Writing to help heal old wounds Jamaica-born author finding peace while telling life story

What began as a way for 43-year-old LaToya Thompson to make sense of her childhood, has grown into a series of books chronicling abandonment, instability and the strength she found along the way.

“I have always been journalling. I have been writing for years. It is a way to process how I lived and what I was feeling. Writing was where I could say things I couldn’t always say aloud,” she said.

Now older and reflecting on her journey, Thompson, who grew up in Southside in Kingston Central and now resides in the United States, said she has come to understand that her writing was about more than simply recording painful memories.