For UW20 Prof. Cayo Gamber, Herstory Matters

In three pieces of nonfiction published in the Journal of The Association for Research on Mothering, Cayo Gamber discovers that it is through the stories she tells herself about her mother and through the act of story-telling itself that her relationship with her mother is both revealed and redeemed.

Prof. Gamber says: These three pieces of creative nonfiction attempt to capture the relationship between a mother who was ingenious, dramatic, and subversive and her daughter who found her inspiring, perilous, and furtive.

Lee Gutkind, editor and founder of the journal, Creative Nonfiction, argues that "[w]hat is most important and enjoyable about creative nonfiction is that it not only allows but also encourages the writer to become a part of the story or essay being written. The personal involvement creates a special magic that alleviates the suffering and anxiety of the writing experience; it provides many outlets for satisfaction and self-discovery, flexibility and freedom." (http://www.creativenonfiction.org/thejournal/whatiscnf.htm)

I agree with Gutkind that there is a special magic in this genre. For me, it was what I would call an "emotional truth-telling" that made these pieces magical for me in performing both as a participant in the story and a writer of that story.