Meet the Author: Vig Gleeson

Hello Readers,

I’m delighted to present another instalment of “Meet the Author,” and it’s an absolute pleasure to introduce Vig Gleeson. Vig is the author of the compelling memoir “Speak #Truth Lies.” I first had the privilege of connecting with Vig on Instagram and had the honour of participating in one of her inspirational Artist Circle sessions. Vig’s gentle and compassionate nature shines through in all her interactions, making it truly wonderful to be part of her writing circle.

Vig Gleeson

Vig’s Website

https://viggleeson.com/

Usha: Welcome, Vig! Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself ?

Vig: Thank you so much for having me on Met the Author, Usha, it is lovely to be here with you.

After seven years of writing my memoir, I am super proud to finally call myself an author after publishing Speak #TRUTH Lies in June 2023. To be honest, I could not have done this on my own and I’m so grateful for all the help I received in revising and editing my manuscript into a story readers loved to read. It might take a village to raise a child, and it certainly takes a writing Circle to raise a memoir. The women I worked with led me to mentor and offer developmental editing to other memoir writers. My background in graphic design, photography and marketing has been a tremendous help on the publishing and sales journey. My passion is to create safe spaces of encouragement for writers to share their own stories.

Usha: Let’s dive right in. What’s your favourite genre to read, and do you have a favourite within that genre?

Vig Gleeson: I love raw and honest stories, so memoirs, above all else, are my genre. They’re like a treasure trove of human experiences. In a good memoir, I look for depth, the kind that delves into the psychology of the protagonist. A platonic story that it’s taking me on a profound journey of change, gets boring, for me. A good memoir should be a rollercoaster of emotions. I want to learn something and really understand the author’s reasoning. Travel memoirs don’t usually do it for me, except for Maya Angelou’s memoirs when she travelled in Egypt and Africa, which – as I’ve lived and travelled there myself – resonates with me. Some of my all-time favourite memoirs include “Angela’s Ashes” by Frank McCourt, “The Liars’ Club” by Mary Karr, “Educated” by Tara Westover and ‘The Glass Castle’ by Jeannette Walls. They are all true stories of growing out of childhood trauma, which, as those who’ve read Speak #TRUTH Lies, will know, resonates with me. I also enjoy stories written by authors who have been in cults or under some kind of spell, be it religion, addiction or relationship dependency, who describe their journeys to freedom through self-reflection. These experiences involve significant mind changes, which fascinate me. So yeah, honesty and deep exploration, are the stories that keep me turning pages. And as with all memoirs, you know the protagonist lived to tell the story.

Usha: Fascinating! Now, what’s your preference when it comes to reading formats: paperback, hardback, e-books, or audiobooks?

Vig Gleeson: I’m a huge audiobook fan. I subscribe to Scribd which has a vast library of books in all genres. I love that I can switch to the next book if the narrator’s voice or the story isn’t right for me. My most listened-to books as autobiographies, memoirs, historical or true-to-life fiction and self-help books. Still, I can’t live without my Kindle Paperwhite. I always read in bed and the Kindle is perfect for that, and where else would you keep a library of a thousand books? These days, I rarely buy physical books unless they are from a must-have author I love or a beautifully designed craft book or books on writing that I refer to as guideposts and inspiration when I write.

Usha: I am curious about your writing habits. Do you have a go-to snack or drink when you’re writing?

Vig Gleeson: Sparkling water, all day and all year. A vanilla coffee in the morning, and later in the day flavoured Pukka tea – liquorice is my favourite. I rarely eat while typing, sticky fingers don’t work well on my keyboard. But, when I’m snuggled up on the sofa with paper and pen, of an evening, you might find me with a glass of wine, some chocolate, crackers and cheese, or even crisps. Though my body reacts adversely to crisps nowadays, when I have it, it’s like my rebellious inner teen comes out to play (Vig giggles). I’m okay with that occasional indulgence.

Usha: Do you see writing as a spiritual or therapeutic practice?

Vig Gleeson: Absolutely, writing is therapy on the page! It’s how I work out my thoughts, figure out who I am, and how to navigate challenging situations. Writing is my way of getting comfortable with the uncomfortable. I’ve been writing since I was a kid, and it’s essential for my self-discovery. Seeing my thoughts and emotions on the page lets me reflect on how past experiences still play out in my thoughts, reactions and choices today. Writing helps me clarify who I am, what I believe, and how I want to behave. It’s a constant journey to self-discovery.

Usha: I am curious about where you get your inspiration and knowledge about writing. Do you follow any blogs or websites for writers?

Vig Gleeson: I don’t follow any specific blogs or websites for writers, but I’m a member of a few great Facebook groups, and I listen to a lot of podcasts. Right now, I favour Ronit Plank’s ‘Let’s Talk Memoir’ podcast. Each episode brings me joy and teaches me something new. I occasionally listen to Marion Roach Smith’s podcast, “Qwerty.” On the business side of writing, I follow Helen Perry for her insights into marketing. I just completed her List Club course and it was amazing, now I have to put it into practice (Vig laughs). There are a few great memoir groups on Facebook where writers discuss their issues and celebrate each other’s successes. And of course, I have my memoir writing and reading Circles on Zoom, where we get intimate with our stories – these are fantastic communities I can’t do without in my writing life.

Usha: What is the most difficult part of your writing process?

Vig: Writing a memoir is mentally challenging. Revisiting painful memories can lead to depression, and it’s essential to know how to deal with the feelings and emotions positively. When depression hits, I’ve learned it’s time for reflection. It’s a time to feel what it’s like to be in those dark places, as those experiences become part of the character that comes through on the page. Writing is a healing process.

In terms of the technical writing process, the most challenging part for me was developing the structure and finding the arc of my story. I wrote a braided memoir (like Cheryl Strayed’s ‘Wild’), heavily themed around the estranged relationship between a father and daughter. Early drafts moved back and forth in time so much that it gave one of my beta readers whiplash – her word, not mine (Vig laughs). It took a long time to figure out how to make the narrative flow into a story the reader can follow with ease and enjoyment.

Usha: If you could choose a celebrity to narrate your book as an audiobook, which celebrity would you choose?

Vig: I believe memoirs should narrate their own audiobooks because the author’s voice on the page is the voice I want to hear in my ears. I love this question though and if I had to choose a celebrity, it would be either Emma Thompson or Meryl Streep. I can imagine Meryl Streep narrating my book in the soothing Danish voice she used for Karen Blixen in the movie “Out of Africa’.

Emma Thompson’s performance in the ‘Both Side Now’ scene in ‘Love Actually,’ matches the raw authentic scenes, in my memoir, where the reader sees me unravel in sorrow from not being loved by my father while at the same time ‘holding it together’ for the sake of the people around me. These were heart-breaking moments both Emma and Meryl could beautifully render to a listener.

Usha: What advice would you give to a writer working on their first book?

Vig: I love this question, apart from the word advice. I’m cautious about giving advice because no size fits all. So, my first advice is to be very careful about listening to teachers and coaches who give advice. For someone embarking on their first memoir, I would say, be gentle with yourself as you excavate your story. If deadlines work for you, set small incremental goals for completing one scene at a time. I overshot my first deadline for completing my memoir by five years. It was detrimental to my mental health and it took months to recover from my perceived failure. Don’t rush the process. Get the words down without looking to perfect them. Listen for the voice of the person you were at the time you write about and let her voice guide you on the page. You may not like the one you were, but she’s part of your arc and it is the arc of how she changes the reader will love. Accept that you will write a lot of rubbish, some you will use, some you will discard but no writing is ever wasted because inside your pile of rubbish are the seeds for the scenes that show your story. When you read your writing, meditate on the questions: “What is this about?” and ‘Who am I?” When you answer these questions truthfully, they will connect you with the universal themes your readers can relate to. Later, when you get to the rewrite and editing stage, find a developmental editor, mentor or memoir circle to help you see the arc of your story. Magic happens when we share our stories before they are fully formed. It is in the reflection of someone you fully trust with your story that you start to understand how your story is received and what it is about.

With the right guides, you learn to detach from the character ‘you’ and get to know the ‘narrator’ you and the ‘author’ you. This is important when you come to craft the kind of story that’s worthy of your reader’s time and attention. When fear rises from your page and your inner critic screams in your ear; ‘I can’t write this, I can’t say this, this is too shameful, what if so and so reads it?’ Rest assured, no one will read anything before you publish it. And by that time, you will be ready.

Another terrible piece of advice I listened to in the early days of drafting was; ‘You must define your target audience.’ Maybe this is good advice for fiction writers but a memoirist writes for herself. First and foremost, you write to get to know yourself.

The other advice I got was, that you must know your arc, i.e. show how the events of your life changed you. Unless you write a platonic memory of how you left your job and started this amazing business and now you’re happy, you find your arc as you write. It is part of the process. On word count, all I can say is, find your own writing rhythm. It doesn’t matter how many words you write each day or if you write no words for a month and then 10,000 words over a weekend, just keep writing, be gentle with yourself, and be open to it taking a lot longer than you think.

Usha: What’s next for you? Any new projects on the horizon?

Vig: The biggest surprise of publishing has been the discovery that Amazon won’t ship physical books to Ireland, so until the end of the year my focus is on book sales and making the paperback available in all countries where I have readers. This means I have to sell directly and through booksellers – another unexpected and steep learning curve for me but I enjoy it because it brings me closer to my readers. I’m also recording Speak #TRUTH Lies as an audiobook.

While I continue to offer mentorship and developmental services, my big love is creating circles for life and memoir readers and writers to share their stories and be heard. I hear from many readers who relate to my experiences by telling me their own stories. These stories need to come out, especially for women. Society has conditioned us to believe that we should take a certain path in life, get married, have children, and earn an income. If we deviate from this path, it’s often seen as strange.

I want to encourage these stories out into the world, maybe as essays or within a small community. Not everyone has to publish a memoir, but we all want to be heard. That’s the essence of my project, to create a circle, a vessel, for people who want to write and share their stories. It’s a loving community. It’s not about becoming famous authors but about being heard and connecting with others.

With my Circles, I’m writing my next memoir, Speak #TRUTH Write, where I share the journey of writing my first memoir.

Usha: Thank you, Vig, for sharing your insights and experiences with us today. It’s been a pleasure having you as a guest!

And to our readers, if you’d like to connect with Vig Gleeson or learn more about her work, you can head over to her website and sign up to her email Circular