The writer Susan Shapiro has a
nice piece about "grabbing your reader by the throat." Called "Make Me Worry You're Not OK," it's about sharing your humiliation early and often, and always deeply.
Over 20 years of teaching, I have made “the humiliation essay” my
signature assignment. It encourages students to shed vanity and
pretension and relive an embarrassing moment that makes them look silly,
fearful, fragile or naked.
You
can’t remain removed and dignified and ace it. I do promise my students,
though, that through the art of writing, they can transform their worst
experience into the most beautiful. I found that those who cried while
reading their piece aloud often later saw it in print. I believe that’s
because they were coming from the right place — not the hip, but the
heart.
She adds a bit later:
The author Phillip Lopate complains that the problem with confessional
writing is that people don’t confess enough. And I agree. The biggest
mistake new writers make is going to the computer wearing a three-piece
suit. They craft love letters about their wonderful parents, spouses,
children and they share upbeat anecdotal slices of life.
This assignment will be coming soon to your Newfield course.
