This story starts with a single poem I wrote 20 years ago and the ways in which Adlerian psychology catalyzed me to leverage writing as a tool for social justice. A decade later, a friend of mine shared one of my poems at a conference about ending violence against women. “What I was wearing” is about the clothing I was wearing the night I was sexually assaulted. Two attendees - Jen Brockman and Dr. Mary Wyandt-Hiebert - reached out to me about creating an exhibit based on my poem, pairing survivors’ words with representations of the clothes they were wearing when they were assaulted. These women made real a vision I had for bringing the poem to life and to other survivors. In their hands, my poem launched a global social justice movement to upend victim-blaming myths. Now celebrating its 10th year, “What Were You Wearing” has since been exhibited thousands of times across six continents. What I found most remarkable about this experience was that a poem that was so deeply personal to me could resonate so powerfully with other survivors and empower them to rebel against the thinly veiled accusation behind “what were you wearing?” 

In 2021, as part of my graduate work at Adler University, I extended this work by developing a framework for leading facilitated writing workshops with survivors of sexual violence to harness the healing powers of the creative self. There is a significant body of literature and research that demonstrates Adler’s belief that individuals are able to change through the creative power of the self. Recent research suggests that sharing stories about traumatic life experiences can be healing for survivors, and writing can play an important role in that healing. My Write Where We Belong workshops are intended to do just that. Grounded in key principles of Adlerian psychology, the workshops incorporate Gemeinschaftsgefühl, optimism, and the idea that we are in control of deciding how we will give meaning to our life experiences. 

The workshops follow the Amherst Writers & Artists (AWA) methodology, utilizing generative writing prompts, the opportunity to share writing in a facilitated group setting, and provide feedback on what is shared. Like Adlerian theory and practice, the AWA method is deeply grounded in social justice. One of the foundational principles of this method is that writing as an art form belongs to all people, regardless of economic class or education level. While the initial goal of the workshops was to help survivors find meaning and healing through writing, what emerged over the course of the first year was an opportunity to incorporate another critical aspect of Adlerian practice into this work: Collective reflection for the purpose of advocacy. 

The writing and reflections that came out of the workshops were remarkable in many ways, and it became clear to me that these stories could be used as a powerful tool for social justice. In 2024, the writing from the workshops was brought together in a first of its kind anthology We’ve Been Put Through Fire & Come Out Divine: Stories of Hope & Survival (Amherst Writers & Artists Press) that not only gives voice to survivors, but seeks to upend false narratives about what happened to us and why. This innovative work represents a new pathway for survivors and those who interact with us to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of sexual violence on us as individuals and communities.  

In January, 2025, a second anthology will be published that further extends this work. We’ve Got Some Things to Say will be a collection of poems and short prose pieces written by survivors. You can learn more about this anthology and how to submit your work for consideration here. 

To learn more about Write Where We Belong workshops, email writewherewebelong@outlook.com