Written by Sasha Zatz
A timely and heartfelt collection of essays inspired by the #MeToo movement, edited by acclaimed young adult and middle-grade author Janet Gurtler. Featuring Beth Revis, Mackenzi Lee, Ellen Hopkins, Saundra Mitchell, Jennifer Brown, Cheryl Rainfield, and many more.
We had the pleasure of talking to Janet Gurtler about You Too?, which publishes on January 7th 2020. Janet discusses about how the anthology came together, the essays she contributed, writing, advice, and much more!
Hi Janet! Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Sure! I’m a kooky old woman who has gotten more outspoken in my fifties. It’s not a bad thing. Getting older or being outspoken. I like to help people I care about and I’ve always been a cheerleader for underdogs. I like nice people. I like people who are kind to food servers. I like the quiet people sitting in corners at parties as much as the person getting all the laughs. I’m not perfect, far from it in fact, but I am trying to become a better person. I used to be a DJ in a nightclub way back when I was in my early twenties. I like to tell that story, because I think it makes me sound cool. My husband rolls his eyes because he’s convinced that I’m not.
In case some readers don’t know about your upcoming book You Too?, what can you tell us about it?
You Too? is an anthology that has heartfelt and powerful essays from young adult writers about #metoo issues that happened in their teen or younger years. It’s often a hard read, but also sort of cleansing, I think. My belief is that we need to keep talking about the tough things that happened to us, not for shock value but to help build a world where kids can grow up and know it’s not okay for sexual harassment or abuse to happen to them. And, that’s it not their fault if it does or did.
When did you first know you wanted to make this anthology happen?
I watched with the world when #metoo stories exploded on social media. And I was shocked. Not because the stories were coming out, but because there were people who actually hadn’t experienced some form of sexual harassment as young people. It seemed to me that almost every woman I knew had at least one story and most had many. Men too. Men have #metoo stories that they never talk about.
I thought about how often I put up with things as a young person how it was “just the way things were”. And I thought, you know, we should talk about these stories with young people. Talk about what we went through. And that’s where the book idea was born. By sharing experiences we’re taking back the narrative and removing the shame. Trying to at least.
How did you find or select the authors you wanted to contribute to You Too?
I less feel like I selected people and more like I was blessed with authors who agreed to be a part of something that wasn’t comfortable to do.
It was not easy to reach out and ask for people to share such personal stories. And I don’t know that I did it right initially. I emailed authors. I asked for contact info from other people. It was a process of asking some authors I “know” or authors I knew were vocal about supporting the #metoo movement. I asked around. Some people didn’t feel comfortable sharing, and I totally respected that.
The one thing that was important to me and to Inkyard Press was that we wanted a diverse group of authors to be a part of this book. The more people who can relate to the essays or even learn something from them, the better.
Can you tell us a little about the process of putting together the anthology?
I learned as I went. It was a new experience for me editing personal essays and putting them into book form. Once authors agreed to be a part of the anthology, they signed a standard publishing contract. The guidelines were pretty loose as far as word count and subject matter. I wanted it to be their story. I did some initial editing and quite enjoyed that process, but the essays are also raw and honest, and it was emotional. Many of the authors found the essays difficult to write and I wanted to be respectful of that. Going back and rehashing difficult memories isn’t simple to do, and the editing was a gentle process. It isn’t easy to share such personal stories with the world. I know that and I feel really protective of the people involved in this book.
Technically, I had to figure how to put the book together and the order of the essays. I eventually decided to go with alphabetical. It worked out well. The first essay in the book is by Patty Blount, and it’s one of the essays that gutted me. Tough and emotional. It hurts to read. It’s also necessary to hear. Because there are people out there who prey on children. And those children need to be protected and heard.
Who are your role models when it comes to writing?
How long do you have to listen? Lol. I have so many writers I admire. Role models for me are authors who go to the deep dark places with honesty and are able to make readers feel emotion and hope. Jo Knowles, Ellen Hopkins, A.S. King are a few examples.
Did you find it difficult to write your essay, Before Starbucks or Cellphones?
Yes and no. I told someone else’s #metoo story from my pov, and I was worried about that part. I did end up speaking to this old friend from my teen years, and I sent her the essay to read before the book was published, so I’m glad about that. The other part of my essay, the things that happened to me weren’t hard to write down. Many have come out in other ways in my fiction. I think it’s harder knowing that people who know me not as an author, but just as plain old Janet. may read the essay and see a more vulnerable part of me than I generally present to the world. It’s okay. I’m trying to be real.
In your story, you talk about how you wish you had taught your son more about sexual assault. How do you think parents should educate their children – both boys and girls – around the topic?
That’s a great question and something I have thought about a lot. I’ve read some great material on how to teach consent to young kids. I think that’s a good place to start when kids are really young. That they have the right to say no to people who make them uncomfortable. And that’s it’s okay to tell someone if it happens. And for young boys and girls, I think it’s important they learn how to respect each other and what is and isn’t appropriate behavior. I think open dialogue from parents is a big part of educating kids, especially in this era of social media and everything good and bad that’s available to look at online.
How do you think society has progressed in terms of sexual assault and the stigma surrounding it since your teenage years?
I really hope that we’ve made progress. The #metoo explosion pulled back some curtains. I also think we are still learning and there’s still lots of work to do. I remember reading about a college boy who raped a girl who was passed out at a party. And how his parents and teammates defended his behavior when he was caught. The old ‘boys being boys’ excuse. I read about how much it damaged the girl. Boys need to learn to do better. I think there’s a lot of work still to be done. Clothing does not cause rape or sexual assault. Blaming the victim has not gone away. I am hopeful that we are listening though. And that change is happening.
If you could tell your younger self one thing, what would it be?
I would hug my young self tight and whisper in her ear that things were going to be okay. That I deserved to be treated with respect and that my physical appearance did not dictate what kind of person I was or how people could treat me.
What were your initial thoughts and feelings when the #MeToo movement started in 2006?
My initial thought was, well no kidding, this doesn’t surprise me one bit. Harassment and abuse have been going on for a very long time and most people have just felt unable to say anything. Finally, people are able to talk about what happened to them. Finally, we’re able to acknowledge when things are not what they should be.
I was also really angry for the women sharing their stories, and sad because so many of them were still carrying shame and being blamed for things they had no control over. The anger spurred me towards putting together this book.
What is your best piece of advice for aspiring authors?
Strap on your seatbelt, it’s going to be a bumpy ride. Most of all, persevere. I think that’s how I got my first book published. I kept going. I got knocked down hard a few times by really tough rejections, but I kept going. If you really want this, keep at it. Getting a book published probably WON’T change your life. But it’s pretty darn cool and has some really great moments.
And finally, You Too? Is out this week. What do you hope readers take away from this anthology?
I hope the readers find truth and understanding in the essays they read. I hope the book reaches young people and people who were once young, and shows them they are not alone. Hearing other people’s truths and hardship helps us to feel empathy. And outrage. I hope readers who went through similar things see that what happened to other people was not okay. And whatever happened to them wasn’t okay either. I hope people feel like they can talk about some of these difficult things. If they want to. I hope this book keeps people talking and listening.
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