Can writing help us confront pain, understand complicated relationships, and perhaps even find a path toward healing?
During Healing Through Writing at The RV Book Fair 2026, author and playwright Gary Morgenstein joined hosts Lucia Matuonto and Pat Backley for a thoughtful conversation about the emotional power of storytelling and the difficult questions writers can explore through fiction.
At the center of the discussion was Morgenstein’s novel Jesse’s Girl, an emotional thriller built around every parent’s nightmare. Teddy Mentor learns that his troubled sixteen-year-old adopted son, Jesse, has disappeared from a wilderness program in Montana. What follows is more than a search for a missing child—it becomes an exploration of fatherhood, sacrifice, fractured relationships, and the lengths we may go to for someone we love.
The conversation examined Teddy and Jesse as imperfect characters carrying their own pain, anger, and complicated histories. Their relationship opened the door to a larger discussion about healing: Is it possible to rescue someone we love without confronting our own wounds along the way?
Morgenstein also reflected on his attraction to characters facing difficult moral choices. Rather than offering readers simple answers, fiction can create a space where we are invited to question our assumptions and consider what we might do under similar circumstances.
As an award-winning playwright as well as a novelist, Morgenstein brings a strong understanding of dialogue to his storytelling. The panel explored how, particularly in damaged relationships, silence can sometimes communicate as much as words.
Ultimately, Healing Through Writing reminded us that stories do not need to provide perfect resolutions to have meaning. Sometimes healing begins with confronting what hurts, asking uncomfortable questions, and finding the courage to put those complicated human experiences into words.
Hosts
Hosts – Lucia Matuonto – www.luciamatuonto.com and Pat Backley – www.patbackley.com
Speaker – Verlin Darrow – www.verlindarrow.com
Guest
Gary Morgenstein – Instagram @garymorgenstein