I recently worked with author who I will call Mia. She wrote a book about mental illness, specifically her PTSD following sexual assault. I admired her work for its frankness and candor. I appreciated the bravery with which she shared her story.
Her poems included other types of art to create a multimedia journey, making the literary project experimental and unusual. She was going to dedicate any proceeds from book sales toward preventing sexual violence through youth education programs.
Eager to help her promote, I interviewed her for a blog. I was about to post the Q&A when I realized the book was no longer available anywhere to link it. Several other book blogs had already reviewed it, too, which made me sad that she had done some successful promotion of the book but took it down for some reason. I inquired with her directly about where the book was online.
I won’t give out any more identifying details because Mia was threatened and bullied upon its release to the point when she removed the book from the internet. Even though she did not specifically name names, those close to her were able to identify her perpetrator and began a campaign to protect him. This included slandering her to potential employers and other denigrating acts.
Mia did not live in the United States, but I feel like this could happen here, too. Despite how far we have come in terms of women being encouraged to share their stories, the punishment for women speaking against men in power is tyrannically thriving.
I spoke with her but could not convince her to publish the book under a pen name. That may be too simplistic a solution but is my immediate reaction to allow writers to speak their truth with impunity. Ultimately it was a healing journey for her, making it worthwhile, she says. I’m just disappointed that other women will not be able to receive her message of hope and courage.
The Heart of Literature 