Unveiling Heartbreak and Healing: Brenda Miller Reveals the Secrets Behind Her Powerful New Memoir.
BM: Oh, yeah. Well, especially with nonfiction, it’s when an author forgoes the summarizing intro into their story — what we call ‘clearing the throat’ or ‘getting on the runway,’ right? Just drop me in the situation, or give me an image, something very vivid that draws me in without the writer seeming to say, ‘Hey, hey, I want to tell you about this thing! You’ll be really interested, so just come over here with me! It’s my life story and it’s really important!’ Instead, when it’s good, I’m just floating on a river with somebody, and it usually happens in the present tense. When we’re just in the experience with someone. And a voice that is exploring it all along with us, rather than telling us about it.
