Write to Heal: Online Workshop starts March 30!

Are your thoughts muddled? Is your heart broken? Are you going through a difficult season in your life?



Learn to write poetry, essays, and letters to and in memory of your loved one. Pouring out your pain onto paper is cheap therapy and in this guided course I will show you how to use writing as a tool for healing. The course lessons will be sent to you via email each week.


The beauty of this workshop is that you can work at your own pace in the comfort of your own home. Each week, you will be instructed on how to complete your assignments. Once completed, send them back to me and I will critique your work, offer suggestions, and support.

I started this workshop in 2001 for those, like me, who lost a child to death. Others who had a loved one (not a child) die took the course and found it beneficial. Then, those who had suffered wounds in their lives (significant sorrow and losses) participated in the workshop and told me that this course is for anyone who has experienced heartache. The testimonies speak loudly---writing through anguish brings healing, no matter what path you are on. ~ Alice J. Wisler

Outline for Writing the Heartache Online Workshop
1. Week One: Introduction - Getting to Know You
2. Week Two: Introducing Your Loved One Through Poetry
3. Week Three: Writing a Letter to Your Loved One and to Others
4. Week Four: Writing for Change - The Essay
5. Week Five: Writing for Publication


Sign up today for the March 30th workshop. Click the link below to register or for more information:
Writing the Heartache

The Power of the Simple Letter

When you write to someone who has died, the experience can be emotional. So my first rule—-have a tissue box handy.

After that, you are pretty much free to do what you want. The beauty of so much about writing through grief is that there are no rules. Don’t worry about grammar or punctuation or spelling. Get rid of that image of your third grade English teacher peering over your shoulder. If you write sloppy, it doesn’t matter. No one has to read your letter but you.

Some students ask me where to start. You can start like you would with a letter to a person who is still on earth. “Dear Daniel” is how I’ve started every letter I’ve written to my son Daniel who died at age four.

After you have the salutation taken care of, go from there. Tell what you are doing today, how you’re feeling, what’s been happening.

Perhaps you have something to say to this loved one you wished you’d said when he was living. Write that. Maybe you have some regrets and want to be forgiven. Write those. Be real. Keep in honest. Can you be humorous? By all means! Should you recall a shared experience? Taking the time to recall an experience can be therapeutic.

Letters are great ways to remember the ones we love who are no longer with us. Pick up your pen and see what your heart will discover when you write a letter today!

[First posted at Carol Stratton's blog.]