I don't write as a memoirist, I write as an essayist, and I make my own rules. I don't fully believe that 'all writing is a lie', but any first person writing is going to be biased. I suppose that's a given.
Still, I try to be truthful, and I don't feel any obligation to tell more than I want to about myself or anyone I know. Nobody should. The entire subject of this piece is about privacy. We as writers get to decide where we draw the line, but some writers do feel pressure to tell more than they're comfortable doing. I want to make sure they know they get to draw that line. Nobody else.
But going back to your first paragraph, where you say you're put off by my suggesting feminists are only women.
The full paragraph reads like this:
"Feminism is a movement, not a cult. It’s not even a club. We come at it from our own places, with our own beliefs, with our own judgments. Our only goal is, or should be, to promote equity and give support to other women. There are no rules to feminism."
I did say 'other women', didn't I? I see what you're getting at, and I apologize. I'll go back and fix that. Most of the men in my family are feminists and I certainly wouldn't want to leave them out! Thanks for pointing it out.
Thanks again, Alan. I have no idea why you didn't get a notification. Are your notifications on? Did it go to Spam? Or is it one of many Substack glitches that may or may not be fixed?
Interesting. I've never given thought to the pressure writers feel to reveal information about themselves. I'm a relatively open book, so I've shared essays or parts thereof that probably had you running to the bathroom and locking the door, and not for the usual reasons. I'll have to further explore what might compel someone to open up past the point of comfort. Maybe I've lived a sheltered life. Maybe my mother modeled oversharing. Regardless of all that, I appreciate and learn from what you do put out there for us to read. So I guess you're doing just fine.
We all have our own comfort zones and, man, are they wide apart! My only mission is to try and make sure every writer understands that they don't ever have to go outside of theirs unless they really want to. Ignore any pressure from outside!
I'm perfectly comfortable with whatever you write, Elizabeth, which is a tribute to your writing. If you're comfortable you're bound to make your readers comfortable. (Now I'll sign off before I write 'comfortable' again...)
I don't write as a memoirist, I write as an essayist, and I make my own rules. I don't fully believe that 'all writing is a lie', but any first person writing is going to be biased. I suppose that's a given.
Still, I try to be truthful, and I don't feel any obligation to tell more than I want to about myself or anyone I know. Nobody should. The entire subject of this piece is about privacy. We as writers get to decide where we draw the line, but some writers do feel pressure to tell more than they're comfortable doing. I want to make sure they know they get to draw that line. Nobody else.
But going back to your first paragraph, where you say you're put off by my suggesting feminists are only women.
The full paragraph reads like this:
"Feminism is a movement, not a cult. It’s not even a club. We come at it from our own places, with our own beliefs, with our own judgments. Our only goal is, or should be, to promote equity and give support to other women. There are no rules to feminism."
I did say 'other women', didn't I? I see what you're getting at, and I apologize. I'll go back and fix that. Most of the men in my family are feminists and I certainly wouldn't want to leave them out! Thanks for pointing it out.
Thanks again, Alan. I have no idea why you didn't get a notification. Are your notifications on? Did it go to Spam? Or is it one of many Substack glitches that may or may not be fixed?
Hard to tell. 😏
Interesting. I've never given thought to the pressure writers feel to reveal information about themselves. I'm a relatively open book, so I've shared essays or parts thereof that probably had you running to the bathroom and locking the door, and not for the usual reasons. I'll have to further explore what might compel someone to open up past the point of comfort. Maybe I've lived a sheltered life. Maybe my mother modeled oversharing. Regardless of all that, I appreciate and learn from what you do put out there for us to read. So I guess you're doing just fine.
We all have our own comfort zones and, man, are they wide apart! My only mission is to try and make sure every writer understands that they don't ever have to go outside of theirs unless they really want to. Ignore any pressure from outside!
I'm perfectly comfortable with whatever you write, Elizabeth, which is a tribute to your writing. If you're comfortable you're bound to make your readers comfortable. (Now I'll sign off before I write 'comfortable' again...)
😅 - 100% agree