The Power of Micro Memoir: Grief, Storytelling, and Experimentation with Amy Lin

Writing Your Resilience: Building Resilience, Embracing Trauma and Healing Through Writing

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How do you dive into the marrow of an experience we’ll all one day share, yet so many of us struggle to talk about? And how do you write into a topic so widely covered that it feels impossible to say something new? Today, I’m joined by Amy Lin, author of the stunning micro memoir Here After, as we tackle these questions head-on. Together, we’ll explore the raw realities of grief, how Amy’s memoir acts as a powerful container for this universal experience, the magic of the microform, and what it takes to create something experimental. Plus, I’ll share a transformative tool to expand how you see your stories—and uncover the truths hiding within them.

Amy’s Bio: Amy Lin lives in Calgary, Canada where there are two seasons: winter and road construction. She completed her MFA at Warren Wilson College and holds BAs in English Literature and Education. Her work has been published in places such as Ploughshares and she has been awarded residencies from Yaddo and Casa Comala. Here After is her first book.

Resources Mentioned During This Episode:

• The Unseen Shore (Part One) by Amy Lin
• Yi Shun Lai’s Post “People’s Names Are Important”
• Lily Be “The Donas of Humbolt Park”
• More about Lily Be
• It’s Not You: Identifying and Healing from Narcissistic People with Dr. Ramani Durvasula

Episode Highlights

• 3:34: The Container of Grief
• 9:31: The “Good Signs” of Grief
• 13:00: Performative Grief versus the Reality of Grief
• 15:11: The Five Stages of Grief Debunked
• 23:45: The Power of Micro Memoir
• 36:34: The Story Neighborhood Exercise
• 40:34: The Marrow of Living
• 44:01: Amy’s Best Writing Advice

Connect with Amy:

• Substack: https://atthebottomofeverything.substack.com/
• Website: amydawnlin.com
• Instagram: @literaryamy
• TikTok: @literaryamy

Connect with your host, Lisa:
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Sign up for Memoir Backstory: Deciding what to keep, cut, and repurpose from your story: https://janefriedman.com/memoir-backstory-with-lisa-cooper-ellison/

Produced by Espresso Podcast Production

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1. The Power of Micro Memoir: Grief, Storytelling, and Experimentation with Amy Lin (00:00:00)

2. The Container of Grief (00:03:34)

3. The “Good Signs” of Grief (00:09:31)

4. Performative Grief versus the Reality of Grief (00:13:00)

5. The Five Stages of Grief Debunked (00:15:11)

6. The Power of Micro Memoir (00:23:45)

7. The Story Neighborhood Exercise (00:36:34)

8. The Marrow of Living (00:40:34)

9. Amy’s Best Writing Advice (00:44:01)