Write that Book

Writing a Book: Therapy, But Cheaper and With More Plot Twists

Y’all, writing a book is healing. Like, who knew? 

I started writing just to tell my side of the story — you know, the real story. Not the family reunion version. Not the “he said, she said” version. My version. With footnotes. And receipts. 

And baby, it’s cheaper than therapy and way more petty. My therapist charges $150 an hour. My laptop? Free after the initial trauma of buying it. And my laptop lets me cuss.

Writing heals because:  

1. You control the narrative. In real life, people interrupt. In my book? I’m the narrator, the hero, AND the editor. You got cut out of Chapter 3 for being messy. Sorry not sorry.  

2. You get to process the cocoon stage. All that lace front drama? That gym comeback? That family reunion shade? It’s all going in the book. Healing one typo at a time.  

3. You grow while you type. Page 1: “I’m mad.” Page 200: “Oh… that was my fault.” Growth! Character development! And not just for the readers — for me.

People say “write what you know.” So I’m writing about being a bigger girl, going bald in Oregon, dodging my father’s side of the family, and finding peace at 51. It’s part memoir, part roast, part self-help. Working title: Teeth and All: How I Survived the Cocoon, the Cattiness, and the Cardio.

And the best part? Once it’s written, it’s out. Out of my head. Out of my heart. On paper. Where it can’t keep me up at 2am anymore. 

So if you see me at the Salem Library typing like I’m mad at the keyboard — mind your business. I’m healing. I’m growing. I’m telling my side of the story. 

And when the book drops? Buy it. Or be in it. Your choice.  

— Cathryn M. Harris  

Author in Progress. PhD Candidate. Healed-ish.  

51. Bald, bold, and typing.  

Teeth and all. Chapters and all.