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Cherrie Moraga, my writing mentor in college, has solidified her place in theater history. She's listed on course syllabuses alongside the likes of William Shakespeare, Samuel Beckett, Arthur Miller, and Tennessee Williams. If you want to get your PhD in Drama you better hope you know her name or you won't be getting that diploma.
Moraga is what you would call “a living legend,” but chances are, you never heard of her. It might not come as a big surprise why: she's an openly gay, biracial, Mexican-American woman. Let's just say that Hollywood is not burning to do a mainstream movie about her life.
It would seem that Moraga represents such a small section of society that one would wonder why she didn't just write plays that represented a more “mainstream” view of the world. She is a great writer, after all. Certainly she would have made a big commercial splash if she wanted to.
But instead of writing for a commercial, mainstream audience, Moraga has written about her own reality. In her work, there is no sign of the stereotype's we normally see in traditional media: her gay characters are not flamboyant; her Mexican-American characters are not hyper-religious “humble” servants or violent gangsters; and her women are not helpless victims who judge their worth and value according to a male’s standards.
On the contrary, her gay characters can be timid and complex, her Mexican-American characters are often times intelligent and subversive, and her women are often fiercely outspoken, empowered, and define their worth and value according to their own standards.
No, instead of conforming to popular representations and stereotypes of her many marginalized identities, Moraga, through the pages of her plays and essays, has created a body of work that is truly representative of her true self.
I was under Moraga’s instruction for four years. Over those four years, Moraga broke me in and taught me everything she knew about writing. Every year, she tore away a part of me that was not real, everything that was a part of some facade that was not me. She asked me to go deeper with my writing, she challenged me to go places where I did not want to go, and she sometimes, through her writing exercises, gently pushed my head down into the pain and hurt of my past and my present.
It was often daunting to swim in that place of brutal honesty with myself.
Today, I am not as daring as I was under Moraga’s mentorship, but I still remember the most important lesson she ever taught me: the importance of being my authentic self on the page.
Cherrie would say that the reason writers must bare their souls on the page is because someone out there in the world desperately needs to hear our story. There is a woman or a man out there that has suffered as we, the writer, have suffered, and that man or woman may not have the words or the strength to say what needs to be said, and to share what needs to be shared.
In writing our truth, and sharing it with the world, we touch a common place within all of us, and this process helps unite the broken pieces of humanity, and heals us all.
The World Needs You To Be You
Joanna asked me today to share with you how you can be more authentic in your writing, but the truth is, the “how” is very easy. Either you are being yourself in your writing, or you are not. There is no “in between.”
What keeps people from being authentic, then, is not that they do not know how to be authentic, but that they don't think there is a good enough reason to be authentic. They think the consequences of being themselves far outweigh any benefits. They just don't see why they should subject themselves to the criticism, misunderstanding, or rejection that might come from being their true selves.
So, today, I am not going to tell you how you can be more authentic—you already know how to do that—instead I'm going to give you “a good enough reason” to be authentic.
But first I’d like to share with you a personal story.
At the end of February, I celebrated my blog's one-year anniversary. The day after this momentous event, I received an e-mail from a young reader. This reader was going to be 16 years old. She was in high school, and she loved to write. She knew she was a writer; in fact, she had already finished the first draft of her novel. But she was shy, and the kids at school had been mean to her. She felt like she didn't belong at school, and she wanted to thank me because through my blog she found the encouragement to be her true herself. Through my blog she was able to feel a little bit less alone, and a little bit more accepted.
I had been receiving e-mails like this one almost every day for some months now, but this one, I'll have to admit, made me cry a bit.
It made me cry because this letter was only further proof that my writing mentor, Cherrie Moraga, was right. By being myself in my writing, I was able to speak to the common pain of humanity, and in turn, this young woman’s life felt validated. This young woman felt a bit more confident about her talents and abilities, and maybe just maybe, she’ll be able to make it through the pain and ridicule of high school and blossom into an amazing writer one day.
That's the healing power of being authentic.
So, today, I encourage you to be yourself in your work. Share a challenge you faced in your life with your readers, and tell them how you overcame that challenge.
Why? Because the world desperately needs you to be you.
Trust—don't doubt—that you still have so much to give to this world, even if you think you are the brokest of the broke, the lowest of the low, or the lamest of the lame. Trust that you know what to teach your reader, and trust that they will gain so much from your personal story of triumph, however large or small.
You know something that the rest of us don't know, and the only way we'll know it, is if you tell us. So tell us then. Trust that, in you, there is a knowing that will unearth itself as long as you are willing to remove all your masks and just be yourself.
Because as my writing mentor, Cherrie Moraga, would say: “You know more than you know you know–you know?”
Do you remember the last time your authenticity led to a positive result? In what areas do you think you could be more authentic on your blog or in your work?
Image: Flickr CC DaemonSquire
View Comments (22)
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1 2 Next »I was just thinking about this today, wondering how much I should share on my blog, and if I should hold back a little more. I always feel nervous about it, but that nervous feeling is usually a good sign - that I've hit on something true, or I'm taking a risk. Perfect timing on this post. Now how to be more authentic when it comes to writing, I still need to work on.
Hey T.S.! Nice to see you here.
You know my rule? Whenever I feel a little uncomfortable, not a lot, but a little, I know it means I should post that article.
It tells me that 1. no one has written this before {or else why would it make me uncomfortable?} 2. I'm going to touch something all of my readers are feeling as well, and they will appreciate it.
Good luck to you!
Thanks for the encouragement Ollin, completely agree>>Lucky 2 B U !
You're welcome, Kara! Keep being you!
What a lovely piece and very encouraging for all- not just writers! This is wonderful and I'm looking forward to more posts. The part about share a challenge and how you overcame that challenge was exactly what I needed to make what I'm working on fall into place! On authenticity, one of my favorite quotes: "To escape criticism: do nothing, say nothing, be nothing" - Elbert Hubbard. peace!
You're welcome Leigh! I'm glad this post helped you, and thank you for sharing that quote!
I really enjoyed your article and the information provided. Additionally, I liked what you said to the comment from T.S. I posted an article last year and felt SO uncomfortable with it being up. My mom thought that I should take it down because it was "too personal." I contemplated it over and over until I decided to take it down the next day. Well, the next day I went to check out my blog and I had comments and emails telling me how they could relate. In the end, I was so excited that people were empowered through my story; however, I was disappointed in myself that I didn't follow my first instinct. I would say that developing your authentic voice is key and will create a world of opportunities! Thanks for sharing :)
You're welcome Lakia. Usually we have to fight the voice inside us that says we should shrink back and close up. That voice I call the inner "saboteur" it's our greatest enemy. It's hard not to listen sometimes, because he tries to act in our best interest, but really he is not. He is setting us up for failure by making us believe he is helping us avoid it.
Just be yourself and success will come. :)
Thank you! I needed to hear this. It encourages me that I'm on the right track, and that my story really CAN help people! :')
Of course it can! I think the more you keeping sharing your story the more there will be this feedback loop. You will inspire your readers and they in turn will inspire you. I call it a "glorious cycle," as opposed to the "vicious" one. Hehe. I'm glad to have helped you.
Wow...just think how many times I have worn the "mask" to be someone else instead of being what God created me to be. This is pure gold, Ollin! I appreciate you!
You're welcome E.J.! We've all worn the mask, so you're not alone. Try taking it off for once, see how it feels.
A huge thank you to Ollin for this honest and useful post. I have been struck by how well he shares personal things. Perhaps my British-ness makes this deep sharing hard for me, hence why I asked his advice.
Thanks Ollin!
You're welcome Joanna!
No, even in America my open-ness would seem very unique. Most people are not as open on their blogs, or in person. Like I said in this post, it was Cherrie who taught me to be comfortable with my own uncomfortableness--because she made me realize that the ends would justify the means. I guess my point was that you can't teach authenticity because if it could be taught then that would defeat the whole purpose. Authenticity should come natural, from just being yourself.
Most people know how to do that, but when's the last time you heard a really good argument for being yourself? Most of the time we are encouraged to follow the masses and be like everyone else.
You're welcome!
Joanna, thanks for asking Ollin to post this message. I'm delighted that the wave of authenticity is being well received in the open market so that authors can feel free to write their most powerful words. And, I'm delighted that Ollin shared what it's like to receive the same authenticity from his readers in response.
You're welcome MaAnna. In my experience, being more and more authentic only gets me more and more readers. Which is usually the complete opposite of what you here.
Cherrie also spoke of "specificity." That if we are specific enough that we often times touch upon the universality of issues that we wouldn't have if we we're only being general. I think there is a "specificity" in being authentic and that's why this process is able to touch so many varied groups of people.
Thanks for the comment!
Thank you so much for this post. I really needed to read these words. I've been blogging about an issue very close to me and, at the same time, very revealing, stigmatized, and often swept under the rug. During the last week, I sort of ran out of steam and haven't posted anything. Your words are so encouraging and so true. I'm heading home from work to write a post tonight. Thank you again.
You're welcome Jenna. Remember, our individual stories and challenges can only be helpful and serve as a sort of inspiration if we share them with each other. Then and only then can we discover solutions to our problems and grow as an interconnected community.
Great post! I especially loved this part:
"She asked me to go deeper with my writing, she challenged me to go places where I did not want to go, and she sometimes, through her writing exercises, gently pushed my head down into the pain and hurt of my past and my present."
Amen. None of us should write something because we think that is what people will like. Sounds like she was a great teacher.
She was! I hope that other writers are as lucky as I am and are able to get wonderful writers to mentor them.