Thank you
, , , , , and many others for tuning into yesterday’s Write the Hard Thing Live to write and ground together.Every week, we gather for ten minutes to breathe, to write, and to see what comes up when we meet the page from a place of embodied safety.
We always begin with grounding because if we want to write honestly, our nervous system has to trust that it won’t drown in the process. When the body feels safe, the words follow. And in just ten minutes, the page can become a doorway into the emotional core of a story you didn’t even know you were ready to tell.
This week, the Write the Hard Thing prompt was simple but powerful:
Write about leaving.
Leaving has been one of the most recurring themes in my own life, so much so that I named my memoir around it. But what I love about these sessions is how each person finds their own entry point. Leaving can mean a breakup, a childhood memory, the loss of someone we love, or even just walking out the door in the morning. What matters is what rises when you let the body feel safe enough to let the truth surface.
In my own writing, I surprised myself by writing about my son leaving for his first day of playschool. It was mostly about the shift of watching the world start to shape him, knowing he’ll come back changed in small ways I can’t control. Not a loss, exactly, but a change. A leaving.
That’s what these ten minutes do: they bypass the preamble and drop us right into the pulse of what matters.
Even a few words can reveal the heartbeat underneath. For me, these sessions are a reminder that writing doesn’t always have to start with the grand, sweeping arc. Sometimes the practice is just breathe, write, title. That’s enough. That’s the seed.
If you want to join us next time, the rhythm is always the same. We ground, we write for ten minutes, we ground again. A ritual for body, breath, and story. You never know what will surface, but something always does.
How Does It Work?:
Free Live writing every week (20 min total: 10 min writing, plus short grounding practice before/after). Here’s the next one.
All subscribers receive a notification when I’m Live, and I’ll also send a reminder in the chat 12-48 hours beforehand.
Replay will be available for all subscribers (in case you need to write on your own time).
Show up as you are. Come late if you need. Even one minute of writing is a win. You never know what’s going to show up.
And remember, don’t overthink. Just write.
The Flow:
The first 5 minutes will be a brief welcome and grounding.
I’ll give the prompt (use it or follow your own thread).
We’ll write for 10 minutes, together. I’ll let you know when you have one minute left.
We’ll close with a short, regulating breath or body practice.
You can drop off quietly or stick around to ask a question in the chat.
Why Just 10 Minutes?
Because we’re gently retraining the body to believe this is safe.
Ten minutes, over and over again, becomes a practice. A pathway back to yourself. It’s long enough to begin but short enough to stay present. It’s doable, and over time, the body builds trust, which is the whole point. We’re creating a container (a safe, repeatable experience) where your nervous system can learn that it’s safe to tell the truth. We’re offering it new evidence, rewiring the way it relates to the stories we’ve been afraid to touch.
When are the next sessions?
Friday, September 5th at 12:00pm ET
Tuesday, September 9th at 12:00pm ET
Tuesday, September 16th at 12:00pm ET
Join me for my next live here.
You’re creating a practice.
Try committing to three 10-minute grounded writing sessions a week.
Weekly (see schedule above): Join the free live writing session for all subscribers.
Sunday: I’ll drop a fresh prompt on Notes.
Thursday: Paid subscribers get a bonus prompt tied to each memoir chapter that I’m serializing here on Substack.
Look out for prompts at the end of my weekly essays and also in my monthly wrap-ups.
P.S. I’m teaching a 2-hour workshop this month called Write the Hard Thing: Let the Body Tell the Story on Saturday, September 20th @ 12PM EST on Zoom, hosted by Trust and Travel’s writing community, The Practice.
It’s for anyone carrying a story they don’t quite know how to tell, whether it’s grief, family complexity, or a truth that’s been circling for years. We’ll use body and breath as our entry point, so the writing feels safe and doable. You’ll walk away with the start of a micro-memoir, and maybe even a new relationship to your story.
