical exercises and prompts and illuminated by Sandra Marinella’s own story of healing and those of the many people she’s helped, The Story You Need to Tell will be appreciated by anyone who has grappled with illness, grief, stress, or the ongoing effects of traumatic experiences. Marinella’s experience of having living through breast cancer taught her that “writing can move us forward to more fulfilling, happier, creative lives.” Here, she shares the tools and techniques that help readers dig deep to reveal their stories and by doing so increase resilience, confidence, and self-knowledge.

[Jennifer Spiegel · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a writer myself, I learned two things quickly upon my own diagnosis . . . First, everyone has cancer. Second, everyone with cancer writes a book about having cancer. Which is to say that there are a ton of books about cancer. (I'll be adding another to the pile.)

But here's the thing. Some really stand out, and this is one of them!

Marinella had me when I hit the Nelson Mandela epigraph.

But when you read further, there's more. I loved the combo of craft and cancer. I loved the emphasis on storytelling--its power. I believe that fully, and here is a full and well-written and inspiring exploration. My hope is that I have the opportunity to use it in a class, at some point. It definitely contributed to my own understanding of story.