Episode 124: Out of the Vortex by Amy Whitehouse

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Today, Fable and the Verbivore are thrilled to share an episode that’s half book discussion and half author interview featuring our friend Rachel Schroeder and her mother Amy Whitehouse, author of the poignant and powerful “Out of the Vortex: A Memoir”.

The path to this conversation was a unique one. We asked Rachel if she’d be willing to join us on one of our “conversation with a reader” segments and one of the book options she gave us was her mother’s memoir. Having already planned to discuss memoir during the month of January, it felt like it could be kismet. After reading it for ourselves and Amy graciously agreeing to join our conversation, we knew it was.

“Out of the Vortex” is a brave and unflinching memoir, focusing on the impact the vortex of alcoholism had on Amy’s life, home environment, immediate family, and their relationships with one another. Her story doesn’t shy away from the hard things of addiction, but it also renders the complicated lives of those around her with empathy and authenticity. She describes the love and bright points of her life with the same dedication and emotional honesty that she uses to paint the moments of hurt and pain. By the end of the book, you understand just how hard fought and won her sobriety is to this day - and it feels like a call for us (the reader) to engage with our own struggles.

In this episode, we explore memoir from both the lenses of readers and a writer. Rachel unpacks why she connects so strongly with memoir as a genre and this story in particular - having the gift of hearing a story that’s has such personal meaning to her in her mom’s own words. Amy talks about some of the unique challenges of writing memoir, as well as fears associated with sharing a story that is so personal, in addition to the vulnerability of sharing her writing and putting it out in the world. We also discuss together the power that memoir has to engage empathy as well as to encourage others to face their own stories from the past.

We hope you enjoy this episode! We feel grateful to have been a part of this conversation and to be able to to share it with you!

Keep reading, writing, and putting your voice out there!

Into the woods,

Fable & The Verbivore

Notes:

Amy Whitehouse is a writer, full-time artist, and painting instructor. She also has a Master of Arts degree in Family Therapy. Her short story “Safe” was published in Canyon Voices of Arizona State University and another has been featured in the literary journal Gravel. “Out of the Vortex: A Memoir” is her debut publication. Her artwork can be viewed at AmyWhitehousePaintings.com.

Rachel Schroeder is a lover of music, writing, reading, and the incredible chef behind Rachel’s Table. We (Bethany and Laura) were lucky enough to go to the same high school, where we all three sang in choir and acted in musicals together. We’re thankful to her wonderful movie nights that introduced us to the original film versions of “Little Women” and “Sabrina”. :-) We’re also grateful to be able to call her our friend.

The Verbivore reads a quote from the front of Amy’s book Out of the Vortex: A Memoir. It is as follows:

  • “For the more haunted among us, only looking back at the past can permit it finally to become past.” ― Mary Karr, “The Art of Memoir”

Amy mentions that she took a class on writing memoir with author Susan Pohlman, who is the founder and director of The Phoenix Writers Network. More information can be found on her class at: SusanPohlman.com.

Books Mentioned:

Music from: https://filmmusic.io
‘Friendly day’ by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
Licence: CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

book club, Conversations with a read, interviewBethany Stedman