THE FOREST FOR THE TREES is about writing, publishing and what makes writers tick. This blog is dedicated to the self loathing that afflicts most writers. A community of like-minded malcontents gather here. I post less frequently now, but hopefully with as much vitriol. Please join in! Gluttons for punishment can scroll through the archives.
If I’ve learned one thing about writers, it’s this: we really are all alone. Thanks for reading. Love, Betsy
Please don’t tell anyone because I will deny it, but I am actually feeling happy and excited about the novel coming out next week. Thanks to everyone who is still hanging out the Lerner Home for Wayward Children and to everyone who has generously pre-ordered a copy. I found my voice here, and I’m really grateful to all of you letting me fly my freak flag for the last fifteen years.
Anyone interested in a virtual bookclub for Shred Sisters? Let me know in the comments and we’ll set it up.
If any of you are in NYC, please come to the launch of Shred Sisters! I’ll be in conversation with Patti Smith about process, writing, poetry, memoir and our 27-year collaboration. It’s on Wednesday, October 16. Hosted by McNally Jackson. Judson Church. 55 Washington Square South. You can pre-order a ticket here: https://www.mcnallyjackson.com/betsy-lerner-presents-shred-sisters-book-rsvp
I’m a few weeks out from the publication of Shred Sisters. I started writing that novel here, a few years ago, when some of us took the thirty minute daily writing challenge. Before long, I was writing for hours a day, bolstered by this incredible community of malcontents and maniacs. I realize that I started posting FIFTEEN YEARS AGO when I was between writing projects, feeling somewhat adrift. I never expected to find so much vitriol and commiseration about the writing process. Or so many unstable people like myself full of self-loathing and grandiosity. A bunch of you finished the fuckers, some of you made friends, formed writing groups, others published their books. Some have disappeared, others just arrived. We lost the great Shanna Mahin. It’s been an incredible experience and I’m grateful to everyone who has reached out over the years, lurkers, too. I feel you. Thank you all so much for indulging me.
Think about doing a girl a solid and pre-ordering a copy before Oct. 1. I’ll be your best friend.
If you could be so kind Betsy, share the key. Mine is stuck in the G D lock.
The key for me was this: editors who turned the book down said that my main character, Amy, didn’t change enough by the end of the book. There is an obsession today of having characters change (and that generally means for the better). It is my deeply held belief that people don’t change all that much. In fact, time reveals who they really are and often they get worse, harden, ossify. My editor said, Amy doesn’t have to change, but she has to learn. That turned the key for me. All the disappointment she experiences needs to impact her, but no she doesn’t get the guy, the job, the rainbows and unicorns. I want to find out who a character is layer by layer; that’s all. That’s enough for me.
Who is your favorite fictional character and why? OR, what did you do on your summer vacation?
It’s exactly one month until publication date for Shred Sisters. I started it three years ago with the following sentence: Here are the ways I could start this story. It didn’t write itself, but for the next seven months I couldn’t stop writing. Then two years of revision. LOL. I had the help of many astute and generous readers and finally the best editor I could have hoped for. She took me through two rounds of editing that blew my mind. She helped me re-structure the book, she “alerted” me to my propensity for overwriting, she made sure every emotion tracked. She had big picture notes and incisive line edits. And then with a single piece of advice, she gave me the key.
What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve received?
Betsy Lerner 