“The other reason I didn't want to fictionalize it is because one of the main points of publishing a memoir in nonfiction was that I wanted to write about what had been a very lonely experience. The books that most saved my life as a kid were the ones that articulated lonely experiences that I had thought were mine alone.” WantWritingBookReasonKidsWantedMinesLonelySavedMemoirNonfictionPublishing Author:Melissa Febos
“I'm always writing to a younger version of myself, or a young woman who is like I was. I want that girl to know that I really existed and that it all went down that way.” KnowsWayWantWritingYoungGirlVersionsYoung WomenThat Girl Author:Melissa Febos
“I think that more so, my wonderful skill of dissociation came in very handy. I care very much what other people think. I'm a total pleaser. I want everyone to like me all the time. I feel like people who don't feel that way on some level are lying, but particularly female memoirists. We want to be seen and we want to be forgiven. So that occurred to me very early on.” PeopleThinkingWayWantFeelsCareLyingLevelsWonderfulSkillsFemaleLike MeI CareForgivenDissociationHandyPleasers Author:Melissa Febos
“At a glance, addiction, sex work, mad passion, and all forms of extreme behavior might look like pushing or trying to obliterate boundaries when, more honestly, they are a search for them. I want to find the endpoint, the place where my own powers end, so I can yield to something that I'm certain is bigger than me.” WantTryingLooksI CanEndsMightFormCertainPassionSexMy OwnBehaviorBiggerMadAddictionExtremesHonestlyBoundariesPushingYieldGlancesSex Work Author:Melissa Febos
“I can still discern people's weaknesses, but it doesn't make me want to exploit them; it makes me want to hug them.” PeopleWantStillsI CanWeaknessHugExploits Author:Melissa Febos
