Why We Write About Ourselves with Meredith Maran

Meredith Maran & Crystal-Lee Quibell discuss why we write about ourselves, as well as the risks and rewards of memoir. Meredith Maran is the author of a dozen nonfiction books and an acclaimed novel, Meredith is a member of the National Book Critics Circle and the MacDowell Fellows West. She writes features, essays, and book reviews for People, Salon, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Review of Books, Real Simple, Mother Jones, Good Housekeeping, and other publications. Her latest book is a collection of essays - Why We Write About Ourselves: Twenty Memoirists on Why They Expose Themselves (and Others) in the Name of Literature. Crystal-Lee Quibell is the host of Literary Speaking, a weekly podcast dedicated to helping writers learn from best-selling authors, literary agents, and publishers. Founder of The Magical Writers Group, a private teaching forum for writers specifically focused on memoir. She is a champion for the written word, student of publishing and an obsessive book collector with a serious case of wanderlust. A self-described mermaid and witchy woman for life, she believes that life is better with books, chocolate, and the occasional cheese board. Her upcoming essay is to be featured in the forthcoming book, The Magic Of Memoir: Inspiration for the Writer's Journey.