I'm reading a book on memoir writing right now- not quite sure why. I'm not old or storied enough to write one (brag). I do enjoy reading them though, and I'm finding interesting connections between memoirists and songwriters in their pursuit of authenticity.

The book is called The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr.

"Even the most buttoned-up or recalcitrant person, trying to restrain feeling, can't help but convey it in close proximity if she's telling those core stories that've seemingly shaped who she is.

The least articulate of confessors can- in fleeting moments of connection- move me as a great symphony does."

Mary Karr

Karr writes that it's from this exact need to "capture the shared connections between us" that art like symphonies- and memoirs- were created.

All writing is communication, but good writing is connection. When what is burning within me reaches out and lights the tinder within you, art has served its purpose.

Back in the day, before everyone learned to narrate their experiences using therapeutic language, songwriters could gesture towards an emotion and the pinhole of truth shining through had the power to light up the hearts of millions.

These days, we have become so fluent in vulnerability that emotional gore alone no longer feels revelatory. Everyone has an interiority, and people are way more comfortable sharing them than ever before.

But is vulnerability enough? If not, what actually makes art connect with people?

"Sincerity has always had its place in art, particularly the singer-songwriter tradition, but it can’t be the entire point. Feeling something deeply and expressing it honestly are not enough to guarantee an interesting final work."
Bea Isaacson for Dazed

The cheapening of authenticity, accelerated by social media and capitalized upon by the "wellness" industry, is another symptom of a hyperconnected yet interpersonally divided world. It's a reflection of the supreme importance applied to the self, and the resulting de-emphasis on the collective.

We've become very good at self-exposure, but simply telling me about yourself is now the table stakes. Good art tells me something about myself, in the context of the other.

I can come up with all of the revelatory insights I want inside my personal vacuum, but once they fit like a puzzle piece into the experiences of others, they become real.

In her piece "Being earnest doesn’t make you an interesting artist", Bea Isaacson compares some Substack bloggers to incisive and defining writers like Joan Didion and Eve Babitz.

"Neither writer assumed disclosure meant depth;" Isaacson observes, "Their writing was powerful because it revealed something beyond their own experiences."

I just deleted a bunch of rambly paragraphs about truth that I need to think about a lot more. Let's get back into it next week.

xoxo

FIELD NOTES

• I RELEASED A SONG LAST WEEK! God, you’d think I didn’t want you to know. It's called Hot Nights. Take a listen here.

• I deeply urge you to come to the Chris Garneau / Sophie Noel show on September 2 at the Sanctuary Arts Centre in Dartmouth. Tickets here.