It’s frustrating to see established writers who write for prestigious publications turn their noses up at “personal essays,” as if that’s not the only way a lot of us can get a foot in the door, as if editors don’t push women especially to add more personal trauma to their pieces
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I would frankly love to write less about my own shit, but that’s the stuff that primarily sells, and at the end of the day I still have bills to pay. Also interesting to me what gets branded a “personal essay” and what gets to be an “opinion piece” or just an essay
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Replying to @anne_theriault
Not at all about prestige but I do warn emerging writers not to let a pub have what is probably their most vulnerable story, usually in return for peanuts plus "exposure". It's a hard act to follow, doesn't lead to more jobs, plus all the downsides of virality with no protection.
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Replying to @zeynep @anne_theriault
Young 'uns hope that the personal is a path to sustainable gigs, but as you know, it's a tough market plus one only has so many personal stories of the kind that is extracted from many with that first viral piece. My advice is: try to wait to write that one from stronger ground.
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Other than that totally on board with how some people's personal mid-life crisis, which they didn't exactly shine through, can get rebranded, say, as *cough* a broad quest for a moral life *cough* while amazing writing/depth is dismissed if it's not from such privileged corners!
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