Meet Author Claire Bidwell Smith
Claire Bidwell Smith is the author of The Rules of Inheritance, which narrates the author's twenties, bookended by the death of each of her parents from cancer and fogged by grief that showed no sign of lifting until she finds her way as a psychotherapist, grief counselor, writer and blogger, and then as a wife and mother.Claire has a bachelor’s degree from The New School University in Manhattan and a master’s degree in clinical psychology from Antioch University in Los Angeles. She has worked for numerous publications and also for nonprofits like Dave Eggers’ literacy center 826LA. She most recently worked as a bereavement counselor for a hospice in Chicago.
The Rules of Inheritance will be available in hardcover in February 2012. It is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.com.
Ask Claire Anything
In the video below, Claire Bidwell Smith answers questions from Reddit users as part of a series where you can ask various authors anything and everything.
Author Series Playlist
Check out the questions Reddit users asked below to more easily navigate through the "Ask Claire Bidwell Smith Anything" session:
What do you think of National Novel Writing Month?- Who are your mentors?
- How can someone become a writer?
- How do you balance motherhood and writing?
- What was the most powerful experience working as a bereavement counselor?
- When did you realize you could use your own grief to help other people?
- How long is enough time to grieve?
- How has losing your parent affected your parenting style?
- Was writing this book therapeutic for you?
- How did you become a writer?
- How did the fact that you were writing about real people affect your writing style?
- Is it easy to be open in your writing?
- What are the challenges of bringing a book to life?
- What would you do differently now that you've been published?
- Was it difficult to create a memoir that wasn't too prescriptive?
- What was the process of writing your memoir?
- What steps have you taken to promote your own work?
- What books or authors have influenced your writing the most? What advice would you give young writers?
- Where did your interest in writing spring from?
- Why did you write the book?
- Where can someone find and buy the book?
Additional Information
Claire lives in Los Angeles with her husband and daughter. She is an experienced therapist specializing in grief and has written for many publications including Time Out New York, Yoga Journal, BlackBook Magazine, The Huffington Post and Chicago Public Radio.Claire is currently working on her second book and also planning a series of grief workshops that will begin in 2012.
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