This Summer, Let’s Actually Write (Chicago Friends, This One’s for You)

Here’s something I hear a lot: "I really want to write more."

Jun 11, 2026

Maybe you’ve said it too. And I believe you — the desire is real. But somewhere between the intention and the blank page, life gets in the way: the inbox, the to-do list, the inner critic who shows up uninvited and tells you you’re not ready yet.

That’s exactly why I created the Summer Journaling Series — and if you’re in the Chicago area this summer, I’d love to see you there.

Starting July 7, we’ll meet every Tuesday over lunch at Northwestern University’s Norris Center in Evanston for six weeks. Each session runs from 12–1pm and follows a simple structure: I’ll introduce a theme, offer a short instructional segment, and then give you protected time to write. No critique. No required sharing. No homework waiting for you on the other side.

You just show up with a notebook and write.

A Gentle Arc — With Room to Drop In

The series moves through a thoughtful progression — from permission and purpose, through voice and clarity, all the way to sustaining the habit — but each session also stands completely alone. Drop-ins are always welcome, and no writing experience is required. Truly.

Each week pairs a topic with a carefully chosen book:

Week 1 (7/7) — Why We Write: Permission & Purpose | with inspiration from The New Memoirists and the Courage to Create by Elissa Altman
Week 2 (7/14) — The Inner Critic: Writing Through Resistance | with inspiration from The Compassionate Writer by Anne E. Beall
Week 3 (7/21) — Memory & Observation: Mining Your Own Life | with inspiration from Group: How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life by Christie Tate
Week 4 (7/28) — Voice & Style: What Makes Writing Yours | with inspiration from Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott
Week 5 (8/4) — Writing for Clarity: Saying What You Mean | with inspiration from Writing to Heal by James Pennebaker, Ph.D.
Week 6 (8/11) — What’s Next: Sustaining the Habit | with inspiration from Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg

You don’t need to read these books to participate — they’re simply touchstones, doorways into each week’s theme.

Who This Is For

This workshop is for the person who wants a writing practice but hasn’t quite been able to make one stick. For the beginner who thinks they need more preparation before they start. For the experienced writer who’s lost the thread. For anyone who has ever felt the pull of the page and then found every reason to step away.

The structure is the support. The community is the encouragement. And the protected writing time? It’s yours.

The Details

📅 Tuesdays, July 7 – August 11 (6 sessions)
🕛 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
📍 Northwestern University’s Norris Center, Evanston
💰 $49 Northwestern students/faculty/staff | $59 General public

Chicago friends — I’d love to write alongside you this summer. Registration is open now, and I hope to see some familiar faces in the room.

Christine Wolf is a trauma-informed memoir coach, writer, and workshop facilitator. She teaches at Northwestern University's Norris Center and works with writers at all stages of their journey. She’s a contributor to Storied Stuff Volume 2: Show and Tell for Grownups (Ed. by Steve Fiffer and Sharon Fiffer) and Relative Strangers: Inheritance, Identity, and the Meaning of Kinship (Ed. by B.K. (Kate) Jackson). She’s also the co-author of Politics, Partnerships, & Power: The Lives of Ralph E. and Marguerite Stitt Church — the first biography about one of the first 50 women elected to Congress. Get in touch at www.christinewolf.com/contact.

Books by Christine Wolf

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Order Relative Strangers

Please Join Me at an Upcoming Event!

JUNE 1 - JULY 29

SILENT, VIRTUAL, DROP-IN ANYTIME WRITE-INS FOR PAID SUBSCRIBERS

Please join me for dedicated writing time. Drop in whenever you can. Cameras can be on or off.

Mondays 9-10a Central
Tuesdays 10a-12p Central
Wednesday 4-6p Central

Learn more here!

JUNE 5
HEADLINING THE FIRST-EVER STORYTELLER SESSIONS · WICHITA FALLS, TX

White facade with large windows, Collective Coffee, Wichita Falls, TX — Collective Coffee, Wichita Falls, TX

I’m honored to be headlining the very first Storyteller Sessions — a new live storytelling series coming to Wichita Falls. If you’re in the area, I’d love to see you there — tickets are just $5.

Storyteller Sessions

Collective Coffee
4001 Taft Blvd, Wichita Falls, TX 76308
7–10pm

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