What Writing Taught Beth Ann Fennelly About Revising Her Own Life Stories

I’ve long admired writer Beth Ann Fennelly—a fellow Mississippi transplant and memoirist. Not only did I devour her last book (and first collection of micro-memoirs), Heating & Cooling, but I later went back to her 2006 epistolary memoir Great with Child, which was a balm during my COVID-era pregnancy. Mississippi’s former poet laureate needs no introduction—which is fitting considering how I completely failed to introduce her at the start of our conversation! Beth Ann Fennelly’s forthcoming book, The Irish Goodbye, is a powerful follow-up to Heating and Cooling, and as Beth Ann shared in our conversation, the cover was intentionally designed to be in conversation with the 2017 collection. During our conversation, Beth Ann talked about how the micro-memoir (a term she coined) combines her favorite elements from the genres she writes in, about how she whittled her manuscript into it’s current form, and about writing through and into grief. And yes, she spoke about learning to revise the stories she once believed about herself—something I found deeply relatable.By the way, we caught up less than twenty-four hours after power was (thankfully, finally) restored to Beth Ann’s Oxford home. Read this essay she just published in Garden & Gun about surviving the storm and losing a beloved tree.The Irish Goodbye: Micro-Memoirs comes out February 24 and is available now for pre-order. Head to Beth Ann’s website to see her upcoming calendar of book tour events. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rooted.substack.com/subscribe