An interview with writer, Renee DeMont.
Renee DeMont grew up homeless in Southern California. That is, until her parents surrendered her and all of her siblings into the foster care system. The effects of sleeping in cars and on park benches followed Renee into her adulthood long after she’d been adopted into a “forever” family and had had children of her own. A hard journey, to be sure.
So why relive it by writing the story? Why go back over the hardest moments of a life and recreate them with so much vivid detail that the memories come alive again and haunt your dreams while you write? Why cull through boxes of letters and pictures and sad memories? I ask Renee these questions and invite her to let us in on her processes and motivations for the journey she’s been on.
As one of the first students to write her story in The Narrative Project when we launched three years ago, Renee is now completing her remarkable book and has publishing prospects on the horizon. If you’re thinking of writing about hard things, watch my interview with her and take courage, dear writer.
