From blog to belonging: the next chapter for Life Stories Diary

From blog to belonging: the next chapter for Life Stories Diary

Curating almost 900 posts into themed e-books you can keep close

If you’ve been with me a while—some of you since 2008—you know Life Stories Diary has grown into a gathering place: for people living with eating disorders, for families and health professionals, for life story writing, and for anyone walking the long road from fracture toward wholeness.

Over nearly 18 years, I’ve published almost 900 posts—reflections, research-informed pieces, guest essays, diary craft notes, interviews, and love letters to persistence. Together, we’ve built a living archive about what it means to use writing as a self-help and advocacy tool.

I’m grateful for what we have achieved side by side. I’m thankful, too, for while I have given a lot of myself in Life Stories Diary, I have also received. My wellness cup is full.

This December, I turn 75, and I’m feeling a gentle urge to shift gears—toward slower days, more time with my partner and family, and the kind of writing that asks for quiet.

Finding a way to preserve what’s here

I also want to find a fresh way to preserve and extend the value of what’s here. I say this because most of the content is as relevant today as it was 10 or more years ago.

The sad truth is that the thoughts and behaviours that accompany the development of an eating disorder, such as anorexia nervosa, today are the same as those I experienced, more than half a century ago, in childhood. The eating disorder has a universal language of its own; its ‘voice’ doesn’t change. Thankfully, what has changed is the treatment approaches. Even so, we have a long way to go in providing proper and accessible care for people with eating disorders everywhere. Your stories are essential in the search for answers. My blog reflects this.

So, beginning in 2026, the frequency of blog posts will be reduced while I focus on transforming this archive into themed e-books (with possible print-on-demand) that readers can keep close companions for the 2am hour, the waiting room, and the seasons when a browser tab isn’t enough.

Why books, and why now?

Blog posts can be lifelines, but they can also be fleeting. Books hold differently. They collect, contextualise, and travel with you. Many of you have told me a particular paragraph “kept me going” or “gave me words to share with my child/therapist/partner.” I want to gather those touchstones, group them by theme, add brief bridges and updates where helpful, and present them as companions—steady, portable, and re-readable.

Threads of hope and resilience

Themes that shine through in my 18 years of blog writing include:

• Stillness in Motion — brief reflections and diary fragments for daily steadiness for those experiencing an eating disorder right now
• Family Voices — practical, compassionate pieces for parents, partners, and siblings
• Letters Across Time — lived-experience essays on the inside story of living with an eating disorder, the 51 per cent healthy-self, identity, and belonging
• Health Professionals’ Companion — humane translations of research and practice; essays showcasing treatment approaches in practice.
• Writing as a Lantern — diaries and narrative practices for recovery and repair

Introducing Sarah—my collaborator in curation

To make this work as useful and beautiful as it deserves to be, I’ve invited Sarah Cannata—a long-time reader, former editorial assistant on the site, and the creator of Storytelling for the Soul—to collaborate with the concepting, selection, and shaping.

Here, Sarah shares why she believes in this project:

In 2017, I was working full-time in my former business. You come across a lot of people in business, and one of my contacts suggested I look at June’s work. I had started working in the not-for-profit space and was interested in learning how to use my skill set for purpose and impact… Given we spend so much time working, I feel it’s important to pursue whatever ‘meaningful work’ means to us.

When I read June’s work for the first time, the storytelling aspect resonated with me, alongside the concept of the diary as a healer. I’ve been keeping a journal since I was 12. My dream as a kid was to become the next Stephen King (after I realised becoming the first female Australian Rules Football player wasn’t realistic).

I first spoke with June on Zoom later in 2017 and felt an instant connection… she was the first person who made me see that using my skillset for purposeful work wasn’t a pipe dream—it was possible. June has been one of the most pivotal mentors in my life, and without her, Storytelling for the Soul (my current business) would not exist.

Before starting Storytelling for the Soul, I worked alongside June for almost four years as an editorial assistant for her website. I saw how she held space for people and used words as a healing tool to guide budding authors through the memoir writing process…

Best of all, I always felt I was learning something while working with June and that working together was easy.

I ceased working alongside June as an editorial assistant in 2021, to work on other projects… Although no longer working together, I maintained an interest in June’s work, and in September 2025, a post about travelling to Japan caught my attention… After writing to June and sharing how much I missed our conversations, we caught up over Zoom… June shared that she was looking to ‘retire’ from eating disorder advocacy and was considering what to do with her website’s content…

We agreed that the content in many of the blogs should be preserved for future generations. June then invited me to collaborate on this project, and I graciously accepted.

Following our Zoom catch-up, June and I have been sorting the almost 900 blog posts. At this early stage, we have a general idea to create several themed e-books. This exploration stage is part of the fun! … June’s advocacy speaks volumes, and it’s an incredible honour to be a small part of preserving this important work.

Now that I am approaching midlife and have gained more life experience, I understand that people like June are rare… I may never become the next Stephen King, but I know that this collaboration is filling my cup.

What changes on the website?

Between now and 2026, Life Stories Diary remains open and searchable. I’ll still post, simply less often, as energy shifts to curation. I’ll share milestones along the way—theme lists, content previews, cover drafts, and calls for feedback.

If you’ve contributed a guest post over the years, Sarah and I will likely be reaching out for permission to include selected pieces. Your words remain yours; any reuse will be by explicit opt-in, with clear credit and a short bio. If you already know you’d like to opt in (or out), you’re welcome to email us.

How you can help shape the books

If you would like to participate in this exciting and very worthwhile project, please use the Contact form below. Here are some suggestions on ways to contribute:

• Tell us your Life Stories Diary touchstones: which posts have connected with and helped you most, and why?
• Suggest themes (e.g., first steps for parents; partnering through recovery; when motivation is thin; clinicians who listen; late-life belonging; writing through panic; grief and re-entry; tiny shifts).
• Offer a short ‘bridge’ reflection (300–600 words) linking an older post that you found helpful at the time, to where you are now—guidelines coming soon.
• What themes do you want at your fingertips?
• If you’re a past contributor and would like your piece considered (or prefer to opt out), please get in touch (on the Contact form below) so we can organise permissions and credits.

Tentative timeline

• Nov 2025 – early 2026: Theme mapping, selections, permissions, light edits
• Mid-2026: First e-book release (print-on-demand explored)
• Late-2026: Additional volumes roll out

Why I’m stepping back (and staying present)

Advocacy has been (and remains) a calling. It has also asked for a weekly rhythm that leaves little white space. At 75, I want to walk more slowly with those I love, tend the garden, and write pages that have waited patiently—memoir passages that belong to a quieter season. Stepping back from frequency allows me to keep showing up in a form that lasts: books you can keep.

This is not goodbye. It’s a gentle pivot—from the immediacy of posts to the companionship of collections. I’ll still be here, cheering your steps, answering notes when I can, and working with Sarah to turn a living archive into something you can hold.

And always, on another level, as that little girl who began writing her diary at age 11 in 1962, I will make time to share my thoughts and feelings with my diary, my trusted daily friend.

With warmth,
June

About Sarah

Sarah Cannata is the creator of Storytelling for the Soul. She uses journaling and body-based practices to support women in midlife and beyond with everyday struggles. Her work is grounded in lived experience, deep exploration, and a commitment to safe, trauma-informed support. In addition to being a journalist, she is a certified Embodied Processing Practitioner through the Centre for Healing in Australia. Embodied processing is a body-based approach to working with trauma. Sarah creates a nurturing space where people feel seen, heard, and held.