Lauren McQuistin is a London based Scottish musician and writer, whose debut book, No Lost Causes Club, is based on her multiple years of sobriety and her running of the instagram page @brutalrecovery (171k followers). She has been creating content there for five years, for recovering humans looking for identification, and a message with equal parts humour and hope. Lauren was a professional opera singer, winning the district round of the Metropolitan National Opera Competition three times. She uses her experience as a musician to teach trauma informed musicianship, and has been featured in the Journal of Singing for her research on the subject of trauma's impact on the voice.
'I believe that No Lost Causes Club will be a beacon for a generation of readers who have come to the false conclusion that they are broken beyond repair. With the warmth, clarity and humour of a friend, Lauren McQuistin generously shares her own story and the insights she has gained to show us how an inconceivably better life becomes possible. This book is not just about sobriety or just about recovery; it is an invitation to hope' SHON FAYE, author of The Transgender Issue 'Lauren McQuistin's work is irreverent, provocative, delightful and very funny. It captures the bizarre, delightful highs and lows experienced by the alcoholic or addict in recovery: acknowledging the dumpster fire of a life one leaves behind, restoring oneself to sanity, the struggle for intimacy, and so on. Lauren is an important voice and a rare talent. I'd read anything she writes' CAT MARNELL, author of How to Murder Your Life ‘A stunning, seriously sick and profoundly well work. I love the intricacies of sanity, and how it can look so crazy. This book had me laughing and crying. Truly brilliant’ MARGARET CHO, author of I'm the One that I Want 'I love this book so much. Lauren McQuistin is just the friend you would want to meet on the road to addiction recovery – funny, smart, relatable, realistic, humane, encouraging, and, best of all, unrelentingly honest. I’m so glad that she exists, that she found her way to sobriety, and that she has generously and unflinchingly shared her story for others. I hope this book finds its way into many, many shaky and deserving hands' ELIZABETH GILBERT, author of Eat, Pray, Love