Praise for "After This: " "With wisdom and grace, Claire Bidwell Smith navigates the mysteries of grief to show us that there is great meaning and even magic to be found in exploring the unknown." --Maria Shriver, bestselling author of "What's Heaven?" "Claire Bidwell Smith, with her writer's heart and therapist's mind, has written a stunningly generous book alive with curiosity, humility, skepticism, and bravery. In "After This" you will teeter on the edge of the Spirit world; and whether you believe, or wish to, or simply can't, Bidwell Smith has written one of the most inspiring books about death you will ever read." --Christa Parravani, author of "Her: A Memoir" "A transfixing ode to the enigmatic cycle of life and death, "After This" will resonate with seekers and skeptics alike. Grief therapist Claire Bidwell Smith explores in lyrical prose tricky existential terrain with compelling philosophical persistence, humility, and poise. You will not forget this book." --Aidan Donnelley Rowley," "author of "Life After Yes" "With deep compassion, profound vulnerability, and transcendent lyricism, Claire Bidwell Smith embraces that which we so often run from in this culture: loss. This is a transformative book that will change the way you think about death, and by extension, life." --Jillian Lauren, "New York Times" bestselling author of "Some Girls" "In this eloquent, smart, funny and deeply thoughtful book, Claire Bidwell Smith takes us on a powerful journey of discovery. She asks the most important questions about life, love, death, and what it means to be human, and does so with equal measures of skepticism and a broken-open heart. By doing so, she becomes an utterly trustworthy guide. Reader, follow her. You'll be so glad you did." --Dani Shapiro, author of "Devotion" and "Still Writing" Praise for "The Rules of Inheritance" "A brave and intelligent book about big loss and even bigger love. The gritty truth and hard-won grace in this beautiful memoir astonishes me." -Cheryl Strayed, author of "Wild" "Gitty, poetic, and illuminating." -"O, The Oprah Magazine" "Vivid, real and gripping." --"Blackbook" magazine "Gorgeously written, compulsively readable, and heartbreakingly true, "The Rules of Inheritance" is a small masterpiece of honesty." -Hope Edelman, author of "Motherless Daughters"

Claire Bidwell Smith is the author of "The Rules of Inheritance" and "After This." "The Rules of Inheritance "has been published in seventeen countries and is currently being adapted for film. Claire has a master's degree in clinical psychology and is a therapist specializing in grief. She regularly teaches writing workshops and gives talks on both writing and grief. Her work has appeared in numerous publications including The Huffington Post, Slate, Salon.com, Chicago Public Radio and BlackBook. She lives in Los Angeles with her two daughters. www.clairebidwellsmith.com