Has there ever been a more important time to tell our true stories? To connect with others and have honest conversations about the things we believe? The very nature of truth feels like it’s under attack right now; it’s being undermined and eroded in ways that are deeply disheartening. So, what can we do?
This Toni Morrison quote, from an essay she wrote for The Nation in 2015, has been widely revisited and shared in recent weeks:
“This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”
This quote resonates for me because I do feel fear and the need for silence often, here in Texas, a place I recently moved to from Toronto (for love; what other reason could there be right now?) To counter this fear, I know I have work to do. Perhaps we can do it together? I’m thinking we can begin with our homes, then turn outwards to our neighbourhoods, and beyond. We can bring true stories to our kids, our book clubs, and our family gatherings this holiday season. We can write nonfiction that makes our opinions known. We can support publications that strive for integrity. And we can fact-check our creative nonfiction and weed out any small untruths that may have crept in. Because sharing a truth that doesn’t feel comfortable? That is precisely the skill we need to practice right now. We need to practice it, together, until the muscle is strong. Let’s grab our hoes and get to work.
The Kenyon Review’s Short Nonfiction Contest is on now for pieces of up to 3000 words. The judge is Lucy Ives and the deadline is Dec 31.
The Creative Nonfiction Collective runs an annual CNF contest, and this year The Fiddlehead will publish the winning entry (up to 3000 words). Danny Ramadan is the judge and the deadline is Feb 14.
Are you writing something that falls between genres? Auto-fiction? Graphic memoir? PRISM International is always looking for CNF of up to 4000 words and is especially interested in hybrid submissions right now.
Me, myself, and friends
Writing can feel like a solitary activity, so it’s important to remember: you’re not doing this work alone. Many others are at their desks right now, including this month’s highlighted writer, Andrea Lynn Koohi. Get to know Andrea and her work via the answers she shared with me here:
Andrea, what’s important to you about writing true stories?
I think the act of translating a true experience into the written word is life-affirming. It’s an important confirmation that the experience really happened and that it has meaning. And when we take the time to find the best possible form and most resonant language to tell that story, we imbue the experience with respect. This is especially true for difficult stories. The stories about the things we often wished never happened, that are painful, uncomfortable, even repulsive, but which we know impacted us deeply. When we find the right way to tell these stories, we can more easily accept them as a part of our human experience and understand them in ways that help us grow. And when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable by offering the story to others, it’s a way of letting go, of setting it free for others to understand and colour it through the lens of their own experiences, thereby expanding its meaning.
What’s important to you about reading true stories? Who are you reading right now?
I read true stories to expand the boundaries of my human experience. It’s painful to think of how we each have only one short and limited life, and no matter how fully we try to live it, there’s so much we’ll never know, hear, see, feel or understand. Reading true stories is one of the best ways to feel and understand beyond the boundaries of our own lives.
I recently finished reading The Best Minds by Jonathan Rosen, a true story from the author’s perceptive about his brilliant childhood friend who descended into mental illness and ultimately tragedy. The author weaves the facts with his interpretation of how societal trends at the time contributed to the course of his friend’s life. I think the author did an amazing job of treating his friend’s story with care and respect, and eliciting empathy in the reader for a man who could easily be written off as “crazy” and “evil” if only the surface facts are known. The author takes us below the surface, which is often where we need to be taken to feel true empathy.
Anything you'd like to tell us about the piece you're going to share?
This tiny piece was the first true story I was able to write because I had found the right form and style to tell it. It was a revelation for me as a writer and a deep relief for me as a human being to discover that I could tell difficult true stories in many different ways. Not every story lends itself well to linear narrative. Sometimes fragments are better at capturing a truth. And sometimes stories need a certain distance from both the writer and the reader, which can be achieved through poetic language that prioritizes feeling over fact, and white space that allows the reader to fill in parts of the story on their own.
ANDREA LYNN KOOHI is a writer from Toronto, Ontario. Her creative non-fiction, flash fiction and hybrid prose has appeared in a variety of print and online publications, including filling Station, The New Quarterly, Passages North, Pithead Chapel, The Maine Review, Bending Genres, and Fractured Lit. Her work has been nominated for Best of the Net, Best Small Fictions and the Pushcart Prize, and was included in Best Microfiction 2022 and the Bath Flash Fiction Anthology.
Love, love, love this month's interview, not to mention the author's essay. A line from her interview that resonated: "Sometimes fragments are better at capturing a truth. " The author's essay was heart-breaking and beautifully written. Thank you, Becky, for sharing Andrea Lynn Koohi with us.
Love, love, love this month's interview, not to mention the author's essay. A line from her interview that resonated: "Sometimes fragments are better at capturing a truth. " The author's essay was heart-breaking and beautifully written. Thank you, Becky, for sharing Andrea Lynn Koohi with us.
A very thought provoking and timely introduction to this edition of Truly Important.
Andrea’s story painted a picture of her past while leaving us with the white spaces to fill in.
Beautifully presented.