The Not Alone Book

Back in September of last year, I wrote a piece about my struggle with depression. It was mostly just a one-off, "I feel like garbage, let me whine to you," kind of thing. But the response touched my heart. And what I saw, in comments on my blog, Facebook, Twitter & email, was that people dealing with depression often feel isolated and they have a desire to know that they are not alone. This response was what encouraged me to start the Not Alone series. 
I have been absolutely overwhelmed by the posts that have been submitted to me by so many amazing people. It blew me away to see folks week after week share their stories about depression. Something that is often buried and ignored has been addressed by 12 different people here so far. I am deeply encouraged by those who have shared.
And because of that, I am thrilled (THRILLED!) to be able to share with you that I will be partnering with Civitas Press to turn the Not Alone series into a book this fall! 
Civitas Press is committed to community projects. Right now Civitas is finishing up work on the first project, called "The Practice of Love." I have been working with Jonathan Brink over the past few months and we are really excited about working on creating this place where our shared story combines to create community. It makes me ridiculously happy to think that the stories from these amazing contributors are going to be able to reach further than this blog. 
If you've been considering writing for the Not Alone series, I would love it if you would take a look at the project document on the Civitas website. Jonathan and I want to make this as easy for everyone as possible and we believe this document should accomplish that. If you don't have a story, I would appreciate it if you would consider sharing this with your friends who have experienced depression and may want to be a part of this project.
And finally, I want to thank this community so much for your support of both me and the authors who have shared their stories here. There's no book without you because there's no blog without you. And the reason this project matters so much to me is because you have shown me that I'm not alone and that has allowed us to extend that to so many more. You guys are awesome. For realsies.
Okay, so head over here and get to the sharing!