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Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative
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About This Book
Memoir meets craft masterclass in this "daring, honest, psychologically insightful" exploration of how we think and write about intimate experiences—"a must read for anybody shoving a pen across paper or staring into a screen or a past" (Mary Karr). In this bold and exhilarating mix of memoir and master class, Melissa Febos tackles the emotional, psychological, and physical work of writing intimately while offering an utterly fresh examination of the storyteller's life and the questions which run through it. How might we go about capturing on the page the relationships that have formed us? How do we write about our bodies, their desires and traumas? What does it mean for an author's way of writing, or living, to be dismissed as "navel-gazing"—or else hailed as "so brave, so raw"? And to whom, in the end, do our most intimate stories belong? Drawing on her own path from aspiring writer to acclaimed author and writing professor—via addiction and recovery, sex work and Harvard night school—Melissa Febos has created a captivating guide to the writing life, and a brilliantly unusual exploration of subjectivity, privacy, and the power of divulgence. Candid and inspiring, Body Work will empower readers and writers alike, offering ideas—and occasional notes of caution—to anyone who has ever hoped to see themselves in a story.
Reviews
"Febos maintains an emphasis on form that is nicely balanced throughout the book by some charming, low-level woo-woo ..."
"Of the many texts on the subject, this one feels most engaging and timely ..."
"Above all, Febos offers the space and tools to reflect, rethink, revisit, and reimagine—in service of good writing, and good living—with grains of truth that reader-writers will want to keep close."
"As a writing instructor I found myself underlining passage after passage, eager to read them aloud to my own nonfiction students who oohed and ahhed in recognition, just as I'd expected ..."
"Sources cited in Body Work are paltry in comparison and include a CDC study, a New Yorker article here and there, the poet Eileen Myles, and the Torah among others."
"Practical and empowering, they prepare would-be writers for an 'emotional confrontation with the self' ..."
"This is a book for both writers and readers who feel like their bodies are telling stories, even if they do not ever want to put those stories into words ..."
"Rather than believing the narrative that stories of trauma are dull or overdone or whiney or gauche, Febos encourages her readers to tell their stories, to write them, for themselves or others."
"The author's exhortations with regard to craft...are crucial ..."
"Febos's fellow scribes will appreciate her shrewd takes on the intersection of craft and life, and even nonwriters will enjoy the artistry on display throughout."
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