MENTORSHIP RECIPIENT

Mentorship Recipient
Recurring Apart-ment

Mentor Commentary:
Jason Harris

On the Revision Process for "Recurring Apart-ment"

by ​​Megan Hanlon​

This fragmented essay sprung out of a Literary Cleveland Flash Fiction Fest workshop hosted by Kathy Fish. It pivots between descriptions of a recurring dream I’ve had over the last couple of years, and my feelings about being a stay-at-home and work-from-home mother of two. It took months for me to realize that my dreams were a response to the enormous responsibilities and challenges of life as a wife and mother, and a longing to have my own space both physically and emotionally. 

Too often in our society, women are expected to put others first at the expense of our own dreams, pursuits, and identities. Anything less makes you a bad mother. I hope this essay speaks to other mothers who feel that they, too, have lost their names and become only “mom” – you’re not alone, and missing your old identity is not unforgivable. I also hope it reaches people who can’t understand how a loving parent could feel this way, and helps them embrace compassion. 

I went into the editing process concerned whether my piece would still look and feel like my own work after all was said and done. But Jason’s suggestions were thoughtful and generous. He aimed to help me fine tune the piece, not rewrite it, and I was extremely grateful for his insights. I don’t come from the literary world – my background is in print journalism – and he helped me think about what I was writing from new and different perspectives. In talking through the process with him, I also better understood my own motivations and goals with the work.

I am grateful for what I am learning through Literary Cleveland and Gordon Square Review, the chance to work with an editor like Jason, and the opportunity to publish my first piece in a mainstream literary magazine.

Megan Hanlon is a podcast producer who sometimes writes. Her work has appeared in several online publications including MUTHA Magazine, as well as the anthologies The Order of Us and The History of Us. Her blog, Sugar Pig, is known for relentlessly honest essays that are equal parts tragedy and comedy. She lives in North Ridgeville.

Follow Megan on Facebook and Twitter: @sugarpigblog