Hi, Renee, A big congratulations about your story being published by the American Thyroid Foundation! I know it will help many people. Yes, please send the link when it's up.

I actually didn’t keep a journal, but I STILL think it’s a very good idea to keep one! The only reason why I didn’t keep one is because I’d never really planned to write about my own life. I wrote fiction for years before I began to write the memoir. So, when I did start to write the memoir, it was rather suddenly—at the suggestion of my therapist—and shortly after my parents died. In other words, had I planned it in advance, I probably would have begun by making notes and journaling.

The suggestion of the Writer’s Digest, in terms of an exercise, is excellent. In case you’re interested, here are a few other suggestions for exercises, what you might try including in a journal:

Recall a photograph from childhood. Write a paragraph about it using the voice of who you were (the young girl) when the photo was taken. Next, write a paragraph about it through the voice of who you are now.

Do the same with a room from your childhood. Write two paragraphs, one describing the room using the voice of who you were when a child. Then, through the voice of who you are now.

With both of these exercises, be sure to use all five senses in the description: taste, touch, smell, sound, sight.

In your journal, write a letter to someone who hurt you as a child, telling him or her your feelings toward what they did to you. (Note: this letter is only for your journal, not to be mailed.)

In your journal, write a letter to your inner child, telling her how you feel about her.

Decribe a dream as if it were in black and white. Describe the dream in color. Describe the dream using the five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, touch. How does the dream make you feel? Which elements of the dream remind you of childhood? Which images remind you of sensory moments from childhood? What are they?