HANDLING THE TRUTH: one could be yours. announcing a few cool Beth contests (with thanks to Wendy Robards)

You know how it is. It's a Saturday morning, hot, and you've been pushing away on a project for a very long time; you want to stop. Your email bell rings and you are glad for the temporary pass out.

And then you are blown away. Because there is Wendy Robards of Caribousmom announcing a gonzo contest involving all of your books. And you are thinking, No. Wait. She can't do that. And also. No. Wait. That sounds like fun. So you throw in a signed copy of your own to make the party just a tad splashier (though it was plenty splashy already). And then, after that, you keep thinking:

Why not throw another party a few blog doors down.

So here is what Wendy at Caribousmom is offering on her blog as part of the Armchair BEA extravaganza. Thank you, amazing amazing Wendy.

And here, on my blog, I offer this—a chance to win my second-to-last galley copy of Handling the Truth. (I want to keep the last for myself.) All you have to do is write one single sentence describing the memoir genre—what IS memoir?—and your name will be placed into the proverbial hat.

You have until June 5. Starting... now.

By the way, it just occurred to me that I should probably tell you more about this book. The early reviews and blurbs can be found here.

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Handling the Truth: notes on the launch journey

Later this year, on August 6th, Handling the Truth, my book about the making of memoir, the students I've taught, the many memoirs I've read, and the lessons I've learned, will be released by Gotham. 

I'll be celebrating its release on launch day at the main branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia, where I will be offering not just a reading but a workshop opportunity.

Between now and then I'll be blogging about the new exercises I'm giving to my current University of Pennsylvania memoir class, the new/old memoirs I'm reading, and the debate that continues to swirl around this form.  I'll notch these new exercises, reviews, and commentary onto the dedicated Handling page after they appear here, so that that page will then serve as a supplemental repository.

Because no book about writing, especially, is ever really done.

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