Nora McInerny

American author and grief writer Nora McInerny has released three books on the topics of grief and loss, and is the host of podcast, Terrible, Thanks for Asking.

McInerny has used her personal experiences of losing loved ones to write books, help others and set up a non-profit organisation. In 2010, she started a relationship with Aaron Purmort, who was later diagnosed with an aggressive brain cancer. They got married and had a son in 2013, before Purmort sadly passed away in late 2014. Around the same time, McInerny suffered a miscarriage, and the loss of her father. During her husbands illness, she had started a blog called My Husband’s Tumor, which had more than 200,000 followers at its peak. She used humour and honesty to reflect on her experiences, and to inspire others to be more open about loss and grief. In 2016 she published her first book, called It’s Ok to Laugh (Crying is Cool Too), and she has since had two more books published including No Happy Endings and Hot Young Widows Club. McInerny runs a Facebook support group of the same name, and is now the host of a popular podcast called Terrible, Thanks for Asking.

In 2015, McInerny created the non-profit organisation Still Kickin’, which raises money for someone suffering from illness or grief each month. In 2018 she was invited to speak at TEDWomen on the topic of bereavement as a respected and popular expert on the subjects of illness and loss.