Sarah Stankorb is the author of Damned If She Does: Why Women Quit Church and What It Means for the Future of Religion (out September 2026) and the national best-seller Disobedient Women. The award-winning, Ohio-based writer is a fan of heartfelt truth-telling. Her work has appeared in publications including Elle, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Cosmopolitan, O Magazine, Marie Claire, Vogue, Longreads, Glamour, Catapult, Slate, The Guardian, The Atlantic, Newsweek, and many others. She writes about religion, politics, feminism, and the public good.
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EXPERIENCES
Show Date
Fri 4 Sep 2026 5:00 PM to 5:50 PM
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| Title Short | Apostate story hour |
| Venue | Writers Workshop |
| Experience Description | For most people, quitting church doesn’t happen all at once. Instead, the decision to leave comes after an accumulation of doubts and grief. The choice to go can scar; it can be the most freeing option.
Those who have left church or deconstructed are invited to participate, along with people who consider themselves leaders inside church communities. Those who left are not often asked to share their stories without judgment. It’s rare that those inside the church get a chance to really understand what it was like for those who had to go.
People who attend this session will be guided into mixed small groups and coached through writing the outlines of their departure (while those still in the church will be asked to reflect on a moment that tested them).
Those who quit church will then share their stories. They may be uniquely spiritual or nonbelievers. The journey is the point.
Church leaders in attendance will be listeners and do so without judgment. They may learn to lead differently.
This session inverts the old pressures to give testimonies about one’s salvation, and instead, gives those who saved themselves by leaving a chance to tell their stories. |
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