Alone in a brand new city, Merissa Nathan Gerson set out to connect with her community. Her father shepherded the process, traveling with her to help her choose a house and set herself up for this new life. But very shortly after, he declined, rapidly approaching the end of his life. How does a single woman in a new city, far from her friendships and supports, get help with an unimaginable loss? Merissa identified what she needed and found ways to invite her new community into her world. As a result, she acquired valuable skills applicable not just to her own life but to other grievers as well. Her humor and tenacity shine through her guide, Forget Prayers Bring Cake, to all things grief (including legacies of trauma passed down through the generations). The result is a grief guide especially written for singles but helpful to anyone facing loss.

Merissa Nathan Gerson’s writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Playboy, Tablet, Modern Loss, Lilith, and beyond. She was the inherited trauma consultant to Amazon’s Emmy-winning show Transparent and the author of Ask Your Yenta, an advice column that Bitch Magazine named the top ten to watch in 2010. The founder of KenMeansYes.org, a consent advocacy organization, she speaks nationwide on inherited trauma, consent education, and religious sex education. Born and raised in Washington, DC, Merissa lives in a purple house on an amazing block in Mid-City, New Orleans. Alone.