Val is a contributing blogger for Psychology Today and the author of The Art of Comforting (Penguin/Random House, 2010) which won the Nautilus Book Award. With a Master of Science degree in rehabilitation counseling from Virginia Commonwealth University, she has organized and led support groups, outreach initiatives, and training programs for twenty-five years dedicated to people living with serious illness and disability.

Val’s new book, 400 Friends and No One to Call: Breaking Through Isolation and Building Community, was released in March, 2020 with Central Recovery Press. On this topic, she provides groups and classes on how to build community networks and fellowships, and teaches a course called “Reaching Out and Keeping Connected”–especially relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic. She has discovered that millennials and boomers alike want to learn more about strengthening their networks for meaningful conversation, purposeful activities, and expanding their sense of belonging.
Val’s interviews, and contributions have appeared in publications such as Time Magazine, AARP, Caregiver Space, Parade, Hello Giggles, Healthy Aging Magazine, Marie Claire, Good Housekeeping, Coping with Cancer, Babyboomer.com, Boston Globe Magazine, Chicago Tribune, McClean’s (Canada), Sweety High and others.

Blogging on the topic of breaking out of isolation, she also contributes to Social Pro Now and the Boston-based Health Story Collaborative, founded by Annie Brewster, MD, of Massachusetts General Hospital.
Val is represented by Peter Rubie of FinePrint Literary Management.

Bio courtesy of www.valwalkerauthor.com/